The German dominated the first Formula E race of the season, after taking pole and leading for most of the 37 laps of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez circuit.
But the Porsche driver, along with reigning champion Jake Dennis, were placed under investigation before the end of the race for a “technical infringement” related to the conformity of the approved primary accelerator pedal map.
Almost four hours after being referred to the stewards, they decided that there would be no further action.
The sports stewards' document reads: “After intense investigations the stewards failed to find a violation of the regulations and an alleged violation of article 3.2.1.”
Photo by: Dom Romney / Motorsport Images
Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3, Sebastien Buemi, Envision Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6, Mitch Evans, Jaguar Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6
After the victory, but before the stewards' decision, Wehrlein said: “The race wasn't easy, it probably seemed easier than it was because I was in the lead almost the whole time. But I couldn't spare much energy, just a little to increase the gap.”
“I saw Buemi second make a mistake that took him out of the slipstream and from then on the race was a little easier.”
“In terms of pace it was like a qualifying lap, trying to maximize corner speeds, but I think this track is one of those where it's not so easy to overtake. There are some possibilities, but it's more about everything gas compared to other routes”.
“I like this mix, because on tracks like Berlin or Portland, at the beginning of the race there is a bit of confusion until the pace picks up, so it's also good that we have a couple of races where qualifying they really count and we aim to start in the top five.”
A “no proceeding” verdict was also given for Dennis, meaning the Briton retains his ninth place after making a mistake in qualifying which relegated him to 14th on the grid.
Dennis, who races for Porsche customer Andretti, was unaware of the investigation immediately after the race.
Before the verdict, he said: “It's nice to start the championship with a points finish. We're in the standings but at the moment getting 2, 1 or zero makes no difference.”
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