JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia – the third and last practice session (FP3) of the Formula E weekend before the second Jeddah E-Prix Qualifying was marked by fluctuating weather, challenging circuit conditions, and a constantly changing competitiveness balance. DS Penske’s Maximilian Günther quickest overall, once again demonstrating the pace of yesterday’s race.
Weather and Track Conditions
The session began under mixed conditions, with rain expected but never appearing. The track had previously been wet in the morning, but by the start of FP3, it had already dried. Nonetheless, the varied temperatures from the sun on Friday to the humid conditions today did have an immense impact on energy management, and Formula E teams calculated a maximum of 10% lower available energy than yesterday.
Early Struggles and Technical Issues
Nico Müller‘s E-Prix session was interrupted by a possible puncture that turned out to be a technical issue in his third outlap, limiting his track time. Jake Hughes also suffered when he stopped on the start/finish straight with a technical issue with his Maserati. Fortunately, he was able to get under way again and back into the pits without causing a red flag. Maserati generally was not pleased with car balance, though particularly Stoffel Vandoorne was displeased.
Track Limits and Lap Time Deletions
Track limits were an issue for a lot of drivers, especially Turn 2, with several lap time deletions. As the teams worked out their setups, push laps began in earnest with around 18 minutes remaining in the session.
Key Performance and Team Analysis
McLaren‘s Taylor Barnard was quickest for pace, consistently outperforming his more experienced teammate Sam Bird in the session. The Nissan duo experienced different fortunes, with Norman Nato outpacing Oliver Rowland, who could not put in consistent lap times.
Cupra’s David Beckmann and Dan Ticktum, as well as Maserati’s Vandoorne and Hughes, had mixed runs, while Envision’s Sebastien Buemi and Robin Frijns faced similar inconsistencies. The Lola Yamaha pairing of Lucas di Grassi and Zane Maloney continued their adaptation to the car.
For Jaguar, Mitch Evans showed some potential, but Nick Cassidy was well off the pace compared to last year. Cassidy questioned whether Evans had a different, better setup, which the team confirmed. They were not able to alter that during the session.
DS Penske handled the Practice well, Günther leading the time sheets in the last 10 minutes as Jean-Éric Vergne had to contend with understeer. Porsche pilots António Félix da Costa and Pascal Wehrlein also battled with the same issues, but Wehrlein managed to make a charge later in the lap to move into the top five towards the final minutes.
Mahindra drivers Edoardo Mortara and Nyck de Vries, and Andretti drivers Müller and Jake Dennis, enjoyed consistent but nondescript runs.
Closing Moments
With just over two minutes to go, Maserati released Hughes once again for a last attempt, but his initial early pit stop had already set him at the end of the timesheets. He managed only one outlap before joining in the test start.
In spite of the risk of oncoming rain, the session was dry, allowing teams to finalize preparations for qualifying.
Momentum with Günther Before Qualifying
Günther’s performance at the end of the session reaffirmed DS Penske’s strong weekend. Yesterday’s race ranking was seen in the top three in FP3 but in a different order, promising a very competitive qualifying.
With just 90 minutes remaining before Formula E’s qualifying begins, teams will now focus on tweaking their set-ups and strategies for what may prove to be a competitive qualifying of the Saudi Arabian E-Prix.