The F1 Academy joined the Formula One World Championship for the seventh and final round of the 2023 season.
Abbi, a previous pole sitter here in W Series - hit the ground running, securing P2 on the grid for Race 1 in the first Qualifying Session. The Alpine Academy driver would then start P5 on the grid for Race 3 after the second Qualifying Session.
The opening race of the weekend saw Abbi make a good start and engaged in a battle with pole sitter Marta Garcia throughout the opening sector of the lap - coming very close in the fight for the lead!
An early Safety Car neutralised the field for 5 laps, before racing resumed.
Abbi would then chase down Marta all the way to the flag, getting close enough to make attempt for the victory on the Final Lap - but just missed out and finished in a strong P2 at the chequered flag.
Race 2 was the partially reversed grid race, where Abbi would start from P7 on the grid.
Abbi was on the move early on! Recovering a position on Marta Garcia, before continuing a charge through the field.
She continued to make progress with some clever car placement and race craft, finishing P4 at the chequered flag and took the Fastest Lap on the final lap of the race!
The third and final race of the weekend and therefore the season, saw Abbi start from P5 on the grid.
Abbi had a slow getaway dropping a number of positions, but recovered back into P6 by the end of the opening lap and right in the fight for the lead.
Her early progress was blunted by some questionable track limits implications by the drivers ahead, which denied Abbi an overtaking manoeuvre and delayed her progress.
In a largely uneventful race, Abbi pushed as a hard as she could to chase down the leading ground - ending the season with a solid P6 at the chequered flag.
Abbi Pulling said:
"It was a strong weekend to end the season. The team worked really well to build into the weekend. We started a bit on the back foot - being out of the setup window, but the team did a great job into Qualifying to recover the situation. We were just playing a bit of catch-up to get into the rhythm."
"I feel we maximised our opportunities, especially in Race 2 in the reversed-grid, coming through the pack well and having enough in hand to take the fastest lap was very satisfying."
"P2 in the first race was good, but I felt we deserved that win if I was maybe a bit more aggressive on Lap 1. If we got that jump, we had the pace to control it. I pushed hard and came close on the final lap - but it was still a good way to close out the season, even though it was a shame to miss out on that win that I feel we deserved."
Abbi ended the season P5 overall in the Championship, after securing 7 Podiums, 4 Fastest Laps and 3 Pole Positions.
It was a season of 'what-if's' for Abbi, after a lot of points went begging after a couple of technical infringements that were out of her control, costing her a huge amount of points and shots at victory.
However her 3 pole positions demonstrated her pace behind-the-wheel as she continues her development throughout her career.
The 2024 season is not far away and Abbi's plans will be revealed soon in due course!
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