Maserati MSG Racing enters new Formula E era with participation at Mexico City E-Prix

MANILA: Maserati MSG Racing surged into a new era for Formula E at the Mexico City E-Prix, narrowly missing the top 10 at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodrguez.

The Season 9 opener provided drivers Edoardo Mortara and Maximilian Gunther with fundamental insights, helping them showcase an excellent initial pace after a successful preseason test.

After a strenuous qualifying session in which both drivers failed to advance through the Duel stages, the pair faced an uphill battle to catch up in the race, where they began from 16th and 17th.

On the first lap, Mortara overtook McLaren's Rene Rast to move up to 15th, but the race was abruptly paused when a crash involving Robin Frijns brought out the Safety Car.

On lap five, the action got going again, but one lap later, Jaguar's Sam Bird stopped on the circuit due to a technical issue. On the ninth lap, the field took to green flag running again.

During the restart, Mortara and Gunther passed a penalized Dan Ticktum. Gunther also overtook Rast, who activated Attack Mode, for 15th.

Mortara was forced to retire on lap 18 due to an unfortunate spin and collision brought on by a moment of understeer, leaving Gunther as the team's lone competitor for the rest of the race.

“This weekend wasn’t our best. After the pace we had in Valencia, I found it difficult to find a good rhythm in the car, especially over one lap. I managed to come back in the race and until the crash, I think we were in a good position, especially with our pace and on the energy side. I found it quite challenging to find a good balance on the tires, and a snap of oversteer caused me to go off in the first corner. Overall, there were few positives to take, but we will examine our data closely, understand what happened and come back for Diriyah,” Mortara said.

With a late activation of Attack Mode, Gunther made significant progress to compete for points in the last laps and passed Jean-Eric Vergne of DS Penske on the final lap to finish 11th.

“This weekend has been tough for us as a team. With the high altitude it was quite difficult to get the tires into the sweet spot which impacted our pace in qualifying. Starting from the back, our pace in the race was much better and our efficiency and strategy proved to be competitive. I was able to move forward several places, but unfortunately, we were just short of the top 10. We’ve gained a lot of data from this weekend, and now, we just need to examine our performance, focus on our progress, and come back stronger in Riyadh,” Gunther said.

“Maserati is back to racing and although the result was not what we were hoping for, it still made the Mexico City E-Prix exciting and memorable for all of us,” Maserati Corse Head Giovanni Sgro stated. “Motorsport is unpredictable. First and foremost, we’re relieved Edo is okay and what a competitive race for Max, as he fought from 17th to finish just outside the points in 11th. This first race has been a great learning experience and we now focus our attention and determination on Saudi Arabia.”

Formula E's ninth season will continue with a double-header race on the Riyadh Street Circuit in Diriyah, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, on January 27 and 28.

Photos from Maserati

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