Jess Edgar continued her run of point-scoring finishes to open the F1 Academy season as the youngster clinched an eighth-place finish at Barcelona this weekend (June 21-23).

After a six-week break in action after the previous races in Miami, the American Express-backed 19-year-old showed good speed in the single practice session, finishing sixth quickest, just 0.6s from the fastest time.

In qualifying, she again drove well, but was a little disappointed to finish ninth in both sessions as she struggled to switch on the tyres, finishing 0.7s and 0.8s from pole position.

Jess had a good start to race one, battling with Tina Hausmann for sixth place into the first series of corners but settled into seventh before the Safety Car was called. With the race resuming on lap seven of 16, she had a strong restart, getting ahead of Hausmann for sixth. From there she was driving comfortably in that spot, but was handed a five-second time penalty for a false start, dropping her to eighth in the final classification.

The Cumbrian racer had another good launch of the line for race two, but had to take evasive action into turn one, going up the escape road and losing momentum, settling into seventh. Unfortunately, Jess found the car handling tougher and slipped back a couple of places, running ninth until the final few laps, when the tyre degradation got too much and, unable to fend off the advances of her rivals, she crossed the line 15th.

Despite that setback, Jess leaves Spain buoyed by positive performance during practice and continuing to improve her driving in the car, working to refine the setup to her preference. She will return to F1 Academy action in August, after an eight-weak break, racing alongside the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.

Championship: 8 (22 points)

Jess Commented: “Free practice was good, and we finished closer than I have done in the previous races in Miami and Jeddah, so that was positive. In qualifying I didn’t quite manage to get the tyres in quickly enough, which left me with understeer and meant things didn’t go to plan, so I finished P9 for races one and two.”

“Race one was good, and I finished P6 on track, but that became P8 as I was penalised for a false start. In race two I struggled a lot with the car and dropped back unfortunately. I can take away positives that I have improved my driving a lot, for example trying to drive around things when it doesn’t feel quite right and making the car feel as good as it can be, which gives me optimism for Zandvoort in August.”

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Jess Edgar recorded a second point-scoring finish in F1 Academy at the weekend (May 3-5), taking a seventh-place finish in race one alongside the Miami Grand Prix.

Ahead of the meeting, Jess unveiled a new look as she will represent American Express, sporting a custom race suit, and for the remaining races, with a custom livery featuring American Express and Shop Small® branding, as well as the logo of a local small business.

On track at the Miami International Autodrome – which weaves around Hard Rock Stadium – she didn’t qualify as well as she’d hoped, meaning it would be hard work in both races to move forward.

With a sensible, trouble-free run in the opening race on Saturday afternoon, she gained four positions to cross the line seventh and recording back-to-back points finishes after success in Saudi Arabia.

For race two Jess enjoyed an entertaining battle with Nerea Marti, winning out after the pair passed and re-passed each other. Back in seventh position again, she pushed on to pull out a gap but was unlucky to lose the rear and spin at turn seven, falling to 14th where she would finish.

Jess is part of both the BRDC Rising Stars and Motorsport UK Academy Team UK in 2024, as she is recognised as one of Britain’s growing talents in the sport. She will return to F1 Academy over the weekend of June 21-23, competing at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain.

Championship: 8 (18 points)

Jess Commented: “It was a tough weekend in Miami, unfortunately. We didn’t have the best of qualifying sessions and knew that was going to make it hard for us in the races. In the first one I found it tough starting back in P11, but I kept it out of trouble and finished P7, which was good as we scored points.

“In race two I was fighting for seventh with Nerea Marti for a few laps, but unfortunately a spin put us out of contention. I will continue to work hard from now until Barcelona and do my very best to get some better results there.”

Cumbrian based racer Jess Edgar claimed a well-earned fourth place finish on the opening weekend of the F1 Academy season, taking place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

After securing her maiden series victory in Austin last year, the teenager returned with Rodin Motorsport for the new campaign, which will race solely alongside the Formula 1 World Championship in 2024.

Battling for pace through practice and qualifying, the 18-year-old was a little disappointed to line up 10th and ninth for the two races on the streets alongside the Jeddah coastline.

In the opening contest Jess ran well, looking to find a way past those ahead. After six of the planned 12 laps, as Lia Block and Tina Hausmann held each other up, the teenager saw the opportunity to gain two places, getting a good drive out of the final corner and pulling alongside down the pit straight to pass both.

Sadly, Hausmann then made contact with Jess’ rear wheel, causing a puncture which was compounded by the fact that she then had to complete a full lap before being able to pit. By that point, a lap down, there was little she could do make up ground, finishing 15th.

Jess had a good start to race two, coming out of the first chicane in seventh position. Sitting right behind Lola Lovinfosse and Chloe Chambers, she swept past both as they tangled into turn one to gain fifth, and almost pulled moves on Nerea Martí on two occasions, before settling for that spot at the flag. However, with post-race penalties applied, Jess would be moved up to fourth in the rankings.

She will return to F1 Academy action over the weekend of May 3rd-5th, as the series heads to Miami International Autodrome, racing around the Hard Rock Stadium in Florida.

Championship: 7 (12 points)

Jess Commented: “It was great to start the F1 Academy season with Rodin Motorsport. Jeddah was a tough weekend as we weren’t quite on the pace, so finished qualifying with P10 and P9, which meant it was going to be tough to get a result.”

“In race one I had a puncture after contact from another driver, so ended up finishing a lap down. In race two I think I made the most of the opportunities I had and was really happy to finish P4, as I’m not sure we could have done much more with the pace we had. Looking ahead to Miami, we will work hard over the next eight weeks to see where we can find a bit more pace, so hopefully we will be fighting at the front.”

British motorsport star Jess Edgar will make a return to F1 Academy this season. A race winner last year, she will once again join forces with Rodin Motorsport.

The 18-year-old competed in the series last year, taking her maiden victory at Circuit of the Americas alongside the United States Grand Prix, and finished with four podiums in total and started from pole position on one occasion.

Prior to that, Jess began karting in 2010, becoming champion of the Cumbria Kart Racing Club in Rowrah in 2017 and winning several races in Mini X30 the following year. In 2019, the youngster finished second at the Motorsport UK Kartmasters Grand Prix and fourth in the British Kart Championship and represented the United Kingdom in the FIA Motorsport Games.

She made her car racing debut in 2022, competing in the inaugural season of the GB4 Championship, scoring a podium finish en route to seventh in the Drivers’ standings, ending the year with 12 top ten finishes in the final 13 races.

After a successful launch last year, the 2024 F1 Academy will now have all seven race weekends on the Formula One World Championship calendar. The season opens over the weekend of March 8/9, in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), travelling thereafter to Miami (USA), Barcelona (Spain), Zandvoort (Netherlands), Marina Bay (Singapore), Lusail (Qatar), and finishing at Yas Marina (UAE) in December.

Jess Commented: “I am really excited to be working with Rodin Motorsport once again this year. We had a good 2023, constantly improving each time we went out in the car, and I hope we can do the same. I would like to say a big thank you to Rodin Motorsport for the opportunity to return to the F1 Academy grid and keep building on what I learned last year.”

Benn Huntingford, Rodin Motorsport Team Manager: “Jess showed brilliant potential in F1 Academy with us last year, and we are really excited to work with her again this season. We ended the 2023 season on a high in Austin, so it will be really exciting to see how Jess develops further with us this season.”