McLaren driver Bianca Bustamante gets a little bit of momentum heading into Qatar as she shifts her attention back to the F1 Academy season.
Filipina racer Bianca Bustamante was efficient in Formula E as she finished P3 in the women’s test held at the Circuito del Jarama in Madrid on Friday, November 8, with F1 Academy championship leader Abbi Pulling leading the pack.
It was Bustamante’s first time behind the wheel in a Formula E car, making good time and finished less than a second behind session leaders Pulling and multi-time W Series champion Jamie Chadwick.
The 19-year-old, who raced with the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team, clocked in 39 laps and made her best run in Lap 29 where she timed in 1:31.715 in the GEN3 Evo race car — which is 30 percent faster than what they currently race with in the F1 Academy.
Bustamante, P7 in the standings of F1 Academy, performed better than fellow McLaren driver Ella Lloyd who finished in P7 in the Formula E test.
Both McLarens finished ahead of inaugural F1 Academy season champion and Bustamante’s former teammate in PREMA Racing, Marta Garcia.
She also performed better than other F1 Academy drivers like Chloe Chambers, Nerea Marti, Lena Buhler, and Jessica Edgar, to name a few.
On social media, Bustamante expressed her delight at the results.
“You guys have no idea how much this means to me and everyone back home. We’ve worked so so hard the past 2 years and to think that I would ever get to drive a Formula E car is crazy!! Today those dreams came to life, proudly drove the papaya colors,” wrote Bustamante.
“We spent countless hours on the sim over the past few months to ensure I could make the most of this test. Driving what is probably the fastest car I’ve ever been in, it was a huge step in the McLaren Gen 3 Evo from F4. Working with such a professional team was probably the best part! Growing even more as a driver!” she added.
Outside of the F1 Academy, Bustamante also raced in multiple F4 championships this year and recently in her career, but the Formula E test, which mandated that the teams in the championship field women drivers before the start of the season, gave her a new experience.
Raring to end a scoreless streak at F1 Academy, Bustamante said that the Formula E test experience was something that she’ll bring to the next round when they return to Qatar for Round 6 at the end of the month.
Qatar will be the penultimate round of the 2024 F1 Academy season.
“We showed good pace and ending the test in P3! Great day, lots of things to carry forward! Especially as we’re back in the car in 2 days for the F1 Academy test in Qatar!” she said.