Mitch Evans topped the final practice session of the 2022/23 Formula E season after setting a 1m 10.152s at the London E-Prix.
The New Zealander set the fastest lap of the weekend to top free practice 3 at the ExCeL Centre, ahead of team-mate Sam Bird. Envision’s Sébastian Buemi completed the top three.
With Jake Dennis having clinched the Drivers’ Championship on Saturday, all eyes were on the Constructors’ Championship on Sunday. Jaguar and Envision enter the final day of the 2022/23 season level on points, in what’s set to be a duel between the two Jaguar-powered teams.
As FP3 got underway Sunday morning, all the drivers quickly got out onto the indoor/outdoor circuit, including rookie Sacha Fenestraz. Following his big crash at Turn 16 on Saturday, Nissan were forced to replace the Frenchman’s tub.
The Custom House chicane was a very busy spot in the opening minutes, as several drivers went off whilst attempting to push. Yesterday’s winner Evans was the early pacesetter in the opening 10 minutes, after posting a modest 1m 10.946s. He led the session from Jean-Éric Vergne and Fenestraz.
Evans was replaced at the top by Buemi as the session moved into its second half, thanks to having gone almost three-tenths quicker than Evans. Drivers were clearly pushing the limits more than they did on Saturday, with over 10 drivers having gone off at Custom House in the opening 15 minutes of FP3.
Envision boasted a 1-2 with 11 minutes remaining, with Nick Cassidy having hit the front ahead of his team-mate. Third and fourth were occupied momentarily by Bird and Evans, until Dennis moved ahead of the race one winner.
Bird then went to the top with nine minutes remaining in the opening session of the final day of the season, by over two-tenths of a second. Two minutes later, and Evans bounced back to the top, after almost becoming the first driver of the weekend to break into the 1m 09s.
Elsewhere, Fenestraz split the four Jaguar powertrains after slotting into third with three minutes remaining, whilst Dennis sat in sixth. Buemi soon returned to third to form a Jaguar powertrain 1-2-3, whilst Cassidy sat in fifth.
As the chequered flag was flown, nobody could eclipse Evans’ leading time. His 1m 10.152s was good enough to top the session ahead of team-mate Bird, whilst Buemi in third completed a Jaguar powertrain 1-2-3.
Fenestraz finished fourth with Cassidy in fifth, whilst Dan Ticktum, António Félix da Costa, Sérgio Sette Câmara, Pascal Wehrlein and Dennis completed the top 10.
Qualifying for the final race of the season gets underway at 12:40 GMT.
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