A damaged chassis sustained in the first race meeting of the GB3 Championship season has been identified as the reason why Gosberton race ace Abbi Pulling has been struggling in recent rounds.
The Rodin Motorsport driver said: “After a couple of tricky rounds, we discovered an issue linked to the Silverstone crash in the season’s opening event. That had been affecting the car but that’s now been sorted.”
A new chassis was fitted ahead of last weekend’s three races at the Hungaroring in Hungary and Pulling responded in style with three top-ten finishes, helping Rodin maintain top spot in the team standings.
Pulling looked to have missed out in the opening race but Lucas Fluxa, in a Prema car, was handed a one-second time penalty post-race for forcing Pulling off the track. That saw the Lincolnshire driver promoted into tenth place, 13.303 seconds adrift of winner and teammate Gianmarco Pradel.
Pulling started race two seventh on the grid but dropped back to tenth on the opening lap.
She battled back by passing Argenti with Prema’s Reza Seewooruthun on lap eight to cross the line in ninth place, 21.135secs behind winner, and another teammate, Alex Ninovic.
Seewooruthun won the final race with Pulling caught up in traffic, finishing alongside her two Rodin teammates in a long train of cars in ninth place.
The 30-point haul from her Hungarian exploits puts Pulling 15th in the driver standings after 12 rounds with 98 points.
Up next is a British triple – Silverstone August 2/3, Brands Hatch 23/24 and Donington Park October 4/5 – before the final rounds at Monza in Italy on October 18/19.
It is proving to be a busy time for Pulling.
The 22-year-old Rodin Motorsport GB3 driver has been called up for the Nissan Formula E Team in the upcoming FIA Formula E rookie test.
She returns to the wheel of the Nissan e-4ORCE 05 on Monday, July 14, at Berlin’s Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit.
Reigning F1 Academy champion Pulling impressed by finishing top of the timesheets at the all-women’s session in Jarama last November.
This will be her first on-track appearance with the Japanese outfit in her new role as Nissan Formula E Team’s rookie and simulator driver.
Pulling will take on two sessions at the 2.343km circuit, which features 15 corners and runs anti-clockwise. Her tyre management will be tested by the notoriously abrasive surface, which will add another level of difficulty.
Team principal Tommaso Volpe said: “It will be Abbi’s first on-track action since joining us as our rookie and simulator driver.
“We’ve worked with her in the past with a lot of success. She’s a very talented driver and for us it is great to have continuity with our rookies, so she can keep developing at the same time as doing a better job for the team every time.”
Pulling is looking forward to the sessions and said: “I’m really excited to get out on track and to work with the team again.
“I’ve driven street circuits before but never in such a high-powered car, so it will be an amazing opportunity. Berlin looks like a fun track.
“I’ll be there for the race weekend prior to the test as well, so my goal is mainly to pick up as much information as possible, improve my understanding of the car, and make the most of the experience for both the team and myself.”
