Mexico City E-Prix: Wehrlein beats team-mate da Costa to pole as Porsche dominate

Reigning Method E champion Pascal Wehrlein claimed back-to-back pole positions having bested team-mate Antonio Felix da Costa in qualifying for the Mexico Metropolis E-Prix as Porsche dominated.

The German entered the second spherical of the season with a brand new chassis after his spectacular shunt within the Sao Paulo season-opener, but it surely didn’t forestall him from changing into the primary driver to take pole place 4 occasions on the similar venue.

Da Costa was initially quicker within the opening sector by lower than a tenth however fell away within the second sector as he trailed his team-mate by 0.324s.

Regardless of a small slide by means of the ultimate flip for Wehrlein, he was capable of take his eighth Method E pole place by 0.125s with a 1m10.984s, as da Costa reported an issue together with his automobile over the radio.

Da Costa set the quickest lap all through the whole thing of qualifying within the semi-final levels with a 1m10.739s, leaving him 0.184s away from Jean-Eric Vergne.

Wehrlein made it by means of to his second qualifying ultimate in a row after besting Nissan’s Oliver Rowland within the semi-final, the Briton fractionally forward on the finish of the second sector earlier than shedding two tenths within the ultimate phase.

Championship chief and Sao Paulo winner Mitch Evans dropped out within the quarter-final duel stage, the Jaguar driver ending 0.280s behind Rowland because the Briton posted a 1m11.058s courtesy of the 350kw all-wheel-drive mode.

Wehrlein was by no means headed in his duel with Edoardo Mortara after the Mahindra driver ran deep into Flip 1 and completed practically one second adrift, as Andretti’s Jake Dennis completed practically half a second behind da Costa.

In an all-DS Penske affair, Vergne bested Maximilian Guenther by over three tenths having posted a quicker time within the opening two sectors.

With the observe nonetheless damp for the opening qualifying group, the ultimate laps proved decisive as Wehrlein headed Rowland, Envision’s Sebastien Buemi and Evans.

However Buemi was stripped of his greatest occasions as a consequence of a throttle pedal map infraction, selling Mortara into the duels having initially missed the lower by simply over two tenths after he was held up by Lucas di Grassi by means of the ultimate nook.

The incident was positioned beneath investigation earlier than no additional motion was taken as di Grassi was categorised ninth, with Lola-Yamaha Abt team-mate Zane Maloney promoted to fifth forward of Andretti’s Nico Muller.

Cupra Kiro’s David Beckmann was categorised seventh having run deep into Flip 1 in the course of the session, forward of Maserati MSG’s Stoffel Vandoorne and McLaren’s Taylor Barnard, who completed 4.5s off Wehrlein’s 1m14.610s.

Taylor Barnard completed final within the group, the McLaren driver some 4.5s off Wehrlein’s 1m14.610s.

Maximilian Guenther, DS Penske

Picture by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Photographs

Guenther topped the second session with a 1m13.352s as situations improved and headed Dennis, Nick Cassidy and da Costa.

The second DS Penske of Vergne missed the lower by simply 0.037s, however like Mortara, the Frenchman progressed after Cassidy was stripped of his quickest lap for a throttle pedal map infraction.

The second Envision of Robin Frijns additionally suffered the same destiny having initially completed forward of Sam Bird, the McLaren driver left annoyed as he was blocked by means of the ultimate activate his final try by Mahindra’s Nyck de Vries.

The incident was positioned beneath investigation and the Dutchman was handed a three-place grid penalty and a penalty level.

Maserati MSG’s Jake Hughes, who was additionally handed the identical punishment as de Vries for impeding Frijns, Cupra Kiro’s Dan Ticktum and Nissan’s Norman Nato  accomplished the provisional classification.

Mexico Metropolis E-Prix qualifying outcome