WEHRLEIN TAKES FIRST POLE OF THE WEEKEND AT LONDON
Pascal Wehrlein took pole position for the first race of the decisive London double-header, with Porsche locking out the front row at the ExCeL Centre. Nico Mueller will start alongside his teammate, giving Porsche a perfect position for the 16th E-Prix of the season.
The pole is especially important for Wehrlein, who takes three points and closes the gap to championship leader Jake Dennis. The German is now just two points behind Dennis and level with Mitch Evans, putting three drivers within two points at the top of the standings.
Wehrlein will now start the race from the best possible position as he looks to fight for the championship. Porsche also has a strong chance to score important points in the Teams’ Championship, with both cars starting on the front row.
Mueller reached the final after beating Mitch Evans by more than two tenths of a second. Evans will start third, alongside Dan Ticktum on the second row.
The qualifying session was less successful for Jake Dennis. The championship leader was eliminated in the quarter-finals by Ticktum and will start fifth, alongside Mahindra driver Joel Eriksson.
Dennis admitted that the qualifying session had been difficult, but he remains confident about his chances in the race.
“The groups were a bit chaotic with the Mahindra cars, so the race should be interesting. I did a good lap, but Dan is very fast. Against another driver we probably would have gone through. We’re in the top seven, so we’ll see what happens in the race. We already knew the title would be decided tomorrow,” Dennis said.
Antonio Felix da Costa was also eliminated in the quarter-finals after arriving with a damaged Porsche following contact with the barriers during the group stage. He will start seventh, with Jean-Eric Vergne alongside him in eighth.
The qualifying results also have important consequences for the Teams’ Championship. Jaguar currently leads Porsche by 11 points, meaning every position could be important during the final two races of the season.
In Group A, Wehrlein set the fastest time ahead of Ticktum, Dennis and Vergne. Vergne’s final lap was enough to eliminate both Mahindra cars, with Nyck de Vries fifth and Edoardo Mortara seventh.
Mortara made a major mistake at Turn 17 during his final lap and may also have been affected by balance problems. Nick Cassidy was eliminated in sixth, while Lucas di Grassi finished last in the group.
Group B saw Nico Mueller set the fastest time, followed by Evans, Eriksson and Da Costa. The biggest surprise was the elimination of reigning champion Oliver Rowland, who could only manage seventh.
Rowland was also beaten by Sebastien Buemi, who missed the qualifying duels by just eight thousandths of a second, as well as Taylor Barnard.
Among the drivers still mathematically involved in the championship fight, De Vries will start ninth alongside Buemi. Cassidy will start 11th, while Rowland lines up 13th alongside Felipe Drugovich. Mortara will start only 18th after serving a penalty.
Guenther and di Grassi will occupy the final row of the grid.
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