The first six stages of the Oregon Trail Rally have passed. Brandon Semenuk remains in the lead, now leading Jeff Seehorn by 2 minutes and 2.9 seconds.
SS5, Oak Flat Reverse
Stage five would once again see Brandon Semenuk on top to take his fifth consecutive stage win. Semenuk set a time 13.5 seconds faster than Sam Albert who finished second on the stage. Jeff Seehorn would take third on the stage, finishing with a time 4.1 seconds slower than Albert. Jason Bailey set the fourth fastest time on the stage, finishing 9.5 seconds slower than Seehorn. Lia Block would round out the top five on the stage, finishing with a time 1 second slower than Bailey.
SS6, Maryhill
Brandon Semenuk would once again take the stage win on SS6. Sam Albert would set the second fastest time on the stage, 8.5 seconds slower than Semenuk. Jeff Seehorn would set the third fastest time on the stage, 2 seconds slower than Albert. George Plsek would finish with the fourth fastest time on the stage, 4.8 seconds slower than Seehorn. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, setting a time 2.7 seconds slower than Plsek.
The first four stages of the Oregon Trail Rally have come to an end. Brandon Semenuk continued his dominance, taking all 4 stage wins to take a minute and 34.8 second lead over Jeff Seehorn.
SSS1, Founders Olmstead Moore Nagle SSS
The first stage of the Oregon Trail Rally would be a 5.97km SuperSpecial stage at the Portland International Raceway. Brandon Semenuk would take the win on SSS1. Setting a time 13.8 seconds faster than Sam Albert and his Ferrari powered 2004 Subaru WRX STi. Regional driver Andy Miller would set the third fastest time on the stage, setting a time 2.9 seconds slower than Albert. Jeff Seehorn would finish with the fourth fastest time on the stage, setting a time 2.8 seconds slower than Miller. Jason Bailey would round out the top five on the stage, setting a time 0.6 seconds slower than Seehorn.
SSS2, Founders Olmstead Moore Nagle SSS
The second stage of the Oregon Trail Rally would be the same 5.97km SuperSpecial stage at Portland International Raceway. Brandon Semenuk would once again take the stage win. This time setting a time 14.6 seconds faster than Sam Albert. Jeff Seehorn would set the third-fastest time on the stage this timearound. Finishing the stage with a time 1.6 seconds slower than Albert. Andy Miller would set the fourth fastest time, finishing the stage 2.7 seconds slower than Seehorn. George Plsek would round out the top five on SSS2, finishing with a time 2.1 seconds slower than Miller.
SS3, Dalles Mountain Up
The first stage of the second day of the Oregon Trail Rally would see Brandon Semenuk on top yet again. Semenuk set a time 36.4 seconds faster than Jeff Seehorn who placed second on the stage. Javier Olivares would set the third fastest time on the stage, that time would be 19.5 seconds slower than Seehorn’s time however. Sam Albert would set the fourth fastest time on the stage. 0.8 seconds slower than Olivares time. Georgie Plsek would round out the top five on the stage, finishing with a time 2.1 seconds slower than Albert.
SS4, The Great Horseshoe
The fourth stage of the Oregon Trail Rally would see Brandon Semenuk take yet another stage win. This time Semenuk set a time 24.4 seconds faster than Jeff Seehorn who would place second on the stage. Javier Olivares set the third-fastest time on the stage, finishing 16.1 seconds slower than Seehorn. George Plsek would set the fourth fastest time on the stage, 0.1 seconds slower than Olivares time. Sam Albert would round out the top five on the stage, finishing with a time 4.8 seconds slower than Plsek.
William Byron won Sunday’s Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway by avoiding two huge pile-ups and keeping his car inside the top 10 all race long, to secure his seventh career win and third win of the season while lots of drivers’ good days, including teammate Kyle Larson, were ruined by being caught up in multi-car pile-ups caused by Ross Chastain and Martin Truex Jr.
Another Blow to Larson’s Quest for Darlington Cup Win
Chastain Overdrives into Truex
Truex wrecks Logano
Bubba Wallace Comeback
Rest of Race Recap
Full Race Results
Points Standings
Byron snuck past the carnage caused by Truex Jr. and Joey Logano wrecking in turn one on a late race restart that created a pile-up behind them, moving Byron up into third place, where he had spent much of the race until a slow pit stop with less than 40 laps to go saw him fall back to ninth.
DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – MAY 14: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Throwback Chevrolet, pits during the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on May 14, 2023 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
He found himself taking the lead via another pile-up on the very next restart with six laps to go as Chastain and Larson wrecked in turn one much like Truex Jr. and Logano had.
Byron easily fought off Harvick in the two-lap overtime shootout as Harvick’s car had suffered front-end damage from the first pile-up, to take the chequered flag in what was a moment of redemption for Byron as he had lost last year’s Spring Darlington race to Joey Logano via a bump and run in turns three and four on the final lap.
DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – MAY 14: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Throwback Chevrolet, celebrates with a burnout after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on May 14, 2023 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
Byron said: “My grandad passed away on Thursday, and just, man, I wish my family could be here. Just things have a way of working out, honestly. It just worked out that way today. We didn’t have the best third stage. We just kept battling, and things just kind of come back around.”
As part of NASCAR’s Throwback Weekend at Darlington’s Raceway on its 75th anniversary, William Byron’s No. 24 team was running a throwback paint scheme to four-time Cup champion and Hendrick Motorsports Vice Chairman, Jeff Gordon’s shiny 1998 All-Star Race DuPont (now AXALTA) Chromalusion/NASCAR 50th anniversary car.
On this day in 1998, Jeff Gordon's "Illusion Car" paint scheme for that year's All-Star Race was unveiled. It was painted in ChromaLusion Pure Fire Prizm, DuPont's new paint that changed color from red to gold depending on the light. The expensive paint cost $17 an ounce. pic.twitter.com/h7qW3gSBYw
Byron’s redemption Darlington victory appropriately secures the No. 24 car it’s 100th win in NASCAR, with Jeff Gordon having scored 93 of them.
Another Blow to Larson’s Quest for Darlington Cup Win
Kyle Larson fell short of a Darlington Cup Series win once again, after marching through the field and appearing to have the best car, only to be taken out by Ross Chastain who while also having one of the strongest cars in the race, failed to stop himself from causing multiple pileups from asking too much out of his race car.
Kyle Larson, driver of the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet, rides closely to the wall at Darlington Raceway (Photo by Alejandro Alvarez/NASCAR Studios)
Larson, Saturday’s Darlington Xfinity race winner, became buried back in traffic after having a slow pit on lap 39 in stage one but went from 29th to 12th by the end of the stage.
