FP1 of the Tokyo E-Prix took place for the first time under the night sky and floodlights. Having just been hit by a heavy rainstorm, the drivers tackled practice on a slowly driving circuit. Despite the delay, all 20 drivers hit this crucial session with full force.
The Calm Before the Storm.
The Tokyo skies glowed a menacing orange, a homage to the rainstorm that had just passed over the street circuit. With the volume of water poured on the track, free practice 1 was delayed. The standing surface water was deemed too excessive and dangerous by the race directors, meaning teams were forced to wait before getting underway.
The forecasts show that rain could remain a key component this weekend, so wet practice will prove beneficial. After a 15 minute delay, the green light shone and the drivers emerged from the pit lane. Hesitation came from most cars, with some parts of the circuit remaining wetterthan others.
The first set of laps to come in showed just how mixed the conditions were. Wet sectors on the circuit remained and traction was immediately a concern. Antonio Felix Da Costa had a close call, almost losing his rear end during his first timed lap. Crossing the line, he hit the top of the table, the drier sectors performing very well.
A Drying Circuit Changed Traction
The humidity in Tokyo hovered around 85%, and paired with a temperature of about 28°c, the circuit was quickly drying. As the lap count continued, many drivers began discussing the possibility of a dry car set up. Dan Ticktum was one of the first to discuss dry set ups with his team.
Mahindra found a good amount of pace within the first 15 minutes of the session. Nyck De Vries sat the man to beat after the first set of timed runs from all 20 drivers. His teammate Edoardo Mortara sat behind the Dutchman for just a moment, as he then reclaimed the top spot with a 1:16.104.
Bottoming became an issue for the Jaguar powered cars. Sebastian Buemi and Mitch Evans both alerted their engineers of the problem. The other concern was traction, around certain corners that remained damp. Numerous cars were seen losing the back end momentarily. The concern comes as Oliver Rowland comes close to a collision, missing the breaking at turn 1.
Attack Mode introduced New Contenders
Da Costa and Buemi found themselves under investigation after a brief collision between the two at turn three. From the replays, Buemi went deep into the corner, and was simply unaware of the approaching Jaguar. The pair avoided any action following the incident.
Oliver Rowland found series issues around turn seven, complaining about handling and the pace of his Nissans.
“No, I just turned seven round the things like a ****** rally car. Just over the bumps, unbelievably bad.”
Other drivers shared similar complaints across that section of the track, raising the question as to whether the resurfaced layout is a problem.
Picking up attack mode, more drivers saw true pace and potential around the Tokyo street circuit. Nico Müller of Porsche Formula E Team performed a remarkable lap, hitting the top of the table with about 10 minutes remaining. His lap beat that of Joel Erickson by just seven hundredths of a second.
Final Five Minutes
Mahindra will leave Friday in a promising position. After the issues they experienced in Shanghai, the first session of the Tokyo E-Prix shows improvements. The duo performed well around the mixed conditions, consistently re-topping the time sheet. When the chequered flag waved, De Vries and Morara ended P6 and P1.
Turn 16 had a huge amount of traffic in the closing moments, with Lucas Di Grassi having his lap compromised. The cars not on a lap sat around the high-speed corner, almost causing a collision.
Maximilian Günther found a great lap towards the end, shooting up to P2 just ahead of Jake Dennis. Championship leader Pascal Wehrlein only managed to claim P4, beating Porsche driver Da Costa. Pepe Martí ended the session in the pit lane, having misjudged his turning at 16 and hitting the wall.
As the rain returned, Edoardo Mortara claimed the fastest lap of the session, a great omen for Mahindra. Qualifying tomorrow could be dramatic, if the patterns from today’s session continue.