Nina Gademan certainly made an impression on her F1 ACADEMY debut in Zandvoort. On the cusp of a podium in both races, the Dutch racer put on a memorable showing, becoming the first Wild Card entry to score points.
Her weekend wasn’t without its added challenges either, with the unpredictable weather playing a pivotal role. A superb Qualifying performance in the wet saw her secure two P6 starts in The Female Quotient-liveried car, whilst a rescheduled Race 1 meant she had to take on two races in three hours.
But Gademan rose to the occasion each time, bringing home a fourth-place finish in Race 1. She had been on course to match that in Race 2, before a 10-second penalty for causing a collision with Aurelia Nobels demoted her to 10th. Leaving her home event with 13 points to her name, she was understandably delighted with how Round 4 panned out.
“I'm very happy with the results,” said Gademan. “I didn't expect to get P4 as we were struggling a lot in FP2 on Friday with the pace in in the dry conditions, but I think we improved a lot in that. I knew what I had to do differently and gaining two places in Race 1 was amazing.”
Considering the difficulties in overtaking around Zandvoort, her Qualifying performance did set her up on the path to success. However, the result could have been even better after she posted her fastest Sector 1 of the session moments prior to the Red Flag interruption.
A strong opening lap in Race 1 saw her dispatch Nobels for fifth and Gademan was promoted up one more place courtesy of Doriane Pin’s penalty for a false start. Immediately on the attack in Race 2, she couldn’t quite push close enough to pressure Abbi Pulling for third as she was forced to go on the defensive to keep Hamda Al Qubaisi at bay, alongside trying to neutralise her 10-second time penalty.
Reflecting on her performances across the weekend, Gademan said: “I was very happy that it was raining because I know I'm very confident in the wet. Even though our good lap was Red Flagged, I still managed to get double P6, so I was happy to start at the front. I knew that if I defended well on this track, I could still keep the position, but it turned out we even got two places, so that’s good.”
“(In Race 2) the launch was not the best, but I had a good Turn 1. I got one place and then later on in the race, I had a very good overtake. Unfortunately, I got a penalty for that, but it is what it is. I’m still very happy with the on-track performance.
“The front tyres were a bit destroyed after driving behind Aurelia for so long and then, I had to keep Hamda behind me. So, that was a big challenge, but I think the on-track performance was just really amazing. I’m still happy with the P4 in Race 1 and another point in Race 2 with the penalty.”
Gademan had little chance to revel too much in her P4 finish. With both races taking place early Sunday morning due to adverse weather conditions, she had to put her success to the back of her mind relatively quickly. Navigating these unexpected circumstances, she admitted there was only one moment of worry when trying to fend off Hamda Al Qubaisi in Race 2.
“For me, it’s not challenging,” she said. “I can just set my mind to it if I want to. I can even dance to the music right before the race and whenever I need to, I can set my mind to it, so that’s not a problem.
“It’s more that I thought it would be super physical as these cars carry a bit more speed through Turn 3, which made it a bit harder. But in the end, I didn’t really feel it. I had the radio cable between my seat and my shoulder for the end of Race 2, so I was like ‘Oh no, Hamda’s coming and my radio cable’s stuck between me and the seat’. It turned out to be fine in the end.”
Although Gademan wanted to be in the top 10 from the get-go, she narrowly missed out on her main target of bringing home a podium in front of her compatriots by sixth-tenths in Race 1. Yet her results are no less of an achievement and she believes that the experience of competing in F1 ACADEMY in Zandvoort has given her the chance to show what she’s capable of and spur her onwards and upwards.
“It’s really, really special to me,” she said. “Personally, the main goal was to get a podium, which I was very close to two times, so I’m still pleased with the result. To score points as a Wild card, to come here and just jump in for the races and get this result, it’s an amazing feeling!”
She added: “PREMA has always been a very good team, so it was a good thing that I was driving with them. They’ve supported me very well this weekend on and off-track and also before on the simulator, the seat fit and everything.
“It was so nice to have The Female Quotient over here. The CEO (Shelley Zalis), she’s been lovely to me and the whole crew as well, so it was amazing to meet all those new people (…) I would say (the experience) was very educational and I will come back stronger.”