Larson impressively cut through the field all the way up to third by the end of stage two and was a threat for the win as he jumped race leader Ross Chastain during the final green flag pit stop on lap 246, and led over 20 laps until a caution for returning Cup Series veteran Ryan Newman saw the field be restacked with Larson and Chastain lined up together for the lap 281 restart.
As Truex and Logano wrecked behind them, Larson lost the lead as Chastain had inched ahead on the inside from the last scoring loop the two had past prior to the caution.
The next restart saw the pair race tightly side-by-side into turn one before Chastain sailed up into Larson and spun off Larson’s nose causing a pile-up behind with Larson pushing Chastain sideways out of turn two, dashing both their hopes for a Darlington win with Larson and Chastain ending up 20th and 29th.
Rick Hendrick, owner of Hendrick Motorsports and Kyle Larson’s No. 5 Chevrolet post-race said regarding Chastain’s aggressive driving: “It’s hard to win a championship when you got a lot of paybacks out there. Dale Earnhardt Sr. said ‘he got all the talent. He just doesn’t know how to race. [Chastain] is making a lot of enemies out there.”
Chastain said: “I got really tight and drove up and turned myself. I wanted to squeeze him. I wanted to push him up. We’d been racing back and forth all day. But I definitely didn’t want to turn myself.”
Larson did make contact with Chastain prior to the incident as they battled over the race lead as Truex Jr. and Logano wrecked behind them on the previous restart.
It’s yet another one that got away for Larson’s Darlington Raceway quest for a Cup Series win at The Lady In Black after previously amassing three runner up finishes, in 2019 and in both 2021 races as well as finishing third in the 2016 and 2018 Darlington races.
It’s the third time this season that Chastain has had a coming together with Larson that cost them the chance at a win, previously at Dover and Talladega.
Chastain Overdrives into Truex
Chastain had ran inside the top-five for much of the race and led over 100 laps before crashing into Larson. After finishing fourth in stage one, Chastain drove like he had been shot out of a cannon following the green flag pit stop halfway through stage two that saw him fly by Byron for second on lap 147 and race leader Truex Jr. four laps later as was able to hold off a late charging Truex for the final 11 laps to win stage two but not without controversy.
In turn three on the final lap Chastain broke hard behind a lapped car and bounced off the wall and into Truex who was sent spinning down the track and would finish 10th while Chastain would win stage two.
Truex’s car remained tight for the remainder of the race, with Truex putting it down to a bent toe link in the right front as a result of the contact.
Martin Truex Jr. spins out following contact with Ross Chastain at Darlington Raceway (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
All this comes just days after Chastain’s fighting incident with Legacy Motor Club driver Noah Gragson following the Kansas Cup race where he decided to land the first punch on pit road post-race after Gragson was displaying his displeasure towards him for running him into the turn four wall during the race.
Martin Truex Jr. started on the inside of Logano on row two for the lap 281 restart but got tight underneath him in turn one and ran Logano into the wall, and spun off of Logano’s Ford Mustang causing an eight-car pile-up and all but ended what had a been a strong day for the polesitter having led 145 laps.
Truex said: “Like I said, knocked the toe out in the right front. Pretty crappy from there, and then on that restart, I guess I just got real tight and I don’t even know who I squeezed into the wall, but I apologize to them. Probably my fault, just got real tight and couldn’t stay down the track.”
Logano and Truex Jr. would finish 18th and 31st respectively. Logano was running a distinctive 1973 Mark Donohue throwback scheme for the race that had got Team Penske their first NASCAR Cup Series win at Riverside.
Bubba Wallace came back to a fifth place finish after plummeting to 18th from third during the stage one break following a slow pit stop due to a lug nut issue.
Wallace had qualified second and dominated stage one with Truex until Byron passed Wallace for second with 10 laps to go in stage one.
Bubba Wallace races in his No. 23 Dr Pepper Toyota (Photo by Brittney Wilbur/NASCAR Studios)
Wallace found himself stuck during stage two unable to move forward much as only managed 15th at the end of stage two.
Avoiding being caught up in the late race drama saw Wallace earn valuable points with the fifth place finish.
Rest of Race Recap
The drivers to give command for Sunday’s race were none other than the drivers from NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers list, all of which had been selected and revealed throughout the year up until the throwback weekend with drivers who could attend it in person such as Richard Petty, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jr., and Kevin Harvick giving the command to start engines.
NASCAR Chairman and CEO Jim France poses with members of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers list prior to the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on May 14, 2023 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Truex Jr. following the last lap spin in stage one, led the first half of stage two keeping ahead of Byron, despite Byron pitting lap earlier for fresh tyres, bringing the gap down from over four seconds to 1.4.
Lap 194 saw Erik Jones crash into the pack off turn two on a restart due a loose wheel coming away from under him, causing a nine-car crash that took Austin Dillon, and Daniel Suarez out of the race.
Jones, who was running a 1968 Richard Petty Daytona 500 throwback scheme, had worked his way up inside the top 15 from a 28th starting position.
Todd Gilliland, driver of the No. 38 Serial1.com E-Bikes Ford, Erik Jones, driver of the No. 43 Allegiant Chevrolet, and Chase Elliott, driver of the No. 9 LLumar Throwback Chevrolet, race during the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
A few laps into the final stage saw Ricky Stenhouse Jr. who had ran as high as sixth throughout stage one, spin out in turn three bringing out another caution.
With 78 laps to go on the next restart, Chastain and Kyle Busch, who had been inside the top ten all race, led the field back to green but Busch slid up into the turn two wall dropping down to fourth.
There was a three car battle in Chastain, Byron and Larson inside of 50 laps to go that saw Larson come out on top following the final green flag pit stop.
Three time Darlington Southern 500 winner Denny Hamlin stayed out for several laps during the final green flag pit cycle in a hope for a caution that would drag the field down pit road with him but did not come in time before Larson took the lead back from Hamlin on fresher tyres.
Christopher Bell was running second to Larson inside of 20 to go but a loose wheel from the pit stop forced him back down pit road under caution following Newman’s spin, which saw him start from the rear.
Due in part to the two late race pile-ups, the final top 10 was somewhat new compared to the rest of the race with Chase Elliott finishing third after a steady march through the field, Harrison Burton sixth, Justin Haley eighth, and Chris Buescher tenth.
The next race for the NASCAR Cup Series sees them return to the legendary and freshly renovated North Wilkesboro Speedway in Wilkes County, North Carolina this Sunday for this season’s All-Star Race with the All-Star Open last chance qualifying starting 5:30pm ET and the All-Star Race starting at 8pm ET.
