Bustamante completes 3rd race in W Series 2022 with promising performance

MANILA: Bianca Bustamante finished her third race in the W Series 2022, which took place at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Spain. Barcelona hosted the pre-season test in March, as well as the third round of the all-woman F1 support series, with the race weekend featuring one practice and one qualifying session prior to the race on Saturday. It was a tough weekend for the 17-year-old Filipina, who is still figuring out the F3 machinery and how to push the car to its limits.

After the practice session last Friday, May 20, Bustamante qualified her car in P17 despite pushing hard all throughout the session. She was disappointed because she was hoping to set a faster lap time, but she is also realistic about the fact that it will take some time to maximize the car as she gains experience in her #9 W Series Academy Team car.

Starting from the last row, Bustamante had a strong takeoff as the lights went out, propelling her five positions up the order. On the opening laps of the race, she started attacking the car in front, but she made a slight blunder, running wide into the gravel and dropping two positions. Despite continuous pressure from behind, Bustamante gathered herself and stayed focused on bringing the car home in P15. For the second half of the 30-minute sprint race, she demonstrated her personal development by keeping a steady race pace and strong tire management as her lap times improved greatly comparative to the competitors in front.

Although the result was not what she had hoped for, there were many positive moments. She is on a steep learning curve, having only graduated from karts to formula cars in 2022. Bustamante promises  to improve her speed as she spends more time in her car and becomes more acquainted with it. The series will return to the legendary Silverstone Circuit in July for the next round.

“It was my first time racing at Barcelona and it was amazing, but I would have liked to score some points this weekend,” Bustamante stated. “I am definitely still learning about the car and I am just not one with the car yet, I haven’t found the limit.  I am pushing hard and confident we will get there. There were a lot of positives to take from the weekend. I was happy with my start and how I was managing my tires in the middle part of the race. A big thanks to my team, I learn so much from everyone and I am grateful to have them alongside me. The support from all fans has also been so great, it has given me a real boost at every race weekend.  I’ll be preparing hard this month and looking forward to the race at Silverstone!”

Photos from W Series

Also read: Pinay snags points in W Series debut in Miami