– Double-points finish for Cupra Kiro and the 99X Electric WCG3
– Wehrlein retains lead of Drivers’ Championship
– Porsche still heads both teams’ and manufacturers’ standings
The Porsche Formula E Team was unable to build on its successful result in Friday’s Jeddah E-Prix, with Pascal Wehrlein and teammate Nico Müller finishing P8 and P16 respectively in Saturday’s second race of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in Saudi Arabia. Dan Ticktum and Pepe Martí finished fifth and sixth for customer team Cupra Kiro, making it three Porsche-powered cars in the top eight.
Factory drivers Wehrlein and Müller missed out on reaching the qualifying duels ahead of the 30-lap race at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, starting P11 and P16. Wehrlein was able to climb into the points with the highly efficient Porsche 99X Electric. The former World Champion had won the previous day on his 100th Formula E race start.
Ticktum claimed his first points of the season with the Porsche 99X Electric WCG3, finishing just ahead of his new teammate Martí. The Spanish Formula E rookie took fastest lap and made considerable progress after starting P14. Jake Dennis for customer team Andretti Formula E was in the leading group after starting on the front row, but a puncture put the former World Champion out of contention.
The result means the Stuttgart-based sports car manufacturer still leads both the teams’ and manufacturers’ standings, while Wehrlein heads the Drivers’ Championship.
Racing for Charity
Under the motto Racing for Charity, Porsche is making a strong social statement in the current Formula E season, supporting seriously ill children worldwide. For every lap completed by its two factory-run Porsche 99X Electric, the Stuttgart-based sports car manufacturer donates 400 euros to the charitable organisations Kinderherzen retten e.V., Interplast Germany e.V., and the Ferry Porsche Foundation. With Pascal Wehrlein and Nico Müller completing the maximum number of laps so far this season, the current donation total stands at 136,800 euros.
Comments on the Jeddah E-Prix
Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E: « A difficult day in the office after a tough qualifying. Pascal missed the duels by just seven hundredths of a second. Starting from P11, it was a difficult race because it was not easy to progress. He collected four points for P8, and on top of that, we had two more Porsche cars in the points with P5 and P6 for Dan Ticktum and Pepe Martí, including fastest lap. These are valuable points for Cupra Kiro as well as for the manufacturers’ standings. Like Pascal, Nico also struggled in qualifying and started P16. We did a riskier strategy with him, saving energy and anticipating a caution at the end of the race which did not happen. Overall, it was a strong weekend as Porsche keeps the lead in the teams’ and manufacturers’ standings, and Pascal took the lead in the Drivers’ Championship. A big thank you to everyone in the team. It’s 5 out of 17 races done now, and we need to work hard to stay there. The target is to fight for the championships in London, and we need to deliver each race. Lastly, congrats to António Félix da Costa on his win with his new team, Jaguar TCS Racing! »
Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche factory driver (#94): « Not the perfect day. Still, we scored a couple of points, but everything felt a bit harder today. There was more potential. Sometimes we get it right, sometimes less so. Yesterday was a perfect day, today we did not optimise everything. We need to analyse that and still take the positives from this weekend, which is a lot of points, a win and good pace. Thanks to the team. »
Nico Müller, Porsche factory driver (#51): « We didn’t really make all the right choices in qualifying, didn’t quite have the performance, and the car was not feeling as good as yesterday. In the race, we tried to bank a bit of energy to use later on, but that didn’t work out. The race became quicker, and we couldn’t benefit from that advantage, plus I had a bit of damage on the car, which slowed us down. No points today, which is frustrating, but it makes us hungrier to be back stronger in Madrid. »
ABB FIA Formula E World Championship – standings after 5 of 17 races
Drivers’ classification
1. Pascal Wehrlein (GER), 68 points – Porsche 99X Electric
2. Edoardo Mortara (SUI), 62 points – Mahindra M12Electro
3. Oliver Rowland (GBR), 49 points – Nissan e-4ORCE 05
6. Nico Müller (SUI), 45 points – Porsche 99X Electric
8. Jake Dennis (GBR), 39 points – Porsche 99X Electric
11. Pepe Martí (ESP), 17 points – Porsche 99X Electric WCG3
14. Dan Ticktum (GBR), 10 points – Porsche 99X Electric WCG3
19. Felipe Drugovich (BRA), 0 points – Porsche 99X Electric
Teams’ classification : 1. Porsche Formula E Team (GER), 113 points ; 2. Jaguar TCS Racing (GBR), 86 points ; 3. Mahindra Racing (IND), 74 points… 7. Andretti Formula E (USA), 39 points ; 8. CUPRA KIRO (USA), 27 points…
Manufacturers’ classification : 1. Porsche, 143 points ; 2. Jaguar, 124 points ; 3. Stellantis, 87 points…
Yannick Bitzer,