Sims on pole again as day two proves tougher for Mercedes and Porsche

Alexander Sims reprised his pace-setting performance from qualifying on Saturday and will line up on pole position for the second Formula E race at Diriyah later today.

The BMW Andretti driver, who was unable to convert pole position to victory yesterday, will start from the front again despite a four-wheel slide during his Super Pole lap

Group qualifying today took place on a track drivers were saying was ‘totally different’ from the previous race here, the massive build up of sand on the desert track lifted by a day of both Formula E and I-Pace running.

Qualifying 1

After yesterday’s group one drivers, who were selected by last year’s championship order, were disgruntled to find themselves at a seriously disadvantage due to the track conditions, a clear racing line had emerged for the second qualifying session and the track proved more consistent.

Sam Bird topped the front-running group as he did yesterday, beating Andre Lotterer by a tenth-and-a-half. The Mercedes drivers, who had performed outstandingly on their debut from a lower group, discovered the hazards of going first as Stoffel Vandoorne managed a fairly distant third and Nyck De Vries lost a second with a slide in the final sector.

Overall times were so far improved that De Vries’ time – which he described as “really poor” – would have beaten yesterday’s Super Pole time.

Position	Driver	Team	Time
1	Sam Bird	Virgin	1’12.007
2	Andre Lotterer	Porsche	1’12.153
3	Stoffel Vandoorne	Mercedes	1’12.422
4	Robin Frijns	Virgin	1’12.454
5	Oliver Rowland	Nissan EDams	1’12.660
6	Nyck de Vries	Mercedes	1’14.082

Qualifying 2

Times fell even further in the next group. Friday’s pole sitter Sims and Mitch Evans both dipped below 1:12 to times closer to those seen in practice.

However, any deviation from the cleaned racing line did still prove risky – mistakes for Felipe Massa and Pascal Wehrlein saw their times compromised, while Jerome D’Ambrosio went fastest of the group despite sliding into the wall and hitting his rear left wheel.

Position	Driver	Team	Time
1	Jerome D’Ambrosio	Mahindra	1’11.835
2	Alexander Sims	BMW Andretti	1’11.858
3	Mitch Evans	Jaguar	1’11.972
4	Edordo Mortara	Venturi	1’12.008
5	Pascal Wehrlein	Mahindra	1’12.635
6	Felipe Massa	Venturi	1’12.656

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Qualifying 3

Group three didn’t show as much improvement, despite being made up of a majority of front-running cars. Antonio Felix da Costa, who had topped the single free practice session this morning, was able to put in the fastest time, a massive four-tenths taken out of D’Ambrosio’s lap.

Lucas Di Grassi also set a quick enough time to reach the Super Pole contest.

Position	Driver	Team	Time
1	Antonio Felix da Costa	DS Techeetah	1’11.418
2	Lucas di Grassi	Audi Abt	1’11.939
3	Maximilian Guenther	BMW Andretti	1’12.051
4	Oliver Turvey	NIO	1’12.671
5	Neel Jani	Porsche	1’12.732
6	James Calado	Jaguar	1’13.430

Qualifying 4

Reigning champion Jean-Eric Vergne is having a tough weekend. His car broke down during the race yesterday with a critical failure that essentially froze his steering column. His team had to work past the curfew to identify and repair it. He then crashed heavily during third practice, registering an impact severe enough that both he and his battery were sent for further examination and he had no further running ion the session.

Given that, putting together a lap that put him 11th was considered a good effort. Sebastien Buemi, who also retired from yesterday’s race with a technical problem, was able to put in a much better lap to take a Super Pole place.

The situation for Dragon, whose race yesterday was compromised by Nico Mueller not being able to start and Brendon Hartley ending up with technical issues that led to cascading penalties, seemed in dire straits during their session. Both drivers struggled to control the car and nearly two seconds back from the front times.

Position	Driver	Team	Time
1	Sebastien Buemi	Nissan EDams	1’11.774
2	Jean-Eric Vergne	DS Techeetah	1’12.327
3	Daniel Abt	Audi Abt	1’12.642
4	Brendon Hartley	Dragon	1’13.182
5	Ma Qinghua	NIO	1’12.205
6	Nico Mueller	Dragon	1’13.703

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Super Pole

Evans, the first driver out, was able to put in a convincing but not earth-shattering lap. A stronger effort followed from Di Grassi but Sims was instantly several tenths up on both, carving more than four tenths off as he reached sector three.

This was just as well, for carrying so much pace sent Sims spectacularly sideways, but he demonstrated remarkable car control to sustain his momentum down the straight. His finishing time, faster than all but Da Costa in groups, looked at least set for a probable front row.

Buemi was able to get close but the session descended into difficulties for both D’Ambrosio and Da Costa. D’Ambrosio’s damaged car, from the hit at the end of his group run, was uncooperative and Da Costa hit dust twice, sliding wide and completing a scrappy lap that would have had him dead last in groups. That confirmed a second pole in Diriyah for Sims, and his third in a row since the end of last year.

Position	Driver	Team	Time
1	Alexander Sims	BMW Andretti	1’11.476
2	Sebastien Buemi	Nissan EDams	1’11.696
3	Lucas di Grassi	Audi	1’11.784
4	Mitch Evans	Jaguar	1’11.929
5	Jerome D’Ambrosio	Mahindra	1’12.093
6	Antonio Felix da Costa	DS Techeetah	1’14.134

Vergne was subsequently penalised for a mandated battery change, caused by his crash earlier in the day. He was given a 20-place grid drop, which as he could not fulfil also converts into a 10-second time penalty.

Formula E

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• Wehrlein’s London win sets up thrilling three-way title showdown in finale
• Da Costa takes hat-trick of wins in chaotic second Portland race
• Da Costa inherits Portland win from Evans after Cassidy spins lead away
• Da Costa controls second Shanghai race as Cassidy extends championship lead

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