Lewis Hamilton’s X44 team scored maximum points on Saturday during the maiden Extreme E event in Saudi Arabia.
The car, driven by Sebastien Loeb and Cristina Gutierrez, was second quickest in the opening qualifying session and then second in qualifying two, but a penalty for Rosberg X Racing’s Molly Taylor and Johan Kristoffersson promoted them to first place.
X44’s combined time of 21:55.998 from both sessions placed them first, with the Acciona Sainz XE Team of Laia Sanz and Carlos Sainz coming in second, 41.097 seconds adrift.
Rosberg X Racing’s 60-second penalty demoted them to third and the final Semi-Final slot, 50.825s behind X44.
Going through to the Crazy Race is fourth to sixth places; Andretti United Extreme, Hispania Suiza Xite Energy Team and Jenson Button’s JBXE.
JBXE were handed an almost three-minute time penalty for speeding in the pitlane after Mikaela Àhlin-Kottulinsky was unable to engage the pit limiter. They looked set to drop to the back and into the Shoot Out and therefore out of race winning contention, but an issue for the SEGI TV Chip Ganassi Racing team saved them.
Chip Ganassi were unable to take part following an earlier incident, with qualifying one crashes also sidelining the ABT Cupra and Veloce Racing squads.
They will all go through to the Shoot Out, but won’t have a chance of progressing through to the Final and the chance of winning.
Points are awarded for Saturday’s result, with 1st place taking 12 points, followed by 11 points for second, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5 and 4 for ninth position.
| # | Team | Drivers | Laps | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | X44 | Loeb/Gutierrez | 4 | 21:55.998 |
| 2 | Acciona Sainz XE Team | Sainz/Sanz | 4 | +41.097 |
| 3 | Rosberg X Racing | Kristoffersson/Taylor | 4 | +50.825 |
| 4 | Andretti United Extreme E | Hansen/Munnings | 4 | +1:09.536 |
| 5 | Hispania Suiza Xite Energy Team | Bennett/Giampaoli Zonca | 4 | +3:14.734 |
| 6 | JBXE | Button/Ahlin-Kottulinsky | 4 | +4:54.880 |
| 7 | SEGI TV Chip Ganassi Racing | Leduc/Price | 3 | +2 Laps |
| 8 | ABT Cupra XE | Ekstrom/Hurtgen | 2 | +3 Laps |
| 9 | Veloce Racing | Sarrazin/Chadwick | 0 | +4 Laps |
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