Alisha Palmowski delivered a dominant performance in the F1 ACADEMY Opening Race in Montreal, securing her first victory of the 2026 season. The Red Bull Racing driver started from pole position and maintained control throughout the race, finishing 10.1 seconds ahead of her teammate Megan Bruce — the largest winning margin in the series' history.

"It's an incredible start to the season," Palmowski said. "I knew we had a good car, and I was able to push hard from the first corner. Megan did a great job to keep it close, but I was in a rhythm and couldn't be caught."

Campos Racing secured a 1-2 finish, with Bruce claiming her first podium. Mercedes' Payton Westcott and Aston Martin's Mathilda Paatz followed in third and fourth, respectively. Nina Gademan of Alpine was initially fifth but was demoted to ninth after receiving a five-second penalty for not following the Race Director's instructions when rejoining the track at Turn 13.

McLaren's Ella Lloyd made a remarkable recovery, moving up 10 positions from 16th to sixth. Rookies Kaylee Countryman and Ella Stevens both earned their first points in the series, finishing in seventh and eighth place, respectively. Emma Felbermayr of Audi had a difficult start, stalling off the line, but managed to recover to finish 10th and claim the final point.

Countryman will now start from pole position in the upcoming Reverse Grid Race, which is set to begin at 18:05 local time. The full report of the F1 ACADEMY Opening Race in Montreal can be found on the series' official website.