Stoffel Vandoorne and Mercedes-EQ sealed the 2022 Formula E title at the season finale in Seoul. Mercedes closed its Formula E chapter on a high note, having clinched the teams’ championship for the second year running. From next year, McLaren will take over the team’s operations.
Mahindra Racing were also able to end the season with a strong result as Oliver Rowland scored the team’s first podium finish.
- Mahindra and Rowland score their first podium of 2022
- Vandoorne beats Evans to win the title
- Evans and Mortara wins Seoul E-Prix
Podium for Mahindra in Race 1
Rowland showed great control in wet conditions to land pole position. With the circuit still wet for the race start, he struggled to get away cleanly off the line. Jaguar’s Mitch Evans moved into the lead, as Rowland dropped to third behind Venturi’s Lucas di Grassi – who is moving to Mahindra next season.
Evans went on to win the incident-packed race, eating away at Vandoorne’s championship lead to take the title battle down to the very last race. But Rowland managed to pass di Grassi to finish second and hand Mahindra Racing their first podium result in what has been a difficult season for the Indian squad.
“The race was tricky. Overtaking is difficult on this track especially at the beginning when we couldn’t use much energy. So, getting Lucas back on the first lap was key to maintaining the second-place result,” Rowland explained.
“It’s a shame about the start because with the difficulty overtaking it could have been a potential win. At one point, I started to apply pressure on Mitch [Evans] but then had a close-call with the wall so had a word with myself, decided to be sensible and took second place. I think the team nailed the set-up and strategy.”
Vandoorne seals title as Mortara wins race
Vandoorne and Mercedes-EQ may not have had too many headline-grabbing highs to speak of this season. But what they did display was incredible consistency. Fittingly so, he was able to seal the title in Mercedes’ last Formula E race.
Out at front, Venturi’s Edoardo Mortara pulled off a successful overtake on DS Techeetah’s Antonio Felix da Costa to take the lead. He managed the gap and his car’s energy perfectly to win the last race in Formula E’s Gen2 era.
A second place finish was enough for Vandoorne to win the championship with a total of 213 points. “We have accomplished something very special together. Mitch gave everything right up until the end – he was always there. But in the end, consistency was the deciding factor: he won more races than I did, but I had the most podiums,” said Vandoorne.
“As a team, we have achieved a level of consistency that has never been seen before in Formula E. I am incredibly proud of my team and our performance this season. It’s the perfect way to end the season, to be on the podium in the last race of the season, the 100th E-Prix in the history of the series, and to win both World Championship titles.”
Evans is second in the drivers’ championship, with 189 points, while Mortara is third with 169 points.
Formula E’s season 9 will now kick off in January 2023. The season will usher in a whole new era, with the introduction of the Gen3 cars and plenty of new races – including the Hyderabad E-Prix.
from Autocar Indiahttps://cdni.autocarindia.com/ExtraImages/20220815115059_Vandoorne_Formula_E_Mercedes.jpg
