Qualifying report
W Series Spielberg
Styria W Series: Powell takes maiden pole ahead of Moore
Alice Powell took her maiden W Series pole in qualifying at the first round of the season in Austria.
Megan White
Edited: Jun 27, 2021, 7:49 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
The Brit, who finished third in the championship in 2019, set a 1m28.964s in her Racing X sponsored machine to top the timesheet at the Red Bull Ring.
It was her first pole in the series, which took 2020 off amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Powell took podiums at each of the four races she finished last season, with her maiden win coming at the season finale at Brands Hatch.
Fellow Brit Sarah Moore (Scuderia W) will start in second, finishing less than two-tenths behind her compatriot, with teammate rookie Belen Garcia taking third place in the 30-minute qualifying session.
Last year’s runner-up Beitske Visser (M Forbes Motorsport) will start fourth, with Emma Kimilainen of Ecurie W in fifth, and Jessica Hawkins in her Racing X car in sixth.
Reigning champion Jamie Chadwick, driving for Veloce Racing, had been near the top of the grid and was first to break into the 1m29s, setting a 1m29.938 around halfway through the session, but finds herself eighth on the grid for tomorrow’s race.
Kimilainen set a quick lap within the first five minutes of the session, putting in a 1m32.603s, but Powell went quicker by almost four-tenths on her second attempt.
Powell then broke into the 1m30s, but Williams F1 development driver Chadwick soon went quickest by six-hundredths with a 1m30.602s, opting for a clean track run rather than trying for a slipstream.
By the ten-minute mark, rookie Ayla Agren (M Forbes Motorsport) had gone quickest, setting a 1m30.374, although she was quickly overtaken by Chadwick, who was almost two-tenths quicker.
Garcia took the top spot around the halfway mark, setting a 1m29.740 to knock the reigning champion off the top of the timesheet.
Fellow rookie Irina Sidorkova, driving for the W Series Academy team, also put in some impressive lap times, sitting in fourth position with ten minutes to go just one-hundredth behind Chadwick.
Later in the session, Visser managed a 1m29.446s to put her second quickest, with the top 14 separated by just one second.
Powell took the top spot with seven minutes to go, with Moore in second and Visser in third in an order reminiscent of 2019.
Qualifying results:
Cla Nº Driver Entrant Time Gap 1 27 Alice Powell Racing X 1'28.964 2 26 Sarah Moore Scuderia W 1'29.141 0.177 3 22 Belén García Scuderia W 1'29.171 0.207 4 95 Beitske Visser M. Forbes Motorsport 1'29.212 0.248 5 7 Emma Kimiläinen Ecurie W 1'29.305 0.341 6 21 Jessica Hawkins Racing X 1'29.309 0.345 7 19 Marta Garcia Puma W Series Team 1'29.329 0.365 8 55 Jamie Chadwick Veloce Racing 1'29.333 0.369 9 5 F.Wohlwend Bunker Racing 1'29.428 0.464 10 17 Ayla Agren M. Forbes Motorsport 1'29.459 0.495 11 97 Bruna Tomaselli Veloce Racing 1'29.517 0.553 12 44 Abbie Eaton Ecurie W 1'29.602 0.638 13 54 Miki Koyama Sirin Racing 1'29.616 0.652 14 51 Irina Sidorkova W Series Academy 1'29.674 0.710 15 11 Vicky Piria Sirin Racing 1'29.679 0.715 16 32 Nerea Martí W Series Academy 1'29.711 0.747 17 37 Sabré Cook Bunker Racing 1'30.032 1.068 18 3 Gosia Rdest Puma W Series Team 1'30.337 1.373
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article FIA promotes Safe and Affordable Helmet Programme in Africa
Next article Mercedes summoned to stewards over Bottas F1 pitlane spin
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Megan White
How an Alonso protege is shaping up to take F2 by storm
FIA F2
FIA F2
How an Alonso protege is shaping up to take F2 by storm
The key updates in F2’s bold new design
FIA F2
FIA F2
The key updates in F2’s bold new design
The star-studded graduates of Italy's junior series powerhouse
FIA F2
FIA F2
The star-studded graduates of Italy's junior series powerhouse
Latest news
Timmy Hill secures full-time NASCAR Truck ride for 2027
NASCAR Truck
NSTR NASCAR Truck
Homestead
1 h
Timmy Hill secures full-time NASCAR Truck ride for 2027
Kimi Antonelli admits he questioned himself throughout his rookie campaign
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
2 h
Kimi Antonelli admits he questioned himself throughout his rookie campaign
F1 Brazil GP: Friday schedule, weather forecast and how to watch
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
2 h
F1 Brazil GP: Friday schedule, weather forecast and how to watch
Oscar Piastri accepts Arvid Lindblad clash penalty; guidelines 'tricky' to enforce at Mexico opening corners
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Sao Paulo GP
2 h
Oscar Piastri accepts Arvid Lindblad clash penalty; guidelines 'tricky' to enforce at Mexico opening corners
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe