The ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team finished as top qualifiers in Round 7 of Season 3 at the Island X Prix, co-organised and coordinated by the Automobile Club d’Italia and Regione Sardegna.
Coming out on top in Qualifying 1 Heat 1 and Qualifying 2 Heat 1, championship leaders Laia Sanz and Mattias Ekström secured a perfect 20 points to reach the top of the Qualifying standings.
Joining the Spanish outfit are ABT CUPRA XE, after a win in Q1 H2 and second in their Q2 Heat 2 put Klara Andersson and Sébastien Loeb through to the team’s second Grand Final of the season.
Finishing third in overall Qualifying are Veloce Racing, who keep their championship fight alive with P2 in both of their Qualifying Heats. Also keeping the title within reach are Rosberg X Racing (RXR), having finished third in their Q1 Heat and taking the win in Q2 Heat 2 to enter the Grand Final.
Rounding out the Top 5 are Carl Cox Motorsport, with second place in Q1 Heat 1 and third in Q2 Heat 2, as Lia Block enters her first Extreme E Grand Final.
The remaining five teams will fight it out in the Redemption Race to determine sixth to tenth place in the Round 7 standings.
Qualifying 1 Heat 1
Carl Cox Motorsport’s Timo Scheider took the early lead ahead of Ekström for ASXE. Exiting the first corner, RJ Anderson promptly slotted into third for No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing car, ahead of JBXE’s Hedda Hosås.
Following Emma Gilmour’s incident in Free Practice yesterday, the NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team had to serve a 30-second penalty in Qualifying 1 for switching to the championship car. Tamara Molinaro – stepping in for Gilmour – was the only driver not to use her ENOWA Hyperdrive off the start, allowing the team to avoid trouble from the rest of the grid.
Ekström continued to pile pressure on Scheider out in front, and the two cars soon came together, damaging the rear of the Carl Cox Motorsport machine. Scheider held on to enter the Switch Zone inches ahead of Ekström, with Anderson right in the mix following the incident between the pair in front.
Executing the driver change better than their rivals, the ASXE Team exited ahead of Carl Cox Motorsport. The teams each held track position for the remaining two laps, with Laia Sanz taking the Heat 1 win for the Spanish outfit.
Qualifying 1 Heat 2
All five teams remained close over the jump and into the first corner, where Andretti Altawkilat Extreme E’s Timmy Hansen collided with RXR’s Johan Kristoffersson.
Seizing the opportunity, X44 Vida Carbon Racing’s Fraser McConnell dropped back to cut up the inside of RXR for the lead, with ABT CUPRA XE’s Sébastien Loeb slotting into third.
Managing to keep his car on all four wheels, Hansen joined the back of the pack behind his brother in the Veloce Racing ODYSSEY 21. Kevin Hansen soon passed the ABT CUPRA XE car as it looked to be causing problems for Loeb.
Cristina Gutiérrez set off to hold the win for X44 Vida Carbon Racing, but soon had to pull over due to an issue with her ODYSSEY 21. Forced to slow down behind the Spaniard in a narrow section, RXR’s Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky was soon under pressure from Veloce Racing’s Molly Taylor.
Suffering from the damage caused to the Altawkilat Extreme E car in the first corner of the race, Catie Munnings also came to a stop near the start of her stint.
The resulting slow zone was cleared just as RXR and Veloce Racing approached the WayPoint. However, a miscommunication for RXR saw them slow for a yellow flag, allowing ABT CUPRA XE’s Andersson to storm into the lead. Having initially slowed down too, Taylor reacted quickly to take second from Åhlin-Kottulinsky, and the three teams finished Heat 2 in this order.
Qualifying 2 Heat 1
After a clean start it was ASXE’s Sanz in the lead ahead of Gutiérrezz for X44 Vida Carbon Racing. NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team’s Tanner Foust pushed hard and pulled off an overtake on Taylor to take third, while No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racincg’s Amanda Sorensen worked to close a considerable gap to the rest of the pack.
Crucially, Veloce Racing’s Taylor did not let Foust pull away, and the four teams entered the Switch Zone in quick succession, just as X44 Vida Carbon Racing were awarded a 10-second penalty for dropping a WayPoint flag.
Ekström brought the ASXE car home in first, cementing the team’s place in the Grand Final. Behind, Kevin Hansen passed Molinaro and closed the gap to McConnell enough to be promoted into second in the Heat and into the Grand Final.
No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing’s Anderson took fourth from Molinaro, but shortly after the Italian pulled up on track, meaning a DNF for the NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team and a spot in the Redemption Race.
Third was not enough to see X44 Vida Carbon Racing through to the Grand Final, and they enter the Redemption Race alongside No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing, who find themselves in their first Redemption Race of the season.
Qualifying 2 Heat 2
Andretti Altawkilat Extreme E were unable to start the second Qualifying session due to the extent of the damage from Qualifying 1, and the DNS secured their spot in the Redemption Race.
Andreas Bakkerud took an early lead for JBXE, ahead of RXR’s Åhlin-Kottulinsky in second and Lia Block in third, after the American overtook ABT CUPRA XE’s Andersson. Block spun shortly after, allowing the Swede to regain the position.
Åhlin-Kottulinsky kept Bakkerud within reach, before the Norwegian pulled off track due to an issue with his ODYSSEY 21. This handed the lead to RXR, which Kristoffersson kept until the finish line to secure the team’s spot in the Grand Final.
Second place for ABT CUPRA XE after a comfortable drive from Loeb sees them through to the Grand Final. Third for Carl Cox Motorsport places them in the last spot on the Grand Final grid, a first for Block in just her second-ever X Prix, while the DNF for JBXE puts them in the Redemption Race.
Q1 Heat 1:
1. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team 9:50.643mins
2. Carl Cox Motorsport +1.935s
3. No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing +6.027s
4. JBXE +8.876s
5. NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team +39.660s
Q1 Heat 2:
1. ABT CUPRA XE 10:02.949mins
2. Veloce Racing +3.314s
3. Rosberg X Racing +10.833s
4. Andretti Altawkilat Extreme E DNF
5. X44 Vida Carbon Racing DNF
Q2 Heat 1:
1. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team 9:37.429mins
2. Veloce Racing +4.405s
3. X44 Vida Carbon Racing +11.954s (PENALISED)
4. No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing +29.273s
5. NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team DNF
Q2 Heat 2:
1. Rosberg X Racing 9:55.156mins
2. ABT CUPRA XE +14.606s
3. Carl Cox Motorsport +30.809s (PENALISED)
4. JBXE DNF
5. Andretti Altawkilat Extreme E DNS
Overall Qualifying Standings:
1. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team: 20 points
2. ABT CUPRA XE: 18 points
3. Veloce Racing: 16 points
4. Rosberg X Racing: 16 points
5. Carl Cox Motorsport: 14 points
6. X44 Vida Carbon Racing: 10 points
7. No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing: 10 points
8. JBXE: 8 points
9. NEOM McLaren Extreme E Team: 4 points
10. Andretti Altawkilat Extreme E: 2 points
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