Representing Sauber in F1 Academy, Carrie Schreiner came to Miami wanting to get into the top eight in both races of the weekend. Finishing P12 and P9 in the end, the German driver wasn’t able to meet her own target, but still leaves the Miami International Autodrome circuit quite pleased and content with the outcome.
Admittedly, Schreiner didn’t start the way she wanted, struggling a little during the two practice sessions on Friday and then qualifying P13 for both races the following day.
“For me, the biggest challenge was that I didn’t know the track before. I’d driven it on the simulator — it’s quite realistic, but it’s not 100% real. In the beginning I struggled a little bit with the track. So, I needed to learn to get on pace in the beginning,” she explained.
The 25-year-old wasn’t the only driver on the all-female grid who didn’t have any previous experience on the track — actually, most of them were there for the first time. However, with racing in general, the German has a lot of experience since her breakthrough in 2012.
Besides being in F1 Academy for her second season already, she drove in Formula 4 UAE Championship, Porsche Sports Cup, high-class championships such as the Lamborghini Super Trofeo and the ADAC GT Masters and many more.
Reflecting on her performance in Miami, Schreiner said: “The second race was much better for me than the first one. In Race 1, I struggled quite a lot with the car, but then we made some setup changes and then everything went better. After that, I’m happy to score some points.
“My goal was to be in the top eight in both races. Unfortunately, I couldn’t achieve this, but at least I scored some points and try to be better in the next one.”
For her P9 in Race 2, she got two points, adding them to her total and moving to be tenth in the Drivers’ Championship’s standings with 9 points.
Schreiner also spoke about the importance of her positive mindset, believing it’s vital not to let disappointment get into her head and to never give up the fight.
“The most important thing is that you never ever give up on a race weekend. Even when the Qualifying was bad, you always have the chance to get a good result in the end.”
The next round of F1 Academy will happen from 21st to 23rd June in Barcelona, Spain. Just like multiple other drivers on the grid, Schreiner knows the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya quite well. She’s already eagerly waiting for her next chance to show more consistency and aim for back-to-back top eight finishes again.
“I’m looking forward to it,” she confirmed. “It’s a track I know really well. Of course, I will do simulator work again for a couple of days to just try to prepare as well as possible for the next race. Last year, Barcelona was okay, but it wasn’t great. I want to achieve more than last year, so my goal again is to be twice in the top eight.”