Full Race Results
William Byron
Kevin Harvick
Chase Elliott
Brad Keselowski
Bubba Wallace
Harrison Burton
Kyle Busch
Justin Haley
Ryan Blaney
Chris Buescher
Todd Gilliland
Denny Hamlin
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Christopher Bell
Ryan Preece
Ty Gibbs
Chase Briscoe
Joey Logano
Austin Cindric
Kyle Larson
Aric Almirola
Tyler Reddick
AJ Allmendinger
Corey LaJoie
Erik Jones
Noah Gragson
Ty Dillon
Ryan Newman
Ross Chastain
Josh Berry
Martin Truex Jr.
BJ McLeod
Michael McDowell
Daniel Suarez
Austin Dillon
Brennan Poole
Stage 1 Top 10
Martin Truex Jr.
William Byron
Bubba Wallace
Ross Chastain
Kyle Busch
Brad Keselowski
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Kevin Harvick
Tyler Reddick
Christopher Bell
Stage 2 Top 10
Ross Chastain
Kyle Busch
Kyle Larson
William Byron
Brad Keselowski
Christopher Bell
Kevin Harvick
Ryan Blaney
Ricky Stenhouse Jr.
Martin Truex Jr.
Points Standings
Ross Chastain – 429
Christopher Bell – 402
Kevin Harvick – 400
Denny Hamlin – 393
William Byron – 387
Martin Truex Jr. – 385
Ryan Blaney – 381
Tyler Reddick – 371
Brad Keselowski – 365
Kyle Larson – 363
Kyle Busch – 353
Joey Logano – 334
Chris Buescher – 329
Ricky Stenhouse Jr. – 325
Bubba Wallace – 293
Chase Briscoe – 275
Daniel Suarez – 262
Ty Gibbs – 260
Austin Cindric – 248
Michael McDowell – 241
Todd Gilliland – 240
Corey LaJoie – 238
Justin Haley – 225
Erik Jones – 221
Aric Almirola – 221
AJ Allmendinger – 214
Chase Elliott – 212
Ryan Preece – 201
Harrison Burton – 176
Austin Dillon – 166
Noah Gragson – 138
Ty Dillon – 110
BJ McLeod – 70
Featured Image: DARLINGTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – MAY 14: William Byron, driver of the #24 Axalta Throwback Chevrolet, reacts after winning the NASCAR Cup Series Goodyear 400 at Darlington Raceway on May 14, 2023 in Darlington, South Carolina. (Photo by Logan Riely/Getty Images)
Tony Arbolino wins the red-flagged Moto2 French Grand Prix ahead of Filip Salac, who took his first podium in the dry, and Alonso Lopez following a three-rider crash on lap two.
After starting on pole, Sam Lowes had a good start, but Lopez was able to get past at turn two to take the lead of the race. Further down the field, Jake Dixon and Aron Canet brushed against each other but were both able to continue. Fermin Aldeguer was the big gainer during the first lap moving up from 11th place to fifth at the midway point of the lap.
Coming over the start-finish line for the first time, Arbolino overtook Lopez to lead the field. At turn two, Lowes caused a yellow flag after crashing when his front tyre locked. At the exit of turn five, Albert Arenas, Manuel Gonzalez and Canet were involved in a crash which initially resulted in a yellow flag followed by a red flag on lap 3.
Following the red flag, information was shared that all riders were conscious, and Canet was taken to the medical centre for further checks.
As three laps had not been completed, a shortened 14-lap race with original grid positions and a quick-start procedure was selected as the restart method. All riders were eligible for the restart.
All riders who were able to start the race made it out of the pitlane in time to start from their grid positions except for Lowes who was 5 seconds too late and therefore started the warmup lap from the pitlane and the race from the back of the grid.
From the restart, Arbolino got the best start and was able to take the race lead into the Dunlop Chicane. Pedro Acosta had a better restart the second time around moving up to fifth. Aldegueur was unable to make up as many places on the first lap, ending up in sixth place as he crossed the start-finish line.
Lopez and Acosta spent two laps fighting for second place which allowed Arbolino to break away from the rest of the field and Salac to catch them up. By lap four, Salac was able to get past Lopez, but Arbolino pulled out a 0.7-second lead over Acosta.
At turn 7 on lap 5, Acosta crashed out of second place promoting Salac to second place. Also on lap 5, Rory Skinner crashed out at turn 6.
Arbolino continued to extend the gap to 1.8s until he made a mistake on lap 6 allowing Salac to reduce the time between them to 0.7s.
Dixon was able to pass Aldeguer on lap 7, just before the Spanish rider received communication that he had received a long-lap penalty for taking a shortcut between turns 9 and 10. As Aldeguer completed his long-lap penalty, Sergio Garcia and Ai Ogura were able to pass him.
By lap 10, the gap between Arbolino and Salac had been at 0.5s at its lowest, and Salac kept setting laps faster than the Italian rider but was unable to do so before the chequered flag waved after fourteen laps. Lopez was able to cross the line in third place. Celestino Vietti finished just behind Lopez.
Dixon and Somkiat Chantra battled for fifth place until Dixon was able to pass the Thai rider at Garage Vert. Dixon and Chantra finished the race in fifth and sixth place, respectively. Barry Baltus was close behind the pair, crossing the line in seventh.
A few laps after his long-lap penalty, Aldeguer overtook the two riders who passed him earlier and finished 9 seconds behind the race winner.
After the crash during the first start, Lowes was able to salvage one point by finishing in 15th place.
Daniel Holgado took victory in the Moto3 French Grand Prix with a well-executed ride and handed Tech3 Racing their first ever victory on home soil.
With that, the Spaniard increased his lead in the championship to 21 points and added a second victory to his tally for 2023.
Ayumu Sasaki put in a very strong qualifying performance to start from pole position, with Diogo Moreira and Holgado completing the front row.
But Sasaki couldn’t hold onto his lead at the start, quickly losing out to Holgado who made a nice move down the inside at the first braking zone of the Le Mans track.
The Japanese rider tried to conjure up a reaction as the first lap went on but couldn’t make anything stick for the time being.
Credit: Gold & Goose/Red Bull
Meanwhile behind the top two it was Deniz Oncu who settled into third as he got the better of Moreira on the opening lap.
Moreira then lost another position on lap seven as Ivan Ortola moved his way into fourth with a nice move at Turn 3.
The battle at the front then stabilised for the following few laps as the riders settled into the race.
But it all began to unfold at the halfway point however, as Moreira crashed out at Turn 12 – the Brazilian had continued to drop back as the race progressed and was in seventh at the time of the incident.
