Rosberg X Racing (RXR) continued their Qualifying streak as they finished top of the pack heading into Finals day in Antofagasta, Chile.
After finishing first in Q1, Johan Kristoffersson and Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky came second behind Genesys Andretti United Extreme E in an eventful Qualifying 2 Heat 1, to head the overall Qualifying standings.
In the other five-car Heat, ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team scored the maximum 10 points from Q2 after a penalty for on-track winners X44 Vida Carbon Racing, but Lewis Hamilton’s outfit did enough to keep second in Qualifying overall.
Keeping their championship hopes alive were No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing, who secured third in the Qualifying standings.
Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky, Rosberg X Racing, said: “You can’t afford any mistakes on this track, so my strategy was to take it steady. I had two fantastic laps in Q1 but Q2 was carnage. When Johan handed the car over, it had taken some hits so I wanted to bring it back safely. P1 is a great result so I’m excited for tomorrow.”
Qualifying 2 – Heat 1
It was tightly contested off the start line for the five teams in Heat 1, but it was XITE ENERGY RACING’s Timo Scheider that surged through the middle to take the lead into the first corner.
Lance Woolridge launched himself into second, ahead of Kyle LeDuc for No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing, with championship leader Kristoffersson and Genesys Andretti United Extreme E’s Timmy Hansen slotting in behind.
This proved to be the right decision from the experienced Rallycross drivers as they avoided the chaos ahead when the front three ran wide into the next turn, missing the waypoint and opening the door for Hansen to grab the lead.
Contact between LeDuc and Woolridge in the aftermath resulted in the latter having to stop out on track. The American pushed on, but was soon passed by Scheider who put XITE ENERGY RACING level with RXR as the teams headed into the Switch Zone.
Following the driver switch it was Genesys Andretti United Extreme E who retained the lead, followed by RXR after a good launch from the pits by Åhlin-Kottulinsky.
In third was XITE ENERGY RACING’s Tamara Molinaro, with Sara Price recovering for No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing following a tyre change at the Switch Zone due to a puncture suffered on the first lap.
Price, despite considerable damage to her ODYSSEY 21, managed to take third place after Molinaro had to stop out on course due to damage of her own, which put XITE ENERGY RACING out of contention in the Heat and into tomorrow’s Crazy Race alongside Veloce Racing.
Genesys Andretti United Extreme E’s Catie Munnings kept a level head throughout her two laps to cross the line comfortably ahead of RXR’s Åhlin-Kottulinsky, meaning that both teams will battle it out once again in Semi-Final 1.
No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing crawled home to complete the top three in Heat 1, putting them third overall in Qualifying and into Semi-Final 2 tomorrow.
Qualifying 2 – Heat 2
A great start from X44 Vida Carbon Racing in Qualifying 2 Heat 2 saw Sébastien Loeb surge to the front initially, but Carlos Sainz Snr. got his elbows out and stormed up the inside of the Frenchman going into the first corner to take the lead for ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team.
All over the back of Loeb was ABT CUPRA XE’s Nasser Al-Attiyah as the front three began to pull away from NEOM McLaren Extreme E and JBXE in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Loeb kept the pressure on Sainz Snr. throughout the opening stint and eventually took the lead for X44 Vida Carbon Racing just before the end of his run.
The Frenchman attempted a switchback manoeuvre to cut through on the inside of the ACCIONA | SAINZ XE car, but Sainz Snr. held on just long enough to force Loeb through a waypoint flag as the X44 Vida Carbon Racing driver completed his pass for the lead.
The running order remained the same following the driver change, but it was caution to the wind for the chasing pack as they tried to claw back time following a 10-second penalty for X44 Vida Carbon Racing for the aforementioned waypoint infringement.
Cristina Gutiérrez delivered a masterclass in defensive driving to hold Laia Sanz, which was no simple task considering Sanz held the fastest lap of the day by a female driver. Gutiérrez managed to cross the line first, however it was not enough of a lead to hold onto the win, which went to ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team who claimed the final spot for Semi-Final 1 tomorrow.
ABT CUPRA XE finished third in Heat 2 to join X44 Vida Carbon Racing in Semi-Final 2 on Finals Day, meaning that both JBXE and NEOM McLaren Extreme E will battle it out in the Crazy Race.
As the ten teams head into Finals day of the Antofagasta Minerals Copper X Prix, find out where you can watch the here.
Cristina Gutiérrez, X44 Vida Carbon Racing, said: “It was great to get out on track again today. We got a good time in the morning Qualifying session and then in the afternoon it was exciting to race against other teams for the first time at the Copper X Prix.
“We watched the first race before we went out so of course we saw how crazy it can get, but luckily for us we were able to just be as fast as possible and test ourselves with a battle against ACCIONA | SAINZ. The best thing is that we were able to look after the car so now we can fully focus on preparing for the Semi-Final tomorrow and doing everything we can to win.”
Kyle LeDuc, No. 99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing, said: “The end goal is certainly to make the Semi Final and we were able to do that. There was just so much chaos out there and it wasn’t the most ideal race for us. But we managed to get through it with a decent set of results to set ourselves up for a big day tomorrow. The entire Chip Ganassi Racing team is motivated and we will be ready to roll.”
Results:
Heat 1:
1. Genesys Andretti United Extreme E 9:55.443
2. Rosberg X Racing +23.131 (Penalised)
3. No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing +3:40.443 (Penalised)
4. XITE ENERGY RACING DNF
5. Veloce Racing DNF
Heat 2:
1. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team 9:03:763
2. X44 Vida Carbon Racing +8.502 (Penalised)
3. ABT CUPRA XE +10.033
4. JBXE +14.575
5. NEOM McLaren Extreme E +23.172 (Penalised)
Having completed both rounds of Qualifying, Intermediate Classification points were awarded as follows:
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