Dan Ticktum claimed his second Formula E pole position with a barnstorming final lap in qualifying for Race 1 of the Monaco E-Prix.
The Brit was mesmeric across the entirety of the session, and carried that form through the final duel, defeating Mahindra’s Nyck de Vries, who also impressed across the whole session.
Maximilian Guenther will line-up third, followed by Mitch Evans, with title rival Pascal Wehrlein close behind.
Group A
Two of the title top three – Wehrlein and Edoardo Mortara – made part of Group A, with last year’s winner Sebastien Buemi and Dan Ticktum amongst their competitors.
It was Ticktum who set the early pace, with Wehrlein and his Porsche teammate Nico Mueller third, but were just mere warm-ups for the serious times that were coming next.
Mueller soon headed a Porsche 1-2, with Ticktum third, but Wehrlein reversed the order. Max Guenther, with time running out, went second, knocking Jean-Eric Vergne out, with Wehrlein, Mueller and Ticktum going through.
Out: J-E Vergne, T. Barnard, J. Dennis, S. Buemi, E. Mortara [no time], Z. Maloney [no time]
Group B
Both Jaguar drivers, reigning champion Rowland and previous Monaco winner Cassidy were in Group B, but it was Joel Eriksson who went fastest early on, but was quickly unseated by Nyck de Vries.
Rowland was slow off the mark, languishing at the bottom of the pile with less than a minute remaining, but got himself on a quick lap just in time.
Threading the Nissan through the final sector, the Englishman went fourth, but was still in danger as others still had laps to finish.
Da Costa went P3 to knock out Rowland, with Evans snatching top spot, with Eriksson taking fourth.
Out: F. Drugovich, O. Rowland, N. Nato, J. Marti, N. Cassidy, L. Di Grassi.
Duels
The first quarter-final pitted Mueller against Guenther, with the DS Penske man going through with a 1:26.763s, two tenths ahead of the Swiss driver.
QF number two saw Wehrlein matched against Ticktum, and the Brit sailed through with a 1:26.667s, also two tenths ahead.
Da Costa and de Vries were the pair in the third duel, and the Portuguese immediately put himself on the back foot by sliding wide at Massenet, giving de Vries a near-one-second advantage midway through. His 1:26.754s took him through, leaving da Costa to rue a ruined run.
The fourth quarter-final placed Eriksson against Evans, the Swede coming in the underdog but with good pace.
But Evans was too strong, his 1:26.854s taking him through with a two tenths gap.
The semi-finals began with Guenther against Ticktum. Guenther, ragging his DS through the lap, brushed the wall just before the swimming pool, wrecking the run.
Ticktum, despite brushing the wall near Rascasse, went through with a 1:26.813s, securing a front-row start.
Evans and de Vries saw both men complete tidier laps, but it would be the Dutchman going through to the final with a 1:26.745s.
Final
Ticktum went first, and began to calmly navigate the circuit, with de Vries losing time early on.
The Mahindra closed the gap midway in the lap, and began to close further on Ticktum, but it was not enough. An understated but mega lap saw Ticktum’s 1:26.551s earned him his second FE pole position.
De Vries lost out by just over a tenth of a second, but should be delighted to be in a position to finally kickstart his season with a front row start.
READ MORE – Formula E 2026 Monaco E-Prix – Race 1 Qualfiying Results
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