Unusual situation at the Excel as the fight for the championship is still hard. Pascal Werhlein took pole position in front of his teammate, being only two points behind the leader Jake Dennis.
Under the London sun, some clouds appeared in Formula E. It started during the first group stage as Nyck de Vries and Jake Dennis made contact at the beginning of the session at Turn 10, with Dennis clipping the wall, thankfully with no impact on his car. The Brit was really angry on the radio saying if it’s okay to do that he will block Mortara. Of course, it was noted and put under investigation. Norman Nato made the first lap time with a 1:09.649. They kept improving on the second attempt, however Pascal Wehrlein snatched the first position with a 1:09.208. He remained first with a small amelioration on 1:09.149. Both Mahindra drivers are out in groups which is not optimal for the third place in the championship. Mortara clipped the wall on Turn 16 due to an electrical issue on his car.
Group A qualified : Wehrlein, Ticktum, Dennis and Vergne
With Oliver Rowland being on track in group B, Norman Nato who found himself out in group A gave some informations to his teammate. Nico Müller was the first to set a lap time in a 1:09.323. Ericsson beat him by only 0.007 seconds. Rowland had a big slide into Turn 12, which made him lose a bit of time. Da Costa hit the inside wall of Turn 9, without any incident. Maximilian Guenther couldn’t make a lap as his car remained in his garage after one lap. With two minutes remaining, Müller took first position back. Rowland locked his tyres during his last attempt, which made him out in the group qualifying. Nico Müller remained first with a 1:09.091.
Group B qualified : Mueller, Evans, Ericsson and Da Costa
Duel
Quarter Final
Dennis vs Ticktum
Ticktum had a small margin in the first sector going 0.089 faster. He increased the gap but Dennis tightened up in sector 2. It was not enough for the Andretti driver as Ticktum was 0.007 seconds. With Jake Dennis being out, it means the driver’s championship can’t be won today.
Vergne vs Wehrlein
Vergne was the first on track and quickly Wehrlein caught up his time, with a 0.253 margin. The French driver came closer into the middle of sector 3, but the German driver took the upper hand in the end.
Eriksson vs Evans
Eriksson was in front in the first sector but Evans quickly caught up, being 0.019 seconds in front. He increased the margin, finishing 0.376 seconds quicker.
Da Costa vs Müller
Müller was quicker by only 0.004 at the beginning of sector 1 but lost a bit of time after. However, he fought back in sector 2. Da Costa was really close until he slid on Turn 16, where he lost all of his advantage.
Semi Final
Ticktum vs Wehrlein
They went head to head five times already this season, with the German winning 3 times. He was the first to take the track. Tyres temperatures might play a great part in it. Wehrlein was slightly in front on sector 1 with a 0.017 seconds. However, Ticktum came back on sector 2. With Porsche fighting for the championship, the decision was made to let Wehrlein qualify so he won with more than a 2.6 seconds margin.
Evans vs Müller
Müller was in front in sector 1 with a 0.087 margin and was still in front until he had a big snatch, giving Evans the opportunity to come back. However, Müller made the difference and finished 0.250 seconds in front of the Jaguar driver.
Final
Wehrlein vs Müller
An all Porsche final was not expected but that’s what Formula E is all about, giving us unexpected surprises. The real question was how the team orders gonna work with Pascal Wehrlein being in the championship fight. Müller was the first one to go on track. He had a 0.068 margin until his teammate caught up in the first sector with a 0.010 margin. He was still in front, until he backed down to let the pole position for his teammate. Pascal Wehrlein took pole position, and finds himself alongside Mitch Evans in the championship, with an equal number of points.