F1 Academy champion Palmowski credits Verstappen's mentality for sealing 2026 title

Alisha Palmowski sealed the 2026 F1 Academy title in Austin with one round still remaining, and the 20-year-old Red Bull junior has credited watching Max Verstappen up close as the most formative experience of her championship campaign. Palmowski races for Campos Racing in the all-female series as the Red Bull-supported driver.

Being embedded within the Red Bull programme has given Palmowski rare access to the four-time Formula 1 world champion across race weekends, and she says Verstappen has consistently been willing to engage with her development.

“I think it’s a really mentally challenging sport, more than a lot of people realise, and I think that’s what I admire most about Max,” Palmowski told talkSPORT. “His mentality, his aggression and his never-give-up attitude. Anything can happen in a race, but Max is always able to extract 110% out of the car, and that’s something that I really admire.”

She was careful to frame the comparison in context. “I’m not comparing myself to Max in the sense that I’m saying I’m on his level, but I definitely admire and look up to him, and wish that one day I’ll be anywhere near him.”

Palmowski’s route to the F1 Academy title has been a rapid one. She made her debut in the series as a wildcard entry in Qatar in 2024, before signing a full-time deal with Campos for the 2025 season. Both Red Bull and Campos retained her for 2026, and she has now delivered a championship in her first full campaign.

Beyond F1 Academy, Palmowski has competed in the Ginetta Junior Championship and the GB4 Championship, and took part in the 2024 Formula E women’s test with Envision Racing — a sign of the breadth of experience she has accumulated at a young age.

The 2026 F1 Academy season concludes in Las Vegas, where the series will feature as part of the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend. Palmowski has not yet confirmed her racing plans for 2027.