Two thousandths! This is the gap that divided Pascal Wehrlein and Stoffel Vandoorne under the checkered flag in the final, marking the conclusion of qualifying for the ePrix in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The winner for the second time this season was the German from Porsche, who thus has the great opportunity to take advantage of the opportunity to recover important points in the world championship standings.
A truly exciting duel, right from the first sector, in which the two protagonists were separated by just 5 thousandths. The comparison also continued in the other two sectors, up to the final two thousandths, in one of the most uncertain and exciting challenges of recent times. For the Porsche German, this is the second start from the pole after the one obtained in the opening ePrix in Mexico City, which was later transformed into a victory.
The objective is to repeat it here in Brazil too, although the issue of strategies should absolutely not be underestimated: the San Paolo track in fact features numerous straights, so the wake effect could make the difference in energy management like last year year. Alongside Wehrlein will be the DS of Stoffel Vandoorne, in what was an extremely positive morning for the French team, thanks to the first and second row conquered by the two drivers.
Stoffel Vandoorne, DS Penske, DS E-Tense FE23
Photo by: Dom Romney / Motorsport Images
It should have been a Maserati second row that was won by an excellent Max Gunther, who was in form right from the start of the weekend. After beating Bird in the quarterfinals, the German however had to give way to his compatriot in Pascal Wehrlein's Porsche, who then flew towards the final and the related pole position. However, the Maserati will not start from the second row: due to the replacement of the gearbox and inverter, in fact, Gunther will have to serve 40 positions on the starting grid. Not being able to serve them all on the grid, the German will also see a penalty in the race.
The second semi-final, however, saw a duel entirely at DS, with a challenge won overwhelmingly by Stoffel Vandoorne over teammate Jean-Eric Vergne, although it should be noted that the Frenchman was, despite himself, the protagonist of some mistake in his lap, particularly in the first half.
Progress at Mahindra, thanks to a good third row obtained by Edoardo Mortara, in what has so far been the Swiss driver's best performance of the season. Joining him will be Sam Bird with the first McLaren, who in the last quarter-final was beaten by Gunther with a large advantage of almost four tenths.
Maximilian Gunther, Maserati Racing, Maserati Tipo Folgore
Photo by: Alastair Staley / Motorsport Images
It wasn't the easiest day of the year for Jaguar: Mitch Evans was the only driver in the group able to enter the direct elimination phase, while the other cars powered by the Jaguar brand's Powertrain were immediately excluded in the groups. However, the New Zealander was beaten by Stoffel Vandoorne in the first quarter-final, thus having to settle for fourth place on the grid, inherited after Gunther's penalty.
Seventh, however, was Nico Mueller, who did not take part in the duels due to the damage sustained following a contact with the barriers during the groups, which he also skilfully overcame thanks to a good performance. Unfortunately, that “kiss” at the chicane entry cost him dearly, depriving him of the chance to fight for a better result. The beneficiary was Vergne, who thus rightfully advanced to the semi-final, but it is undoubtedly a great satisfaction for the German team sponsored by Cupra.
As per tradition in FE, there was no shortage of surprises in the first group, starting with the elimination of the world championship leader, Nick Cassidy with the second Jaguar. The New Zealander only achieved fifth place in group A, actually missing out on progressing by only 11 thousandths. Almost a trifle on a chronometric level, but with a particularly compact grid, even a few cents made the difference today.
Nick Cassidy, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
The Jaguar representative will thus start from the fifth row, recovering a position thanks to the penalty imposed on Gunther for replacing the gearbox and inverter. However, this is not the only big surprise: Robin Frijns with Envision and Norman Nato with Andretti were also excluded already in the first session, confirming their fluctuating performance in this start to the season: the Frenchman will start from the back of the grid, with the prospect of an uphill race. Also out in group A are Oliver Rowland with the Nissan, Nyck de Vries with the Mahindra and the two home drivers, Lucas Di Grassi with the ABT Cupra and Sergio Sette Camara with the second ERT.
Equally fierce was also group B, the second to take to the track, uncertain until the last moments. From Edoardo Mortara's third place with Mahindra to Jake Dennis's fifth with Andretti there are four drivers within just one tenth. Extremely thin margins, as demonstrated by the fifth place of Antonio Felix da Costa, eliminated by Sam Bird by just five thousandths.
Right out of the gate, in fact, was the reigning world champion and one of the big favorites to win this world championship, Jake Dennis, only sixth in his group and tenth on the starting grid. However, the Englishman was not the only one to disappoint expectations on a track where the slipstream effect can actually make a difference given the long straights: even Sebastien Buemi with the second Envision was unable to find the hoped for pace, finishing about three tenths behind Sam Bird, the last rider to gain the pass in group B for access to the duels.
Also eliminated were Jake Hughes with the other McLaren, Sacha Fenestraz with the Nissan, Jehan Daruvala with the Maserati and Dan Ticktum, who will start from the penultimate row, ahead only of Nato and Gunther, with the latter penalized .
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