Can Alisha Palmowski win the championship in COTA?
In F1 Academy we head into the 5th round in COTA where championship leader Alisha Palmowski could win the championship but what can we look out for as we head into Austin Texas?
Three Race Grid format.
Due to changes in the calendar at the beginning of the season, not only is the circuit of the Americas being raced for the first time in F1 Academy but also hosts 3 races. Meaning that qualifying is crucial as the opening race takes your 2nd fastest qualifying lap to set the grid so track limits and traffic could not only impact one race but two. Also this opening race awards standard 25 points for first showing how important this is for the drivers in the championship
Championship
In the championship, Alisha Palmowski holds a 48 point lead over Emma Felbermayr after 4 wins so far this season with Alisha Palmowski mathematically able to win the championship. However, this could also see the championship heating up from 4th to 7th with Alba Larsen, Payton Wescott, Megan Bruce and Ella Lloyd all separated by only 4 points meaning that changes in the championship are extremely likely with the 3 races.
Overtaking
Overtaking is something to always look out for in COTA with the iconic uphill Turn 1 allowing many drivers to take different lines up to the hairpin and is a spot to look out for a lot of action and overtaking. The Back straight into Turn 12 is also a primary spot for action with heavy braking into Turn 12 a reliable spot for overtaking and in junior series, a very common spot for wheel to wheel racing. So, who do you think will come out on top?
Timing for the weekend (BST)
Free Practice:
Thursday 22nd October: 18:25 - 19:05
Qualifying:
Thursday 22nd October: 22:30 - 23:00
Opening race:
Friday 23rd October: 23:50 - 00:25 (Sat)
Reverse grid race:
Saturday 24th October: 20:45 - 21:20
Feature Race:
Sunday 25th October: 15:40 - 16:10
Article Written by Catherine Rammelt ©️Catherine Rammelt 2026