Sasaki then pulled the pin and made his move back into the lead with a pass on Holgado along the pit straight, but Holgado quickly responded at Turn 3 to hang on to first place.
Elsewhere Jaume Masia moved up into third with six laps to go after taking advantage of Oncu running slightly wide at Turn 8.
The Spaniard then attacked Sasaki for second place and the pair were engaged in a back-and-forth battle – which allowed Holgado to sit comfortably out in front as those behind him jostled for position.
Sasaki was able to retake second at Turn 3 with three laps remaining, and quickly tried to shake off Masia in an attempt to chase down the leader ahead.
But ultimately it was to no avail – despite closing the gap to just 0.150 seconds Sasaki had to settle for second as Holgado took victory after a very strong race to hold off the pressure.
Speaking after the race, Holgado said it was a good ending to an event where he’d showed strong pace throughout the three days.
“The feeling is amazing. I am so happy because this Grand Prix was very important for my team as it was their home race, and winning it for them is just incredible,” he said.
“I was fast all weekend, and today we were just really strong and confident. What a weekend, thank you to my team.”
Masia ended the race in third but had to fight for it as Ortola piled on the pressure in the final two laps.
Oncu went from being third to ending up sixth in the final few laps of the race, finishing behind Ryusei Yamanaka.
Credit: Gold & Goose/Red Bull
Xavier Artigas finished in seventh, with David Alonso and Jose Rueda some distance behind in eighth and ninth.
Stefano Nepa managed to get the better of Joel Kelso, Kaito Toba and Tatsuki Suzuki in what was a close fought battle for 10th.
David Salvador and Collin Veijer rounded out the points finishers.
Among the other fallers, Syarifuddin Azman was the first victim to crash in the race on the third lap at Turn 12 – a disappointing end to what was a strong weekend for the Malaysian where he qualified 10th.
Andrea Migno also fell at Turn 12 a few laps later and was shortly followed by Scott Ogden at Turn 7, as well as Taiyo Furusato who fell on the last lap at Turn 9.
The final day, and not a short day either with 55km’s over four stages. Two of the stages would also only be run once as well giving an extra dimension to the final day.
There was overnight drama for two of the drivers. Firstly, Thierry had drama coming back to the service park, with smoke coming out of the car. It was a turbocharger failure for the Belgian. Then Oliver who had a large lead was given a one-minute penalty for celebrating after the flying finish in the final Lousada stage with some donuts. Gus therefore was now leading the WRC2 category.
Into the first stage then, SS16 Paredes – 11.05 km was won by Takamoto from Kalle and Dani. Thierry’s problems with a lack of power were also clearly not solved and was 1 minute 26 seconds slower than the Japanese driver. In WRC2 Oliver was really quick setting a time that was just 11 seconds from the fastest driver and bringing the gap down to just 22 seconds from the category leader and fellow Toksport teammate.
Next up then, SS17 Fafe 1 – 11.18 km, the dress rehearsal for the Power Stage and Kalle was fastest from EP by just 2 tenths of a second and Ott third. Kalle now had a lead of close to one a minute. Oliver had also reduced the gap to Gus to just 15 seconds! He really wanted the win!
There was another stage win for Ott in SS18 Cabeceiras de Basto – 22.01 km from Dani and Takamoto. Oliver also was going well, setting the fourth fastest time, although there was a lot of tyre saving going on. The young Swede had now reduced the gap to just 8.7 seconds!
Well, it was time for the final stage, SS19 Fafe 2[Power Stage] – 11.18 km. Ott set the early pace, but Kalle came through and eclipsed his time, going seven tenths faster. EP was third and Takamoto and Dani rounded out the top five fastest in the stage and took the points. In WRC2, there was a really close finish with Oliver going fastest from Nikolay and Andreas taking the final point for third. Gus hung on for the category win by just 1.2 seconds from the charging Swede!
Let’s take a look at the final standings and hear from the drivers.
Final Overall Classification –Rally de Portugal
1
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
3:35:11.7
2
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+54.7
3
E. Lappi
J. Ferm
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+1:20.3
4
O. Tänak
M. Järveoja
Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid
+2:04.1
5
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+8:22.5
6
G. Greensmith
J. Andersson
Škoda Fabia RS
+9:43.4
7
O. Solberg
E. Edmondson
Škoda Fabia RS
+9:44.6
8
A. Mikkelsen
T. Eriksen
Škoda Fabia RS
+10:26.4
9
Y. Rossell
A. Dunand
Citroën C3
+11:33.2
10
T. Suninen
M. Markkula
Hyundai i20 N Rally2
+12:16.3
2023 FIA World Rally Championship Round 5, Rally de Portugal 11 – 14 Mai 2023 Dani Sordo – Esapekka Lappi Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä
“This win has been a long time coming. There have been some difficult weekends but all the time I knew that when we can have a clean weekend and a good drive, we are right in the game. It’s nice to win here in Portugal again and to finally be back on the top. A big thanks to Jonne and to the team, who have been pushing forwards all the time. This weekend we had a good feeling with the car, and we were able to push hard. In the Power Stage I wanted to take as many points as we could because I knew we would likely have to open the road on the next event anyway. It was not a perfect stage, but it was enough, so I’m happy. Sardinia will be more difficult, but we will definitely try to continue like this.”
Takamoto Katsuta
“It has been a challenging weekend after the issue that we had on Friday. I was expecting a lot for this rally, so I was really disappointed, but sometimes this happens. After that I just had to try and get more experience and learn something for the future. It was not so easy cleaning the road, but the car felt fantastic, so the team and the engineers did a great job. On the Power Stage there were narrower ruts from the cars ahead, so I still had to open the line a bit, yet the time was pretty OK. It’s good to finish the rally and get some points for the team: huge thank you to them and big congratulations to Kalle and Jonne.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Dani Sordo
“I’m really happy to get the podium but in particular our performance yesterday was really satisfying for us. In the morning we weren’t really on it but in the afternoon, we found our pace, and it was the best feeling. This is for you, Craig. I think we drove very well, so I have to say thanks to him. He was with me all rally long and he was pushing me to the limits. I want to give this podium to his mum and dad, because I promised them, I would wear this helmet for him. Thank you very much to them. The fans have been amazing as always here in Portugal, you can absolutely feel their support in the car. I remember called Craig after Sweden and told him he was so fast, and he said ‘hell, now you have the pressure!’. Well Craig, I am back.”
