It’s time to set the grid for the Formula E Miami E-Prix with Qualifying! Who will take the top spot, FP2 leader and almost pole sitter in Mexico Taylor Barnard, or actual pole sitter Sebastien Buemi, aiming for revenge after a tough round in Mexico?
What is already known is the incredible closeness of the field at the Miami Autodromo, with first and last placed drivers only 0.700s off on Friday’s FP1 and only 0.300s off earlier.
Group A out!
All drivers part of the group immediately get out on track under the cloudy sky, in order to prep their tyres and raise their temperature preparing for their later fast lap attempts. After the first set Di Grassi leads from Mortara, Marti and Rowland.
Mid-way, it’s a Nissan 1-2 as Rowland sets a 1:00.48s, 0.100s faster than the tight group of Nato, Di Grassi and Martì. The Lola Yamaha driver earned himself a three places grid penalty following his FP2 collision with Mitch Evans, which had caused the first red flag of the day.
Trafic will definitely play a huge role towards the end of the session, as Di Grassi has to significantly slow during a fast lap due to encountering at Turn 1 Rowland on a slow outlap.
With two minutes left to go the drivers start to set more representative times, with Cassidy signing a 56.845s ahead of De Vries, Mueller and Nato.
Mortara hit Buemi at Turn 13, with the duo both still able to resume their afternoon. The Italian-Swiss driver appeared rather mad as at the end of the session as while on a very fast attempt, he made contact with the much slower Envision Racing driver.
In the heated moments of the session, Nissan’s Nato bolts on top with a 56.675s, advancing alongside Cassidy, De Vries and Mueller.
Surprisingly, reigning champion Oliver Rowland does not manage to advance to the Duels stage, remaining stuck in P6. Another name definitely disappointed with how his Saturday turned out so far is definitely Edoardo Mortara, podium sitter last time out in Mexico.
Group 1 Standings
- Nato
- Cassidy
- De Vries
- Mueller
- Evans
- Rowland
- Martì
- Buemi
- Mortara
- Di Grassi
Will Group B be as messy?
After the first set of attempts, Envision confirmed their strong pace with Eriksson setting an early benchmark in 1:00.340, to the Duels along Guenther, Barnard and Da Costa. The German goes on to slightly improve the rookie driver’s best effort.
Home team Andretti also showing some promising pace during the Formula E Qualifying in Miami , with Drugovich and Dennis both entering the top 4.
The first more significative timed laps begin to clock in with 3:26s minutes left in the session, with Barnard, Drugovich, Guenther, Da Costa , Eriksson and Barnard again in 56.52 quickly cycling at the lead in spite of a small mistake. the DS Penske driver is the fastest driver across the groups.
A drover unexpectedly struggling is FP1 session leader Dan Ticktum, 0.400s off the Brit on top. The Cupra Kiro driver has an active streak of 6 Duels qualifications in a row, will he manage to recover some speed to keep it going?
Ultimately, late improvers Da Costa and Drugovich manage to get through at the final minutes, while Ticktum and even more surprisingly Guenther will stop their Formula E Miami Qualifying run. Latest Miami winner, albeit on a different track, Pascal Wehrlein, will have to sit out the Duels too.
Group B Standings
- Barnard
- Da Costa
- Eriksson
- Drugovich
- Guenther
- Wehrlein
- Maloney
- Dennis
- Vergne
- Ticktum
Quarter-finals
De Vries and championship leader Cassidy face in the first Duel of the day. the Mahindra driver started on top as the Citroen slightly missed the apex at Turn 1, losing 0.241s. Ultimately that small mistake turned out to be fatal for the Kiwi, as that same gap remained throughout the gap, allowing De Vries to advance.
Then, it’s Nato and Mueller’s turn. Nato begun slightly ahead as Mueller suffered from Cassidy’s same small Turn 1 mistake, consequently falling a bit behind. While we was closing the gap to the Porsche driver in the second sector, the Frenchman ran off track onto the kerbs at Turn 13, losing much more time and paving the way for Mueller.
Later, Eriksson fights against Da Costa in his first ever Duel. It was incredibly tight, with the Jaguar man 0.0.79s ahead in the first sector. However, the Portuguese persevered and manage to build by the final sector a small treasure of 0.115s to take the win and the Semi Final spot.
Finally, it’s time for Drugovich and Barnard’s runs. It was another very close first sector, but Barnard struggled severely in sector 2, losing 0.126s to the Brazilian. The Brit gave his everything in the final sector, but it was not enough as Drugovich advances by only 0.001s.
Semi Final Standings
5. Barnard
6. Eriksson
7. Cassidy
8. Nato ( No time)
Semi Finals and Final
De Vries and Mueller contend for the first Final spot. The Porsche driver develops a 0.102s lead in the first sector, which is reduced to only 0.010s after the second sector. However, ultimately Mueller managed to reconfirm his strong feeling around Miami, regaining a 0.106 comfortable lead over the Mahindra driver.
Drugovich’s first ever Duel appearance moves forward as he is joined on track by Da Costa. The Andretti started out strongly with a half a hundred of a gap, which grew to a full hundred and ultimately to 0.163 by the end of the lap. The Brazilian signs the fastest lap of the entire Miami Qualifying session in 55.390, and will have a chance to secure his first ever Formula E pole position, as well as his first ever points in the series in a bit.
3. Da Costa
4. De Vries
Two Porsche engine will fend off for Pole Position. Will the experienced Mueller or the rookie Drugovich, whose best qualifying up to now has been a P17, take the top spot?
The Brazilian started with a small lead, but ran too deep into Turn 4, losing a hundred of a second. It was another incredibly close run as the Andretti driver closed his gap to Muller to 0.018s in the middle sector, but ultimately Nico Mueller secures his first ever Pole Position in Formula E in Miami with a strong qualifying time of 55.45, developing a 0.129 gap in the final corners.
