Dorian Ping became F1 Academy Champion after the Mercedes driver secured the result he needed to win the title by defeating Maya Wiig in the final race of the season in Las Vegas.
The 21-year-old Frenchwoman will take the crown if she finishes in the top six in race two after winning Saturday’s reverse grid race as her Ferrari rival Veug crashed out on the formation lap.
Weg, who had to win the final race to have a chance of denying the pin, overtook his rivals to move into third with two laps to go, but the Ferrari-backed driver finished behind second-place Alisha Palmovski, who led all laps to pole-to-win in his home country, and winner Chloe Chambers.
Ping was also passed by Alba Larsen and ultimately dropped to fifth place, but this did not affect the final championship result, with the French driver finishing 15 points behind Weug in the standings.
Ping becomes the third all-female series champion, joining Marta Garcia in 2023 and Avi Pring in 2024. Ping finished second to Pring last year in his first season of single-seater racing.
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Dorian Pynn said it was “unbelievable” as he worked hard to win the 2025 F1 Academy title.
Ping celebrated his title win at parc fermé, receiving congratulations from Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff and drivers George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.
“Wow, I can’t believe it!” Ping said after the race, as he was also congratulated by F1 president Stefano Domenicali.
“I worked hard for this with my team. They have been part of my success from the first day we joined Mercedes and entered single-seater racing in 2024.”
“We have worked hard just to be champions, so we are really happy to be able to work with them and achieve something great.
“Not just them here today, but also all the people who helped me behind the scenes early in my career. My family, my dad, and the Iron Dames who have contributed to this success. We’re here today because we’re stronger together and we’re champions!”
Ping’s Prema team has already won the team title in Race 1 for the third year in a row.