2023 FIA World Rally Championship Round 5, Rally de Portugal 2023, 11-14 May 2023 Dani Sordo, Candido Carrera, Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid, Action during Day 3 of WRC Rally de Portugal 2023 Photographer: Romain Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Esapekka Lappi
“A little too much action on the final day for our team in terms of technical issues, both for Thierry and then myself right at the end. Two kilometres from the end of the last stage, we picked up a problem with our turbo as well. Overall, we had a good weekend. It was a strong consistent drive with no other problems, and it is a good result for the team to be second and third. We’ve scored important manufacturers’ points today. I’m sure the team will carefully investigate the issues so they don’t happen again, and we can be better in the next rounds.”
2023 FIA World Rally Championship Round 5, Rally de Portugal 2023, 11-14 May 2023 Esapekka Lappi, Janne Ferm, Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid, Action during Day 3 of WRC Rally de Portugal 2023 Photographer: Romain Thuillier Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Thierry Neuville
“In short, this is what rallying is all about – full of ups and downs. It is one of the most cruel motorsports, if not sports, in the world. We have to face situations like this sometimes, but it is never easy. Martijn and I put a lot of energy and effort in, but we go home with very little points and not the result we were looking for, so we’re very disappointed about that. Rallying is never over until it’s over, and we paid the price today. I want to give a round of applause to the organisers, they have done an incredible job, and to the spectators as well. They were just perfect, so at the very least we enjoyed that. A weekend to forget; let’s see what we can do in Sardinia.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Ott Tänak
“Overall, a demanding weekend for sure. We have been struggling quite a lot, it’s just about understanding how we can go on from here. It’s my second gravel rally in the car now, in Mexico I wasn’t feeling completely confident, and it has been hard to figure out what’s been missing, but I would say this weekend has given us a lot more understanding and now I think we have enough information to move forward.”
Pierre-Louis Loubet
“Our performance, in terms of pace, I think is strong already. On Friday and Saturday, the pace was there which is good, we went back to the set-up we had last year, and I feel better in the car. We were able to set a best time and fight for the top-three, but unfortunately the small mistake on Saturday had big consequences for us. It’s a shame but part of the rally unfortunately. I’m sure with the pace we have then the right results will come.”
WRC2
Oliver Solberg – Toksport
“So close! We gave it absolutely everything, we left it all out on the stages. Of course, it’s hard when we get so close to the win, but we couldn’t do more today. First, I want to say how much I love to drive here. This rally is fantastic. And the fans are amazing. It’s frustrating, we didn’t make such good choices with the tyres and with the set-up, but we still built a good lead, and we had this rally ready to win.
“The good news for us is that we came to this rally 10 points behind in the championship, we leave one point behind. That’s positive, that’s progress.
“For the penalty, of course we accept the stewards’ decision. I was just trying to give something back to the fans, so many of them were standing, waving and cheering – like everywhere on this rally, the people were amazing, and I wanted to be happy with them. I understand this was the wrong thing to do and rules have to be abided by.
“For the team, thank you. Toksport gave me and Elliott a great car again. We were able to win seven stages and I feel we had this rally under control. To leave this event like this is a tough one, but OK, it is what it is. We move on.
“Before I go, I want to say, one more time, thank you to all the fans in Portugal. This country and these people are just fantastic. This place is the heart of the World Rally Championship. I love this event and can’t wait to be back here again next year.”
Adrien Fourmaux
“We didn’t have issues other than the punctures, otherwise it’s been very good, and we were doing well leading up to stage four. I think it’s been a strong performance this weekend, it’s a shame about the punctures but that’s part of the game. On Sunday we were focusing on the power stage, and in the end, we scored two points so that’s a real positive.”
2023 FIA World Rally Championship for Drivers’ Standings
After round 5
1
K. Rovanperä
98
2
O. Tänak
81
3
S. Ogier
69
4
E. Evans
69
5
T. Neuville
68
6
E. Lappi
49
7
D. Sordo
36
8
T. Katsuta
20
2023 FIA World Rally Championship for Manufacturers’ Standings
After round 5
1
Toyota Gazoo Racing World Rally Team
201
2
Hyundai Shell Mobis World Rally Team
169
3
M-Sport Ford World Rally Team
134
Summary
Well, what an impressive drive from the world champion crew! Kalle and Jonne made the most of their road position and built a lead which was unassailable. It’s fair to say that they were back to the supreme best from last year, looking really comfortable on the stages.
Dani and Candido came out on top of the trio of battling Hyundai crews that saw EP and Janne fight with Thierry and Martijn, swapping positions before the final problem that caused the Hyundai crewed by the Belgian crew to lose power. A double podium for the Hyundai crews though is a real bonus and shows the car has good performance.
It was a case of what might have been for the two M-Sport crews. Both Ott and Martin and Pierre-Louis and Nicolas challenged at the front, winning stages and setting times good enough to take a possible podium. With the Estonian crew, their challenge was ended by the puncture, whist the French and Belgian crew saw a small mistake have big consequences. The positive is that the car does have pace and they are both capable of taking a great result in the remaining rallies.
Next rally is on the first weekend of June as the championship moves to the Island of Sardegna. Pop back just before or follow myself on Twitter to await my preview.
Veloce won Round 4 of the Extreme E championship to take the lead in the title race. Here’s how the day’s action unfolded.
Qualifying 1:
No sign of the fog that cancelled Saturday’s Qualifying 1 session, as the teams looked to start the final day of the Hydro XPrix on the front font.
In the first heat, contested between Chip Ganassi, Carl Cox, ABT Cupra, X44, and RXR, Chip Ganassi took an early lead.
As they entered the switch zone, the front four teams were neck and neck, with Carl Cox some way behind.
After the teams had switched drivers, X44 closed in on the ABT Cupra car. Eventually, the two teams made contact, and X44 went through. Race Control, however, took a dim view of the contact that aided the pass, and swapped the positions back again.
Chip Ganassi crossed the line to win the first heat of the day, with RXR in second. ABT came in third, X44 behind them, and Carl Cox Motorsport propped up the results.
The remaining five cars competed against each other in Qualifying 1 Heat 2. Acciona Sainz led off the start line, and would not lose the lead for the entirety of the race.
Meanwhile, further behind them, a spin for Timmy Hansen in the Andretti car saw them drop to the back. McLaren also passed Veloce before the switch zone.
The second half of the race was a sedate affair, though Veloce picked up a 10s penalty for downing a flag.
Acciona Sainz win their heat, with McLaren in P2. Veloce finished P3, and JBXE and Andretti rounded off the first part of qualifying.
Qualifying 2:
The Scottish weather Gods, who had been kind enough to allow Qualifying 1 to go ahead today, decided they wanted to spice things up between the two sessions.
