Emma Gilmour and co-driver Tanner Foust have shown their McLaren Racing team have the speed but luck deserted them in the final of the Extreme E opening round in Neom, Saudi Arabia. Having missed making the final of the Desert X Prix, Foust and Gilmour had one last opportunity for direct entry if they won the Crazy Race (repecharge), which they did.
“We made it to the final which was an amazing accomplishment for us in the first event but then wrecked it in the final” commented Foust. “I had my line and anticipated it in the dust and was pretty flat out. Unfortunately the car in front of me checked up with some sort of a problem and I ‘grenaded’ her in the dust.”
“Not a good finish,” said Gilmour. “Tanner got caught in some dust really bad at the start of the race. What can you say, the highs and lows in motorsport. We have learned a lot and will come back stronger.”
Despite crashing out of the final, their McLaren Racing team sits fifth overall in the points standings.
Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky and Johan Kristoffersson were the victors in a Final of two halves, as a red flag was brought out at the end of the first lap following a big accident for McLaren XE’s Tanner Foust, who in a bid for third place clipped the back of RXR’s Åhlin-Kottulinsky and rolled his ODYSSEY 21 on the opening lap.
The race resumed for a one-lap shootout, with the four teams released at intervals that matched how they had entered the Switch Zone.
X44’s Cristina Gutiérrez attempted to close down Laia Sanz in the ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team car, while Kristoffersson closed the gap on the two Spaniards from third.
The RXR driver soon passed Gutiérrez on the inside, setting his sights on Sanz. As the Desert X Prix entered its closing stages, Kristoffersson took a wide line into the second to last corner for an aggressive overtake on Sanz and secure a dramatic win ahead of ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team, with X44 completing the podium.
Chip Ganassi Racing came fourth having secured a spot in the Final with a win in Semi-Final 2, and McLaren XE finished fifth despite Foust’s crash having made an excellent comeback from Qualifying to win the Crazy Race.
Results
1/ Rosberg X Racing 27:08:453
2/ Acciona | Sainz XE Team +2.483
3/ X44 +5.807
4/ Chip Ganassi Racing +25.202
5/ McLaren XE DNF
Championship Standings
After a quick final lap from Kristoffersson that not only secured victory but also the fastest time in the Continental Traction Challenge, earning RXR an extra five points, the Championship standings are as follows:
1/ Rosberg X Racing 30 points
2/ Acciona | Sainz XE Team 18 points
3/ X44 15 points
4/ Chip Ganassi Racing 12 points
5/ McLaren XE 10 points
6/ Genesys Andretti United Extreme E 8 points
7/ XITE Energy Racing 6 points
8/ ABT Cupra XE 4 points
9/ JBXE 2 points
10/ Veloce Racing 1 point
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