Jeddah Race Weekend

After a two-week break between Jeddah testing and the race weekend – during which Nicole and her family remained in Saudi Arabia – the F1 Academy roared back into action for the second round of the season. Despite high hopes, qualifying proved a challenge in the scorching desert heat. Nicole secured P15 on the grid, a somewhat disappointing result, although she was the fastest of the three Hitech TGR drivers.

Race 1
After a tough qualifying session left her starting deep in the pack, Nicole Havrda delivered a gritty and determined performance in Race 1. Wasting no time when the lights went out, she made an excellent getaway and was up to P14 before the end of lap 1.

But as the field went into lap 3, the race took a dramatic turn at Turn 2, when ART’s Courtney Crone made contact with Lia Block, spinning her around and triggering a chain-reaction collision that also involved Chloe Chong and Nicole. Chong’s race ended on the spot with suspension damage, while Nicole’s car sustained front wing damage, requiring an urgent pit stop.

The Hitech TGR crew responded brilliantly, executing a rapid nose change and sending Nicole back out—albeit 36 seconds adrift of the pack. Fortunately, the incident triggered a safety car and Nicole was able to close the massive gap. On the restart, Nicole launched an impressive comeback, charging through the field with a mix of speed and precision.

Her drive was capped by a gutsy and impressive final-corner overtake on the last lap. Unfortunately, a five-second time penalty meant that Nicole was ultimately classified P15 – but her on-track performance told a much bigger story – a testament to resilience and never-give-up mentality.

“Such a hot race today, but I actually really enjoyed it because of all the action,” Nicole said afterward. “I have to give a huge thank you to my Hitech team for the super quick pit stop and to American Express for their support.”

Race 2
Race 2 didn’t get off to the start Nicole had hoped for. Underestimating the impact of the hot track surface on tire grip, she unfortunately stalled on the grid – an issue that caught out nearly a third of the grid. Despite the early setback, Nicole showed strong determination, making up positions over the course of the race to ultimately finish in P16.

While the result wasn’t what she had aimed for, Nicole remained upbeat about her development across the weekend.

“The progress I made is super important to me and my team since I’ve never driven an F4 car before. I keep learning more and more every time I’m in the car,” she said after the race.

“Adjusting from Formula 3 to Formula 4 has been a challenge, with the cars demanding very different driving styles.” But Nicole is confident in her trajectory.

She continued, “Going from F3 to F4 is difficult—such a different driving style—but after this weekend I know that I’m right there and will be higher in the field in Miami.”

Looking ahead, Nicole is eager for the next round, especially with the race taking place on more familiar ground, saying, “I’m really excited to race in America, since it’s basically my second home.”