Heavy rain made for a particularly tricky track, which would cause many problems for the drivers for the rest of the day.
As the drivers hit they hay to get Qualifying 2 Heat 1 underway, three drivers, quite literally, Hit The Hay.
First the McLaren, who had made the best start, spun the car and collided with the hay bales at the side of the track. They were, however, able to continue.
Behind the McLaren, the Carl Cox and ABT Cupra machines weren’t so lucky. Unsighted by the mud on their windscreens, they drove straight into the hay bales and were both forced to retire.
After a brief red flag, the race resumed, though JBXE had issues getting away from the line. A slow-zone had been put in place where the initial carnage occurred and McLaren were caught out, as they over-sped on entry.
Though McLaren would cross the line first, a 30s penalty for that over-speeding dropped them into second, behind Chip Ganassi. JBXE finished third whilst the two retires never resumed after the red flag.
More carnage in the final Qualifying heat as Acciona Sainz and RXR made contact on the run down to the first corner. Acciona Sainz spun out, and the RXR car was sent careering over the crest of the first turn and smashed into X44. Amazingly, only RXR were forced to retire.
Another red flag came and went, though there was some confusion as to whether Acciona Sainz would be allowed to start. Marshals told them they couldn’t as they made their way to the grid, despite a broken suspension.
Veloce took the win, as Andretti passed X44 for second place.
Qualifying Classification:
The win in both heats saw Chip Ganassi top qualifying, with Veloce, McLaren, RXR, and Acciona Sainz making it through to the final with them.
Chip Ganassi – 20 Points
Veloce – 16 Points
McLaren – 16 Points
RXR – 12 Points
Acciona Sainz – 12 Points
X44 – 10 Points
JBXE – 10 Points
Andretti – 10 Points
ABT Cupra – 8 Points
Carl Cox Motorsport – 6 Points
Redemption Race:
Only four of the five cars due to compete in the Redemption Race took the start, as issues for the Carl Cox team compounded a miserable day.
Extreme E’s newest driver, Andreas Bakkerud, took an early lead in the JBXE car, which the team would not lose.
Further behind, X44 were unsighted by the mud and slammed into the back of the ABT Cupra machine. The damage sustained by the X44 was too great to continue.
Apart from that incident, it was a rather sedate affair as teams struggled for visibility in the mud. JBXE won the redemption race and earned some crucial championship points.
Andretti began closing in on JBXE in the final lap, but they would ultimately finish second, ahead of the ABT Cupra.
Final:
The five top qualifiers competed for a spot on the podium in the final race of the weekend.
Veloce led off the start line, though they were side-by-side with another team going into the slow-zone – a legacy of the crash in Qualifying 2 Heat 1.
Veloce would come out of the slow-zone in the lead, though behind them Tanner Foust in the McLaren pulled off a brilliant move around the outside of the Acciona Sainz for P2.
After the switch-zone the drivers’ poor visibility really came to a head. RXR had closed in on the Acciona Sainz car, but as they looked to overtake, the two cars made contact and spun round.
Unsighted, the two teams drove head-on into each other as they looked to get going again. Thankfully, it was a slow-speed collision and both drivers were okay, though the RXR car could not continue the race.
In all of that mayhem, Chip Ganassi snook past the two of them, and would seal a solid 3rd place for the American team.
Veloce went on to win the race, putting the back in charge of the title race. McLaren finished second.
Round 4 Classification:
Veloce
McLaren
Chip Ganassi
Acciona Sainz
RXR
JBXE
Andretti
ABT Cupra
X44
Carl Cox Motorsport
Championship Standings:
Veloce’s win see them move into first in the standings, leapfrogging Acciona Sainz who drop into second.
A close battle for third sees three teams separated by just two points, whilst JBXE continue to prop up the leaderboard.
Veloce – 80 Points
Acciona Sainz – 69 Points
RXR – 52 Points
X44 – 51 Points
Chip Ganassi – 50 Points
McLaren – 36 Points
Andretti – 29 Points
Carl Cox Motorsport – 23 Points
ABT Cupra – 20 Points
JBXE – 15 Points
The fifth and sixth rounds of the championship see us return to an Extreme E favourite – Sardinia, Italy – on the 8th-9th July. With the season now in full swing, you would be a fool to miss it.
A crash-filled French GP saw only 13 riders meet the chequered flag. There were hard-fought battles up and down the field and plenty of podium celebrations for our top three riders.
Marco Bezzecchi has taken his second race win of the season, celebrating MotoGP’s 1,000th race from the top step of the podium. He was in a class of his own today, starting from 7th before hitting the front at the mid-point of the race and eventually coming home over 4 seconds ahead of his nearest rival.
He was joined on the podium by both Prima Pramac riders, with Jorge Martin 2nd and Johann Zarco in 3rd, much to the delight of his home crowd.
Zarco was able to capitalise on the drama and the crashes around him, keeping his nose clean and quietly making his way up the field to 3rd. The moment he stepped on to the podium, the French crowd erupted as they showed support for their home hero.
It was a harder race for the other home hero, Fabio Quatararo, who started 13th and eventually finished the day in 7th. He was able to keep his nose clean but didn’t make significant enough strides to truly battle with those ahead of him.
The race was full of drama, from start to finish, with nail-biting battles taking place for most of the race. None more so than lap 5 which gave us two enormous crashes between four riders running in the top 10.
Firstly, it was pole-sitter Pecco Bagnaia and Maverick Vinales who found themselves in the gravel. The pair were fighting for the same piece of tarmac and, as Vinales returned to the racing line, the pair bumped into each other. This caused Vinales to lose control of the bike and as his machine was wobbling, he clattered into the side of Bagnaia again and the pair went down. Both were able to walk away from the crash but, in the heat of the moment, they began scrapping and fighting in the gravel.
Then, moments later, Luca Marini lost the front of the bike when he hit a kerb. Alex Marquez then ran into the back of the VR46 machine and they both went down dramatically. This incident left Marquez in the middle of the track but he was thankfully able to move and avoid the on-coming traffic.
It was an equally difficult day for Jack Miller. He started the race in 4th and, in typical Miller style, he flew off the line past pole-sitter Bagnaia and was quickly fighting with Marquez for the lead. He made a brave, aggressive move around the outside of Museum Corner – the same corner where he crashed out of Saturday’s sprint race – and was able to claim the lead on the second lap of the race.
Miller enjoyed the clean air for much of the race, until lap 11 when he began to slide backwards down the field. He eventually ended up back in 9th before sliding out of the race at turn 4 of lap 25. It appeared that he was struggling with a bike issue but this is yet to be confirmed.
