The opening round of the 2022 Extreme E series gets underway this weekend in Saudi Arabia. Kiwi rally driver Emma Gilmour will line up with McLaren Racing American team mate Tanner Foust as they undertake the Desert X Prix in Neom. Having competed in two rounds last season for Veloce Racing, Gilmour has stepped up to become the first female driver for McLaren Racing. Will Gilmour be under more pressure because of the full time role with a such a well known branded team?
“Not necessarily,” says Gilmour. “I always feel the pressure to perform before the start of an event. It is no different to when I am in a rally car or even last season with Veloce Racing. Once I am in the car, then is just me and the car and I am totally focussed on doing the job.
“In Extreme E, the pressure is the same for everyone in that there is so little time actually driving the car.
“It is different to rallying as in this series you are being watched all the time, every corner as opposed to rallying where once you leave the start of the stage it is just you and the car.”
It has been a whirlwind six-months for Gilmour after heading overseas in August 2021 to compete in two rounds of the inaugural Extreme E Series for Veloce Racing. While waiting in the UK to gain a place in the NZ quarantine system and get back home, Gilmour was approached by McLaren Racing with regard to competing with the team in the second Extreme E series.
“At times I pause and think how cool it is being a McLaren driver. It was great meeting Lando (Norris) and Daniel (Ricciardo) at the McLaren Team launch the other night. We had dinner together and was a really special evening.
“They (McLaren) have such a wealth of knowledge and experience and are always trying to do better. Now it is about doing the job to the best of my ability.”
What’s next for Gilmour?
“I’m heading back to New Zealand and intend to compete in Rally Otago (9-10 April). Then it’s the Island X Prix in Sardinia (7-8 May) so I don’t think that I’ll be back in time for Rally Whangarei (13-15 May). Otago and the WRC Rally NZ are the priorities for rallying at home but so much depends on the travel schedule.”
The Extreme E race weekend will take place over two days of competition with each team taking part in two-time trials on Saturday in qualifying. Sunday will see the ‘Crazy Race, two semi-finals and the final. Each race/time trial is two laps – one lap driven by the female and one lap driven by the male driver from each team.
Times recorded across the morning session will equate to classification points meaning first place receives 9, second place 8, third place 7 points and so on. The same then happens in the afternoon with classification points awarded on the same scale.
The combined total of these classification points provides the intermediate standings.
From the Qualifying rounds teams in first, fifth and sixth place will progress to Semi-Final 1, with second, third and fourth spots advancing to Semi-Final 2 and teams finishing in seventh, eight and ninth will go through to the Crazy Race.
Four races held on Sunday: The Crazy Race, Semi-Final 1, Semi-Final 2 and the Final. Three cars will battle it out in each race. First and second place teams from Semi-Final 1 and Semi-Final 2, plus the Crazy Race winner will progress to the Final.
Starting position for Final will be decided by fans through the GridPlay voting system, although the fifth team making the Final from the Crazy Race is not eligible for GridPlay.
Teams and drivers
The 10 teams and 20 drivers for the Desert X Prix are as follows:
McLaren XE – Tanner Foust / Emma Gilmour
ABT CUPRA XE – Nasser Al-Attiyah / Jutta Kleinschmidt
ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team – Carlos Sainz Snr. / Laia Sanz
Genesys Andretti United Extreme E – Timmy Hansen / Catie Munnings
Chip Ganassi Racing – Kyle LeDuc / Sara Price
JBXE – Kevin Hansen / Molly Taylor
Rosberg X Racing – Johan Kristoffersson / Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky
Veloce Racing – Lance Woolridge / Christine GZ
X44 – Sébastien Loeb / Cristina Gutiérrez
XITE ENERGY RACING – Oliver Bennett / Tamara Molinaro
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