When W Series did not return for 2023, Alpine Academy junior Abbi Pulling had to look elsewhere for her next steps on the motorsport ladder. That soon became F1 Academy with Rodin Carlin and a return to traditional team-based racing. Feeder Series caught up with Pulling next to Rodin Carlin’s motorhome in the Barcelona F1 Academy paddock to see how life has changed for the British racer.

By Jim Kimberley

Of all the F1 Academy names that joined the all-new championship for its inaugural season, it’s arguable that Abbi Pulling came in with the strongest reputation. The then-teenager thrilled in British F4 for JHR in 2020 and 2021 before finding a lifeline in W Series when financial problems hit her 2021 campaign, again, to acclaim with a pole and a second-place finish in just her third weekend of racing.

Pulling completed a full season in W Series in 2022, but the all-female championship did not return for 2023 and she had to look elsewhere for her next steps on the feeder series ladder. F1 Academy soon became her landing spot as she partnered with Rodin Carlin and returned to team-based racing at the F4 level.

All change for Abbi

“The last eight months have been interesting,” Pulling begins, fresh out of a post-race debrief on Sunday morning after Race 3.

“The last three [months] in particular have probably been the most interesting. It’s been good. I’m physically a lot stronger… in a good place and… back in a car, which is good.

“It was all kind of up in the air [about] what I was gonna do. I finally ended up putting something together with Rodin Carlin, and here we are now.

“Alpine have supported me, and I wouldn’t be racing this year without them, so a massive thanks to them.”

It seems a refreshingly honest statement from 20-year-old Pulling and another sad reminder of how rapidly fortunes can change in the junior racing world. A year ago, to the day, she stood on the Barcelona podium in W Series after chasing down race winner Jamie Chadwick to record her season-best result on her way to fourth in the standings.

Going from those highs to the prospect of a hiatus from racing is a sharp contrast. Pulling does inform us that another option existed, but it might’ve had the same fate as her 2021 season.

“We were looking at the option of GB3. I actually did a test with Rodin Carlin at the end of last year.

“Up until about Christmas, I thought I was doing GB3. Then everything changed, and I ended up going into the F1 Academy. The budget is a third of what the other budget is.

“So it was more of a sensible budget to find. And to definitely be able to finish the season [in GB3], it would have been a bit too touch and go – a bit like British F4, when I did half the season.”

Adapting to life in F1 Academy

Although the two championships segregate female drivers away from their male counterparts, F1 Academy and W Series run distinct philosophies. The business model of partially funded versus fully funded seats is one element, and falling off the back of that is the team approach, something Pulling prefers.

“I much prefer having a team, a set team, around me that I have weekend to weekend. I can go somewhere and do some prep with my engineer.

“It’s very valuable that they’re providing us [with] the access to these teams so early on. All round, it’s good.”

Unfortunately for Pulling, that team element had all Rodin Carlin entries suffer a false start at the season-opener in Spielberg. Scrutineers found that all three cars had a non-homologated part that gave no performance advantage but was illegal nonetheless.

“Round one… was interesting. It was a wet qualifying, and we showed we had the pace.

“We just didn’t quite have the luck, and I’d start every race to the back, knocking on the doors of a podium despite starting at the back.

“I think I’m quite an aggressive driver and can come through the pack. I struggled a bit more in Valencia with that.

“I think a high-downforce car suits me. I’ve had to rein myself back in high-speed corners half the time because I’m barreling in so much, and I’m like, ‘Oh wait, actually, I have a smaller wing than I’m used to!’

“Other than that, it’s quite a fun car to drive. [The aero is] a little bit different. I think there’s probably a little less downforce with the different package that they have on the front and rear wing.

“But other than that… it’s a fun car to drive.”

Pulling Rodin Carlin forward

Jessica Edgar and Megan Gilkes also populate Rodin Carlin’s F1 Academy team. All three have British racing experience, with Gilkes also boasting time in W Series’ maiden 2019 season. Pulling opens up about the team dynamic.

“I think Jess is coming out of her shell. She was quite shy before. I didn’t know [her previously]. I mean, we’ve crossed paths, me and Jess, but never really probably had a conversation like we have now.

“It’s great to give her a bit of advice and for her to absorb it. It’s nice to see when she applies it.”

Megan Gilkes expressed similar thoughts about the team as Pulling when speaking to Feeder Series on Saturday evening.

“[I’m] definitely enjoying it. The results haven’t been there, and the team and I have been working really hard behind the scenes to sort the car out and get it to where we need to be, and we’re working on that.

“It’s been great working with Rodin Carlin, and I could never have dreamed of driving with a team like Rodin Carlin without the F1 Academy and the support that F1 have put into it.

“It’s fantastic to be here – fantastic to be racing for Rodin Carlin, and [I’m] really enjoying being back in the public spotlight.”

With three drivers contributing valuable data to the team effort, set-up variation is a key way to find an advantage against the other 12 drivers.

“We’ve gone some quite different ways with the set-up now,” Gilkes explains, “and we do sort of collect as a team and try and figure out what’s working best.

“It just really needs some dialling in. It’s great to see one of the Rodin Carlin drivers going really well and being at the front some of the time.”

That one driver is Pulling, whose 2023 efforts see her fourth in the standings with 77 points compared with Edgar’s 11th with 24 points and Gilkes’ 12th with 19 points.

Feeder Series asks Pulling if she feels she’s leading the Rodin Carlin efforts.

“I think I definitely am a team leader a little bit, and guinea-pigging some set-ups at times. All three of us do. Especially after Valencia, in the heat, we had to change a few things, and I think it’s worked.”

Thinking of the future

With the financial woes affecting Pulling’s previous seasons and money dictating the cars she can drive, we grit our teeth and ask the awkward question about the future.

“I don’t know anything about 2024 yet. I mean, behind the scenes, I’m training very hard and making sure I’m physically ready for a step up if the opportunity comes.

“But, at the moment, I want to sort out the performance this year. I’ve got to make sure that I’m at the front consistently and to minimize the gap that we have.”

Despite the lack of broadcasting for F1 Academy, reducing the series’ visibility, the championship still has attention thanks to F1’s backing, and we turn the focus onto whether that helps in finding new backers.

“1000%,” Pulling says. “This weekend I’ve got a new sponsor, Host Media, and then I’ve got First Alert. Obviously, BWT, Alpine…

“I’ve got quite a lot going on behind the scenes. I’ve got quite a lot of people supporting me at the moment, and it’s positive.

“I’m not struggling to travel to the tracks anymore! If I couldn’t turn it up, that wouldn’t be good, would it?

“It’s a great championship, and there’s a lot of attention, especially [what it brings] on social media.”

As light rain begins falling to end our interview, there’s just enough time to look ahead to F1 Academy’s next round at Zandvoort from 24–25 June.

“I think Zandvoort is a good track for me, and I’m just going to focus on maximizing it and getting everything right.

“I’m feeling quite good for Zandvoort,” Pulling says as she glances up at the steadily increasing shower. “And I wish this rain came about two hours earlier because I really wanted it to rain for [Race 3]!”

“I think we’re quite quick in the wet. I’ve got quite a lot of confidence throwing a car around.

“If there are any wet races this year, keep your eye out for the pink car flying through!”

It might not rain in the Netherlands in late June, but after years of watching Pulling in the cockpit, it’s probably wise to watch for her pink car in the remaining four rounds with 268 points still available.

Header photo credit: Alpine Cars