It was a dream day for rookie Augusto Fernandez who enjoyed his best result of his MotoGP career so far. He was battling hard with the likes of Aleix Espargaro and Brad Binder before crossing the line in 4th. He received a hero’s welcome in the pit lane, his team clearly delighted with his mature and impressive performance today.
😂 @Tech3Racing boss Herve is so ecstatic he's taking over presenting duties!
Espgararo ended the day in 5th, just ahead of Binder in 6th. The South African would have been hoping for more today after his exceptional 2nd place finish in yesterday’s sprint race. However, he was forced out wide by Alex Marquez at the start of the race. This shuffled him down to 16th and ultimately ruined his chance of a podium or win.
The top 10 was rounded out by Quatararo in 7th, Fabio Di Giannantonio in 8th followed by Takaaki Nakagami and Franco Morbidelli in 9th and 10th respectively.
We now have a 3-week break before the grid is back in action in Mugello. That’s 3 weeks for today’s winners to revel in their success and our losers to dwell on their difficult weekend.
Full Results
1st
Marco Bezzecchi
Mooney VR46
–
2nd
Jorge Martin
Prima Pramac
+4.256s
3rd
Johann Zarco
Prima Pramac
+4.795s
4th
Augusto Fernandez
GASGAS Tech3
+6.281s
5th
Aleix Espargaro
Aprilia
+6.726s
6th
Brad Binder
Red bull KTM
+13.638s
7th
Fabio Quartararo
Monster Energy Yamaha
+15.023s
8th
Fabio Di Giannantonio
Gresini
+15.826s
9th
Takaaki Nakagami
LCR Honda
+16.370s
10th
Franco Morbidelli
Monster Energy Yamaha
+17.828s
11th
Danilo Petrucci
Ducati Lenovo
+29.735s
12th
Lorenzo Savadori
CrytoDATA RNF
+36.135s
13th
Jonas Folger
GASGAS Tech3
+49.808s
DNFs = Marc Marquez, Jack Miller, Alex Rins, Joan Mir, Alex Marquez, Luca Marini, Maverick Vinales, Pecco Bagnaia
The second day of this seasons visit to Portugal saw a battle develop between the three Hyundai crews for the remaining spots on the podium. Here’s the story from the longest day of the rally. The start list looked like this – Katsuta, Tänak, Neuville, Loubet, Lappi, Sordo, Rovanperä.
Kalle won the first stage of the day, SS9 Vieira do Minho 1 – 26.61 km from Esapekka and Dani. EP moved back ahead of Thierry and into third overall. Meanwhile in WRC2 Adrien was fastest from Gus and Sami. However, Oliver remained firmly in the lead of the category with a 40 second lead over Gus.
Kalle also won SS10 Amarante 1 – 37.24 km from Ott and Esapekka. The Finnish world champion was building a very big lead over second placed Dani. The gap between the three Hyundai crews remained really close, just a little over six seconds between them. Unfortunately, Pierre-Louis had a little error with large consequences, hitting a tree at the side of the stage and then a bank on the opposite side. This led to his front suspension and steering breaking, and he was out for the rest of the day. In WRC2 top fastest runners were Adrien, Teemu and Andreas, whilst Oliver, Gus and Yohan remained the top three.
Into SS11 Felgueiras 1 – 8.81 km and Kalle took his third stage win of the day from Thierry and Dani. The Belgian’s pace brought him to just 9 tenths of a second from third place. In WRC2, there was no change in the leaders with Oliver still leading from Gus and Yohan.
After the service break Kalle also won SS12 Vieira do Minho 2 – 26.61 km from Dani and EP. Esapekka opened up the gap a little from Thierry who could only manage fourth best time and almost five seconds slower. In WRC2, there was a change for third place as Andreas moved into that position with Yohan who was struggling for pace dropping behind.
The second run of SS13 Amarante 2 – 37.24 km saw Dani set the fastest time bringing an end to Kalle’s run, the Finn setting the second fastest time and Thierry third. The Belgian moved ahead of EP and into third overall. The top three in WRC2 was Andreas, Teemu and Gus. Teemu’s pace brought him back into the top ten as well.
Just two stages left and next up was SS14 Felgueiras 2 – 8.81 km. Kalle won this from Esapekka and Thierry. Oliver was still holding the lead of WRC2 and actually set the sixth fastest time in the stage.
The final stage of the day, SS15 SSS Lousada – 3.36 km was a double run around the Superspecial track. Dani was fastest from Takamoto, and Thierry third.
Let’s take a look at the top positions and hear from the drivers.
Classification after Day Three
1
K. Rovanperä
J. Halttunen
Toyota GR Yaris Rally1
2:59:48.6
2
D. Sordo
C. Carrera
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+57.5
3
T. Neuville
M. Wydaeghe
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+1:08.6
4
E. Lappi
J. Ferm
Hyundai i20 N Rally1 Hybrid
+1:10.9
5
O. Tänak
M. Järveoja
Ford Puma Rally1 Hybrid
+2:21.8
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kalle Rovanperä
“It has been a really nice day. After yesterday we changed some small things on the car and the feeling was even better than before, so now we have just been enjoying the driving. The first stage this morning actually felt quite tricky with the grip changing a lot, but I knew that I had a good feeling in the car and I just kept pushing quite hard; I knew I could take some time if everything goes right. After that I just carried on with the good feeling. This afternoon I tried to keep up the pace when the conditions were good, and when it was rough we backed off and I think we did quite well to save the car and the tyres. We can feel quite comfortable now, and tomorrow we will aim to have a clean morning and then try something on the Power Stage also.”
Takamoto Katsuta
“Today I knew it was going to be a big challenge opening the road, but it was still nice to get experience of how to manage these kinds of conditions. This morning it was very slippery and sandy, like it is every year on the Saturday stages here; a lot of loose gravel on top of the surface which is making traction difficult. The conditions were much rougher this afternoon, more than I had expected. There was still lots of cleaning too after the smaller cars had driven the stages with ruts and lines that are completely different. Tomorrow, I need to bring the car back to the finish but let’s see how it’s going in the morning, especially in the first pass of Fafe. If I’m feeling comfortable, I’ll try to push in the Power Stage to get extra points for the team.”
Elfyn Evans
“Yesterday was a difficult day. We knew that it would be tough with the cleaning effect, but we also struggled a little bit with the confidence and feeling in the car. Things were working better, and I definitely had a better feeling in the Mortágua stage, but I just got caught out in a tricky place. It was a pretty fast section with a couple of left-handers together; the second one was a bit more sandy and slippery, and we just slid ever so slightly wide into the bank, which pitched the car into an aggressive roll. Scott and I are both perfectly fine, so the car has done its job really well in protecting us, and I’m looking forward to getting back behind the wheel in Sardinia.”
