Lola Yamaha ABT’s Zane Maloney left the 2026 Berlin E-Prix double-header encouraged after securing his best Formula E qualifying results in both races, showing promising pace.
Maloney on Round 7
Round 7 kicked off with a strong FP2 session, in which Maloney finished 3rd in 300kW. Qualifying saw the Barbadian racing driver claim his then-best P7 qualifying result after reaching the Duels stage, where eventual polesitter Edoardo Mortara knocked him out in the quarterfinal.
After making his way up to P5 at the race start, the Lola driver reached another milestone on Lap 6 as he led a Formula E race for the first time in his career. However, after serving his mandatory PIT BOOST with less than 15 laps remaining, Maloney dropped down to P15 as his rivals gained an advantage with a late Attack Mode.
Speaking after the race, Maloney shared: “Today we had a very good qualifying and made it into the duels for the first time, so I’m very happy with how the session went. When we got to the duels it’s a bit difficult for us to make it through with 350kW but I think the team did a very good job to give me a car to achieve my best qualifying result so far in Formula E.”
“In the race, the first 15 laps were quite strong being with all the big manufacturers and top teams but then we fell back halfway through to the end. However, we race here again tomorrow so I’m looking forward to doing everything I can in qualifying and learning from today to hopefully be able to then maximise that in the race.”
From strong qualifying to poor race pace
Heading into Round 8 of the 2026 Berlin E-Prix, Maloney made it to the qualifying Duels once again, beating his previous result to take his best Formula E starting position of P6.
Prioritising energy saving in the race, Maloney dropped positions on the opening lap before activating Attack Mode on Lap 13, climbing back up to P6 from P17. Unfortunately, soon after, the 22-year-old lost ground again, unable to make up positions despite serving his final boost in the closing stages. With a brief safety-car interruption, Maloney ultimately finished in P17.
“Amazing job by the team again to get us into the duels and end qualifying one place better than yesterday in P6, so I’m very, very happy with that,” he said. “I think the hard work behind the scenes from both the team and myself is really being noticed in qualifying and we’ve performed very well in that aspect in the last four races, starting in the top 10 each time, so everyone is doing a great job.”
Reflecting on the Round 8 race, he continued: “However, in the race we struggled. The strategy was good in the way we approached the race but when the pace of the race sped up we weren’t able to keep up. Of course, it’s very difficult coming in halfway through a car generation and now we’re starting towards the front we can notice that more but the fact we’re in that position is a very good positive to take compared to six months ago. We look forward to continuing to improve and finish further up the grid.”
The 2025/26 Formula E season will continue in Monaco on May 16-17 with a double-header for Rounds 9 and 10.
