No.99 GMC Hummer EV Chip Ganassi Racing emerged victorious from a controversial Island X Prix I Final as Johan Kristoffersson was penalised for sending Carlos Sainz Snr. rolling out of the race at Gate 2. XITE Energy Racing’s strong performance saw them navigate the drama ahead to take second place and their first podium finish, as Rosberg X Racing were demoted to third place.
That third place was still enough for RXR to keep their championship lead by the end of the second round, while Chip Ganassi Racing shot into second place. Acciona Sainz fell to third, XITE impressively moved up to fourth, and X44 dropped from third to fifth place after a disappointing outing for Lewis Hamilton’s team. X44 will hope for a better round at the Island X Prix II.
Despite adaptations made to the ODYSSEY21 cars to toughen them up for the rigours of the Island X Prix, it wouldn’t be long before the course took its first victim. The Veloce Racing team pushed the car to its limit over the bumps, and sustained a front-right suspension failure which took them out of the running in Q1.
McLaren immediately followed Veloce, and joined the UK-based team who had a mechanical failure. Like Veloce, McLaren’s front-right suspension also ended what looked like a competitive run. Unfortunately for the papaya orange team, it wouldn’t be their last incident.
X44 also incurred the wrath of the fierce bumps, which ripped off the rear bodywork off and punctured the right-rear tire, sending nine-time WRC Champion Sébastien Loeb fully into rally mechanic mode. The driver stopped to replace the tire with his team during the changeover, and fell to the back.
Chip Ganassi had been quickest in practice, but their hopes took a slight blow early on, as the car appeared to shut down in the Switch Zone. They joined McLaren and X44 in taking a DNF in Q1.
Meanwhile, RXR had picked up where they left off in February, as they headed out first, and set an unbeatable time. The F1 World Champion’s team were in great form, and continued to impress in Heat 1, darting into a lead which they would hold to until Qualifying’s end.
In contrast, the No.99 Hummer EV gave no hint of being a team that would eventually stand on the top step of the podium come Thursday. Leduc ran wide on a tight right-hander to drop him to the back of the field. He then pulled over with an issue on his ODYSSEY21 to force the US-based team into the Crazy Race.
In the second heat, Tanner Foust brilliantly showcased the beauty of the course, taking the alternative wide line on the approach to Gate 3, putting his McLaren up onto two wheels as he glided over the bumps and into second place. Despite those heroics, further misfortune would befall McLaren when they slow stopped, which let Veloce past, condemning them to the Crazy Race.
“Rubbing is racing”, so they say. That certainly seemed to be Timmy Hansen’s mindset in the first Semi-Final, as he gave Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinksy a few friendly taps off the line, before clattering into the RXR car. The elder of the Hansen brothers then put Foust’s wide line to great effect, lunging up the inside of Åhlin-Kottulinksy, and getting even more familiar with the RXR’s bodywork on the exit.
After Timmy utilised the wide line for a second time into Gate 21, firing out the exit and into P1, it soon went downhill for Andretti. Catie Munnings seemed to lose power and would eventually finish last, nearly a minute behind RXR, whose dominance continued.
X44 failed to recreate the level of Hamilton-Rosberg rivalry fans enjoyed in F1 even after looking like one of RXR’s fiercest competitors in recent events. They were bullied into submission by Acciona Sainz off the start, and were overtaken at the Switch, as they failed to make the final, while Acciona Sainz and JBXE progressed to the final.
The Crazy Race would live up to its name and then some, as Chip Ganassi continued to forge their path through the chaos to what would be an unlikely victory. They were in the thick of the drama from the beginning, as Sara Price bumped doors with Emma Gilmour, forcing her off line as the ODYSSEY21’s nose dug into the undergrowth, sending the McLaren tumbling out of contention for the second time this season.
If that wasn’t enough excitement, Price got a tank slapper later in the lap and had to reverse back onto the course, right into the path of the oncoming Lance Woolridge. He sharply reacted and managed to squeeze through Gate 13, with the Continental sign being the only casualty from the incident.
Kyle Leduc then took the reins of the Hummer EV, overtook Veloce, and closed the gap to ABT, who had escaped the incidents behind. However, they were given a ten-second penalty for a premature start during the driver switch, dropping them behind Chip Ganassi, and cost them a place in the final.
Leduc and Price barely had a chance to catch their breath, before it was time to go again in the Final. Sainz flew off the line into the lead, and took a different line to Kristoffersson, as the two cars split across the first section, always destined to come back together at the Gate 2 pinch point, where an incident seemed inevitable. It would prove to be the biggest incident of the X Prix.
Kristoffersson tagged the back of Sainz, sending the Spaniard into a roll, leaving the RXR without its front bodywork but somehow still in the lead, while Sainz’s car ended on its side. With the rally legend visibly winded, he managed to walk away without major injury. Chip Ganassi stayed out of trouble, narrowly avoiding the collision ahead, as they followed RXR out of the dust.
The crash brought out the red flags while Sainz’s car was recovered, before the racing resumed for a final-lap shootout. RXR held their gap to Chip Ganassi, and it first looked like they would take their second win of the season. Åhlin Kottilinsky wore a beaming smile on the approach to the finish, but it would be removed by a 30 second penalty. Chip Ganassi inherited a surprising victory after two days full of action, with XITE Racing coming through to take second. JBXE narrowly missed out on third after finishing just over 30 seconds behind RXR.
Two days of close racing and collisions concluded with unexpected victors, perfectly demonstrating the draw of Extreme E. RXR will, without a doubt, be gutted not to have won when their key rivals had poor results, but will be relieved to hold onto the championship lead. Fans will want more of the same, for the upcoming round, but X44, Acciona Sainz, and McLaren will hope for a less eventful second outing in Sardinia.
