Mercedes driver Doriane Pin delivered an outstanding performance at the F1 Academy season opener in Bahrain on Thursday as she recorded a double pole position. With two stunning laps, she got the better of Abbi Pulling and PREMA Racing teammate Maya Weug. After Pin’s fantastic display, a fan has dug into how she studied Lewis Hamilton’s pole position lap at the 2021 Saudi Arabian GP to deliver such a performance.
aww doriane was studying lewis pole lap from 2021 to prep for f1a
no wonder she got pole yesterday pic.twitter.com/IZoXjaJqZo
— sin ⁴⁴ (@44britcedes) March 8, 2024
Hamilton himself has been a great role model for all the young women aspiring to make it big in motorsport. Despite witnessing a lack of diversity in most of the teams he has competed for over the years, the Briton has made it his mission to promote more inclusivity via his different initiatives.
As a result, he is also one of the first drivers to congratulate others when they put in the effort to promote more diversity and inclusivity. Hamilton once expressed pride for the efforts F1 Academy managing director Susie Wolff has been putting in to promote more female racers.
Speaking of the same, Hamilton said, “I just spent some time with her in the garage. It is really impressive to see the growth within that organization and then to see the other teams in the sport actually really embracing it”.
Always advocating for inclusion!!
Lewis talks about Doriane Pin and expresses pride in Susie Wolff’s work with F1 Academy, spotlighting and creating pathways for talented female drivers in the sport. #F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/CpIp5nCUAt— Sir Lewis Updates (@LH44updates) March 7, 2024
After lauding Wolff, Hamilton then also praised Doriane Pin. He explained how impressed he was to see a young driver like her perform and revealed some of the suggestions he gave to her.
Hamilton had advised Pin to carry out notetaking, something which she presumably did to grab the double pole for the race in Jeddah. Even expert Ted Kravitz has appreciated Hamilton for being one of the only F1 drivers who has genuinely wanted to encourage more young female racers to take up motorsports.
Ted Kravitz once praised Lewis Hamilton for his efforts to promote female racers
While speaking on one of the episodes of Sky F1’s podcast last year, Ted Kravitz revealed how Lewis Hamilton was the only driver who ever visited the W Series (now F1 Academy) paddock. Since W Series were facing financial difficulties to carry on, Hamilton contacted several companies to reach out for funds to support the initiative.
Speaking of the efforts Hamilton put in, Kravitz added, “There wasn’t too much money that was still needed. Lewis was talking about that – there just needs to be this commitment, ‘put your money where your mouth is’, all these people who want to carry on the cause of female drivers in F1. Maybe it’ll take five years, maybe it’ll take 10, but we will get a female Formula 1 driver”.
Hamilton’s efforts do indeed seem to have paid off as F1 have taken the female racing series under their own wing, with the launch of the F1 Academy. Moreover, with all 10 F1 teams having signed a female driver for the F1 Academy, there is a clear sign that more efforts have been put in recently to promote women racers.
