Wehrlein clinches victory at Misano after last lap drama for Rowland
Mediabank Formule E
General
- Ludo van Denderen
Pascal Wehrlein clinched victory in the second E-Prix at Misano. The German took advantage of race leader Oliver Rowland's crash on the very last lap of the race. Reigning champion Jake Dennis finished second, making him the new championship leader.
Just like during Saturday's race, the drivers tried to save as much energy as possible in the early stages of the second E-Prix. They did so by mainly driving in the slipstream of someone else and trying to avoid being ahead (because that actually costs extra energy). All the more remarkable was that polesitter Jake Hughes did not try to put a competitor in the lead during the first laps. Only after four laps did the McLaren driver think enough was enough: he clearly slammed on the brakes, leaving Vergne in the lead.
With that, the proverbial gate had opened. Time after time, drivers tried to put another driver into the lead, sometimes with several cars next to each other. All this fuss meant that the track was often crowded, making collisions inevitable. Robin Frijns could talk about that; he ended up in a sandwich with Felix da Costa (Porsche) and Bird (McLaren), with the latter causing the front suspension of Frijns' Envision Racing car to break off.
Antonio Felix da Costa - the Portuguese who had to surrender his win a day earlier due to a technical infringement - also saw a good result evaporate after a self-inflicted collision at the back of Bird's car saw him break his front wing. Norman Nato (Andretti) was next not much later with front wing damage from contact with the rear of Vergne's DS Penske.
Rowland looked to be on his way to victory
As the race progressed, there was less and less need to conserve energy and the turmoil disappeared. With about 10 laps to go, it was championship leader Oliver Rowland (Nissan) - started from 10th place - who, together with Pascal Wehrlein, created a small gap to the chasers. At that point, Sebastien Buemi had to climb out of his Envision, giving the reigning constructors' champion a dramatic day.
In the closing stages of the race, Rowland and Wehrlein engaged in a real duel. The Briton seemed to hold on, but on the final lap, Rowland stopped. He had used too much energy. Wehrlein took advantage, with Jake Dennis second, and Nick Cassidy took the final spot on the podium.
Results second E-Prix in Misano
