Abbi Pulling (born 21 March 2003) is a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English ...

racing driver. She currently competes for Racing X in the W Series, and is a member of the Alpine Affiliate programme.

Career

Karting

Pulling started karting competitively in 2013 at the age of 9. She mainly developed her karting career in Britain, winning the Super 1 National Junior TKM Championship twice in 2017 and 2018.

Ginetta Juniors and GT5 Challenge

Pulling began her racing career in early 2018, taking part in the first three rounds of the Ginetta Junior Championship for

Total Control Racing Total Control Racing (TCR) was a toy brand from Ideal which debuted in the late 1970s, similar to slot car sets, with approximately HO scale cars (and smaller scale semi-trailer trucks) that operated on a slotless track. Description The plas ...

, with little success. She continued racing in equal machinery the following year as she switched to the Ginetta GT5 Challenge. She was usually down in the midfield throughout the season, but finished on a high with two consecutive 6th-place finishes at

Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport circuit located near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England. The circuit business is now owned by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision organisation, and the surrounding Donington Park Estate, still owned ...

British F4

In 2020, Pulling made her single-seater debut, racing in the F4 British Championship with

JHR Developments JHR Developments is a motor racing team based in Dronfield, Derbyshire, in the United Kingdom. The team was founded in 1995, to enter Jamie Hunter in the UK and European Formula Renault series. It currently participates in the F4 British Ch ...

. She finished the season 6th in the standings with four podiums to her name. She re-signed for the team going into the 2021 season with aspirations to fight for the title, but failed to meet expectations before she eventually had to pull out in September due to lack of budget.

Formula Renault Eurocup

In late 2020, Pulling made a one-off appearance in

Formula Renault Eurocup Formula Renault Eurocup was a Formula Renault motor racing championship. Eurocup raced only on European circuits. It served as a support series to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series as part of the World Series by Renault from 2005 to 2015. Renault S ...

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical r ...

driving for

Fernando Alonso Fernando Alonso Díaz (; born 29 July 1981) is a Spanish racing driver currently competing for Alpine in Formula One. He won the series' World Drivers' Championship in and with Renault, and has also driven for McLaren, Ferrari, and M ...

's team. She finished both races in last place as she struggled to find the pace.

W Series

After taking part in pre-season testing at

Anglesey Circuit The Anglesey Circuit ( cy, Trac Môn) is a motor racing circuit located in Ty Croes, Anglesey, Wales. It plays host to a variety of motorsport events including car racing, motorcycle racing, car sprints, stage rallies and drifting. It open ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, Pulling was announced on 11 June 2021 as one of five reserve drivers for the second season of the all-female

Formula 3 Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One dr ...

championship, W Series. She made her debut at the third round of the championship at

Silverstone Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and B ...

, where she coincided with her coach Alice Powell. She qualified on pole for race one of the season-ending Austin double-header and achieved her first podium with 2nd place the following day—thus securing 7th in the standings and automatic qualification for the 2022 season.

Formula One

In March 2022, Pulling was signed by the

Alpine F1 Team Alpine F1 Team, competing as BWT Alpine F1 Team, is a Formula One constructor which made its debut at the start of the 2021 Formula One World Championship. Formerly named Renault F1 Team and owned by the French automotive company Groupe Renaul ...

as a member of their new Alpine Affiliate programme. Prior to the 2022 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Pulling and

Aseel Al-Hamad Aseel Al-Hamad is a Saudi Arabian interior designer, engineer, and motorsport enthusiast. She became the first female board member of the Saudi Arabian Motor Federation and is a member of the International Automobile Federation. Biography Asee ...

became the first women to drive a Formula 1 car in Saudi Arabia.

Racing record

Career summary

^† As Pulling was a guest driver, she was ineligible for championship points.

Complete F4 British Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula Renault Eurocup results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^† As Pulling was a guest driver, she was ineligible for championship points.

Complete W Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

External links

* * * Profile a
W Series
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pulling, Abbi 2003 births Living people British racing drivers English female racing drivers British F4 Championship drivers Formula Renault Eurocup drivers W Series drivers Ginetta Junior Championship drivers JHR Developments drivers FA Racing drivers Drivex drivers