Hyundai Motorsport
Dani Sordo
“I was really pushing to remain in the fight. I was concerned at times of wearing-out the tyres, but I tried to keep a good rhythm in the stages. I’m really enjoying being back in the car; today there was much more grip, so it felt more natural than yesterday. I was taking some risks, but I didn’t have any big moments. We have two new stages, which will be really demanding – it will be a long day, but hopefully a good one.”
Thierry Neuville
“The battle today was fun, even if I was struggling a bit out there! It was a bit better than yesterday, but things were not quite working as I would like them to. We are all very close, and tomorrow it is important for me to take maximum points for the drivers’ championship, as well as for the manufacturers’ standings. It will be crucial to have a strong Power Stage; I think if we are clever, we won’t push too hard in the first stages so we have good tyres for Fafe and we can end the weekend in a solid position.”
2023 FIA World Rally Championship Round 5, Rally de Portugal 11 – 14 Mai 2023 Thierry Neuville Photographer: Austral Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
Esapekka Lappi
“It was really warm out there today, I could really feel the heat on my face. We stayed out of trouble and had no punctures or drama, and the speed has been ok. It’s been a consistent day. There are four stages tomorrow, so I think we are going to do take the same approach as today. The first person you compare yourself to is your team-mate, so it is good that we were able to match Thierry and Dani here, but it is frustrating that Kalle is pulling ahead.”
M-Sport Ford WRT
Ott Tanak
“No issue, generally our nominated suspension, so we can’t do anything with the road rougher than the morning we can’t do anything and struggled quite a lot, let’s see what the future brings.”
Sunday
The final day sees two new stages run just once each, with the double run of the famous Fafe stage! Who will take the final spot on the podium. I’m sure that the fight between EP and Thierry will go down to the final stage.
X44 have won their first race of the season at Saturday’s Hydro XPrix after Andretti received a time penalty. Here’s how the day unfolded.
Qualifying 1:
There isn’t much that can stop an Extreme E car from racing – but if anything could it’s the Scottish weather.
The boffins at Extreme E thought it would be a good idea to hold the first qualifying at 6am local time – and the Scottish weather gods made them pay.
Thick fog coated the track, meaning the medical helicopter could not take off if it had needed to. For the safety of the drivers – Qualifying 1 was cancelled.
Qualifying 2:
With the fog cleared, Qualifying 2 Heat 1 got underway as X44, JBXE, Acciona Sainz, Andretti, and Chip Ganassi knew they just needed to finish in the top 2 to be guaranteed a Final sport.
X44 got the best get-away with Chip Ganassi not far behind them. Though the field was very close, very little overtaking meant X44 took the chequered flag followed by Chip Ganassi – who both made it through to the final. Third placed Andretti would have to wait until the second heat to see if they had also made it to the final.
The remaining five teams would compete for the remaining Final spots in the second heat. RXR got the best start, but chaos ensued behind as ABT Cupra’s Klara Andersson rolled the car.
After contact off the start-line, Andersson hit the hay-bales that lined the track. The car rolled and sustained heavy damage against the gravel and rocky track. Veloce also had a drive-shaft issue, forcing them to retire.
A brief red flag came and went and the reaming teams resumed with RXR leading, Carl Cox in second and McLaren in third.
McLaren did get past Extreme E’s newest team, Carl Cox. but a five-second time penalty for a switch-zone infringement meant they finished in third.
RXR and Carl Cox progressed to the final, alongside Andretti, after McLaren’s super sector was slower than the American outfit’s.
Overall Qualifying Classification:
X44 – 10 Points
RXR – 10 Points
Chip Ganassi – 8 Points
Carl Cox Motorsport – 8 Points
Andretti – 6 Points
McLaren – 6 Points
Acciona Sainz – 4 Points
Veloce – 4 Points
JBXE – 2 Points
ABT Cupra – 2 Points
Redemption Race:
The bottom five qualifying teams were up in the Redemption Race, with the teams trying to salvage as many championship points as possible from the day’s action.
ABT Cupra, who were involved in the heavy crash in Qualifying 2, did not make the start as there was too much damage.
Of the four cars that started the race, Acciona Sainz got the best get-away, and they led from start to finish. Veloce were not far behind in second as the teams entered the switch zone.
Ultimately they would be little-to-no overtaking in the race and Acciona Sainz won the race. Veloce came home in second with McLaren a fair way back in third. JBXE rounded up the grid.
Final:
Undoubtedly the best action of the day came in the Final, as each team looked to take their first victory of the season.
RXR’s Johann Kristofferson looked to get the best start but X44 used their hyper-drive to perfection to power their way around the outside of everyone and into first.
But, McConnell in the X44 machine took too much speed into a corner and Andretti forced their way up the inside. As X44 were hung out to dry, RXR went side-by-side with them.
Then, all of a sudden, the RXR car veered the left and rolled over the rocky edge of the circuit. Kristofferson was okay, but the team could not continue.
Andretti led the way coming into the switch-zone, but they were too quick in the change-over, and they were given a post-race penalty of 15.3s.
Unknown to the drivers at the time, X44 harried the Andretti team, but were not able to complete the overtake.
Andretti United crossed the line first but were demoted to second after the penalty, giving X44 the victory. Problems for Carl Cox and Chip Ganassi saw them too far back to take advantage of Andretti’s penalty. Carl Cox rounded out the podium.
Overall Round Classification:
X44
Andretti
Carl Cox Motorsport
Chip Ganassi
RXR
Acciona Sainz
Veloce
McLaren
JBXE
ABT Cupra
Championship Standings:
Acciona Sainz took the lead of the championship standings, despite not making it to the final, as they gained two extra points for being fastest through the continental traction challenge.
Another tough weekend for JBXE sees them prop up the table.
Acciona Sainz – 56 Points
Veloce – 52 Points
X44 – 49 Points
RXR – 42 Points
Chip Ganassi – 33 Points
Carl Cox Motorsport – 23 Points
Andretti – 23 Points
McLaren – 18 Points
ABT Cupra – 16 Points
JBXE – 7 Points
JBXE and ABT Cupra will have another chance on Sunday to properly get their season going, whilst Andretti will look to build on their new-found momentum.
Veloce won Round 4 of the Extreme E championship to take the lead in the title race. Here’s how the day’s action unfolded.
X44 have won their first race of the season at Saturday’s Hydro XPrix after Andretti received a time penalty. Here’s how the day unfolded.