ABU DHABI: Hamda Al-Qubaisi saved her best for last, achieving two podium places in the final three races of the season at her home track in Abu Dhabi to finish her F1 Academy career on a high note.
The Emirati Red Bull driver has fulfilled the two-season limit in the female-only racing series and has yet to reveal her plans for 2025.
Asked if she had any idea of where she might be racing next year, Al-Qubaisi told Arab News: “Not at all, but I’m never going to let go of racing, let’s say. So I’m going to do something.”
In her first year at F1 Academy, Al-Qubaisi finished third in the championship, thanks to four race wins and seven podium finishes.
Her 2024 campaign was not as successful and she arrived at the final stop of the season in Abu Dhabi with just one podium under her belt, achieved in Barcelona earlier in the year.
But Al-Qubaisi rallied on home soil at Yas Marina Circuit, getting her best result of the season, finishing second in Race 1, and followed that up with a third in Race 2. In Race 3 she collided with Lia Block on lap 12p and eventually finished 11th.
She ultimately secured fifth place in the drivers’ championship.
“Honestly, it’s a little bit sad. The season went by really quickly,” Al-Qubaisi told Arab News on Saturday, on the eve of her final outing in an F1 Academy car.
“So I feel like I wanted to make the most out of it, especially here on my home track and home country.”
It was mission accomplished for Al-Qubaisi, who got to celebrate her podium finishes with her nearest and dearest in the UAE capital.
“It’s an amazing feeling for me. I feel happy to do it here in front of my home crowd. The support I had all weekend was amazing,” Al-Qubaisi said.
“I have my family here with me, my fiance as well, and just all that support that I have means a lot to me. And to see them after I finished on the podium, to see them all happy is a really good feeling.”
Hamda and her older sister Amna flew the flag for the UAE in the F1 Academy these past two seasons, and are pioneers for Arab women in the world of motorsport.
Amna finished the championship in 15th place, scoring points just four times this campaign.
“I feel like we’ve made a good impact and I’m proud to say that we made that impact,” Hamda Al-Qubaisi said.
“We broke a boundary that was a bit taboo, let’s say. And now we’ve created a pathway and opportunities for many girls behind us.
“I go back to my karting track that I grew up in and I see a lot more Arab girls there and it makes me so proud and happy. I feel like we’ve done the first step and now there are many coming behind us and we’re happy also to be that representative.”
Hamda gives great credit to Amna, who is two years her senior, for paving the way for her and easing her entry into the sport.
Both Al-Qubaisis were part of the Red Bull family this year, with Hamda racing in F1 Academy in Red Bull Racing colors, and Amna representing the sister team of Visa Cash App RB.
“I feel like just being part of their programme and being able to use their facilities has been something amazing for me,” said Hamda of the Red Bull Academy programme tie-up.
“Being there at Milton Keynes, able to use their sim as well as their physical training facilities has been amazing. Just overall to see everything there, I was in awe the first time I went there, just to see all the F1 cars. It’s crazy how many people are working as well, all together to get this amazing team.
“So just being part of it all has been an honor and I'm very grateful for the opportunity.”
She described 2024 as a “big learning curve” for her and admitted her struggles with the car from the end of 2023 carried over into the start of this season.
She is happy, though, that they got things right at the end.
“We worked hard to make sure the car was good and we were able to get there at some point and we’re there now. It’s OK, it’s never too late,” she said.
