Lucas Di Grassi will lead the field away at the Season 9 opener, with surprise results up and down the field in an exciting qualifying session.
Qualifying Format
In Formula E, the field split into two groups for the first part of qualifying. Drivers compete in the 12 minute slots to post their fastest time. The top four drivers in each group proceed to the duels, with the remaining drivers’ times determining their position on the starting grid. In the duel stages, two drivers are released 10 seconds apart to race head to head on the track as they fight to outpace their rival – the fastest driver from each duel advances to the next stage. This process repeats through the quarter and semi finals, before the final 2 drivers remaining battle in the final for pole position, the fastest man prevails.
Group Stages
Group A
In group A, one driver from each team battled for a place in the duels. All 11 cars struggled throughout the session, battling on the limit of grip and picking through the traffic to maximise their pace in free air. Times tumbled through the session as the track rubbered in and drivers pushed the limits, edging ever closer to the barriers.
As the session came to a close, Andre Loterrer secured his place in P1 with a 1.13.4, setting the pace for the rest to follow. Sebastian Buemi put himself into second, closely followed by Lucas Di Grassi. The three experienced drivers impressed in the first qualifying session for their new teams. The final driver progressing to the duels was surprise rookie Sacha Fenestraz in the Nissan. Before his final lap, the rookie was last in the timesheets and 1 second off the pace. Fenestraz crossed the line to come home P4, less than a tenth from Lotteror in a sensational last minute result.
Group B
Next, it was time for the 11 drivers in group B to battle for their place in the duels. The results once again saw veteran racers ahead of rookie drivers, with some of the likely favourites missing out on a top spot.
Jake Dennis took P1 with a 1.13.0, ahead of the fast-paced Dan Ticktum. Mclaren rookie Jake Hughes put his car into P3, just over 2 tenths away from Dennis. Last year’s poleman and race winner Pascal Wehrlein secured P4 as he made it into the duels once again. Ticktum showed great pace in a car that for the past 4 out of 5 seasons has finished bottom of the standings. Whilst Hughes demonstrated that despite both himself and the Mclaren team being new to the championship, speed is on their side.
Coming into the weekend, bets were placed on both DS-Penske drivers, Jean-Eric Vergne and reigning champion Stoffel Vandoorne, as they looked to be favourites. However, neither made it into the duel stages with Vandoorne finishing P7 and Vergne in P6 in their respective groups. Both Avalanche Andretti drivers progressed and are the only team to have both drivers progress into the duels.
The Quarter Finals
Quarter Final 1 – Di Grassi v Buemi
Di Grassi was released first, with Buemi following shortly behind. Both drivers looked to be very evenly matched as Buemi took a slim early lead. Di Grassi ended the session with a 1.13.4, waiting for his rival to cross the line. Buemi lost time through the final sector, losing over 2 tenths to Di Grassi but clawing it back through the last corner. They ended the session only 2 hundredths away from one another as Di Grassi managed to pull ahead, advancing through to the semifinals in his Mahindra.
Quarter Final 2 – Fenestraz v Lotterer
This pairing saw the Nissan out first, the youngest vs the oldest driver on the grid. The rookie gained almost 2 tenths on Lotterer through the first corner, keeping a steady gap throughout his lap. However, Lotterer came storming through the second half of the lap, making the time back with more added on top. They ended the session just 4 hundredths apart in Lotterer’s favour as the young Nissan driver was knocked out in his first duels appearance.
Quarter Final 3 – Hughes v Ticktum
A pairing which was certain to excite as the two young drivers battled for the top spot. Ticktum impressed in his first season in 2021 with his one lap qualifying pace, putting his NIO 333 car much higher than it arguably should have been. The rookie Jake Hughes was on fire from the start, showing pace in every single session and out qualifying his rival in the duels. Both drivers set monster laps, much faster than any driver before them, but it was Hughes who ended with a gap of over a tenth to Ticktum. Ticktum’s lap would have been fast enough to beat all drivers in previous duels, proving the speed and determination of the young guns in Season 9.
Quarter Final 4 – Dennis v Wehrlein
Pascal Wehrlein was released first, setting the pace ahead of the fast catching Jake Dennis. The Brit, Jake Dennis, earned an early lead over his German rival, growing this lead throughout the lap to almost half a second. Dennis looked set to dominate this duel but through the final sector it began to fall apart, losing his lead almost entirely in a collision with a bollard through the final turns. Despite his incident, luck was on his side and the car was relatively undamaged as he held onto a 3 hundredth advantage, securing his place into the semi finals.
The Semi Finals
Semi Final 1 – Lotterer v Di Grassi
This combination looked extremely close from the outset as the gap remained minor. However, a mistake from Andre Lotterer saw him go straight on at turns 5 and 6, handing the win to Di Grassi if he could keep his nose clean. Di Grassi kept his head and soared across the line over 1.5 seconds clear from his rival as he secured his place in the final.
Semi Final 2 – Dennis v Hughes
The two Jakes went head to head in this duel, an experienced race winner battling the young rookie on his debut – two huge names in motorsport as Mclaren battles Andretti. The drivers were separated by almost nothing throughout the lap, with Hughes ahead at the final corner before a huge slide saw him bleed time away and hand the win to Jake Dennis.
The Final
The stage was set for the final duel as Avalanche Andretti Driver Jake Dennis battled Mahindra man Lucas Di Grassi. With all eyes watching, Di Grassi led Dennis away from the pitlane as both drivers set their eyes on pole position.
All looked smooth for the two drivers through turn 1, edging ever closer to the barriers around the track. But things quickly turned sour for Jake Dennis as he made several mistakes through the lap, losing over 3 seconds in only a few corners. Di Grassi ran away, bringing it home in P1 for the Mahindra team – their third pole position in Mexico City and a spectacular result for the Indian team. An amazing result for the team, despite disappointment for Di Grassi’s team mate Oliver Rowland, who ended the group stages in last as he failed to set a time.
The times from the previous duels are compared to determine the rest of the grid as Digrassi leads them away from the front for the first race of Gen3 in Season 9.
The Mexico City E-Pirx looks set to be an exciting race as the Gen3 cars go head to head for the first race of the season.
Can Lucas Di Grassi win for a 3rd time on the streets of Mexico?