Underdog status helped Andretti United secure Extreme E pole
Timmy Hansen reckons his Extreme E rivals voted for him and Andretti United team-mate Catie Munnings to start the Saudi Arabia final on pole because they were the “underdogs”.
Extreme E has incorporated a ‘Grid Play’ element that allows the public to vote for the team they want to start the last race on pole.
For the squads that do not progress to the final, they can pass on their percentage of the vote to one of the three teams that has qualified.
Lewis Hamilton’s X44 outfit was a clear winner of the fan vote, with Rosberg X Racing gaining the second-most support and then Andretti United was a distant third.
However, the Anglo-American squad was promoted to pole position thanks chiefly to the backing of Jenson Button’s JBXE team and that of Carlos Sainz Sr’s Acciona Sainz concern.
Asked by Autosport why he felt Andretti United had been picked over X44 and RXR, Hansen quipped that team co-owner and McLaren Racing boss Zak Brown had offered a discount on the marque’s sportscars.
The 2019 World Rallycross champion also reckoned it was down to preventing the pre-race favourites from stealing an early march in the points.
“We were handed a lot of the votes from the other teams, so I'm really thankful that they did that,” said Hansen.
“I have a lot of beers to buy to the other teams. Maybe [it’s because] we came in as the underdogs after qualifying.
“None of the other teams want any team to run away in the championship. So, I think it is really that we were the underdogs.
“Also, I think Zak had to give away cheap McLaren cars.”
Catie Munnings, Timmy Hansen, Andretti United Extreme E
Photo by: Colin McMaster / Motorsport Images
Hansen took the race start and immediately activated the hyperboost higher power mode to take an early lead before he was passed by Johan Kristoffersson on the run to Turn 1.
After the driver change, Munnings closed the gap to Kristoffersson’s team-mate Molly Taylor during her one-lap stint but eventually finished 24 seconds behind.
Hansen went on to say that the inaugural Extreme E event had “exceeded any expectation” that he had, adding: “Even coming up with this idea is crazy enough.
“But to pull it off, and to do it on this level that has been done this weekend from the whole organisation from the championship, it's been done incredibly well, even though it's the first race for everyone.
“I'm excited to see where this is going to take off to. This championship has an incredibly bright future.”
Related video
Agag: Inaugural Extreme E event created "motorsport gold"
How Extreme E exceeded expectations to pass its first major test
Why McLaren has taken its unprecedented off-road left turn
McLaren will be in distinctly unfamiliar territory this weekend as it makes its Extreme E debut. But this rugged left turn serves as a means to an end to inspire a greater good
How motorsport’s new eco series fared in its debut season
A brand new motorsport series with a disruptive credo will inevitably suffer teething problems. But the electric off-road series put on a spectacular show in its debut season and laid a positive foundation for the future, if manufacturers decide to follow suit
How Rosberg triumphed over Hamilton in 2021's final showdown
The last hurrah of the 2021 motorsport season boiled down to another Nico Rosberg versus Lewis Hamilton head-to-head. As in 2016, it was the former who won out, his RXR Extreme E team prevailing in a tiebreaker following a tense final round of the all-electric off-road series at Dorset's muddy Bovington military base
How technical troubles detracted from Extreme E's Sardinia encounter
Extreme E has provided thrilling plot lines in its inaugural season, but numerous mechanical failures on the ODYSSEY 21 have detracted from the closely fought battles across various terrains. Sardinia's Island X-Prix set up a championship finale, but also underlined what Spark must do to fix the car for next season
How Extreme E’s Arctic adventure gave a chilly reminder of the fixes to find
Extreme E’s third round provided the very definition of extreme conditions in the Artic Circle, and despite settling on a successful format and Andretti United taking a maiden win, there remains plenty of work to do with the spec cars that froze in action
Why McLaren’s surprise electric path can benefit everyone involved
McLaren's announcement that it will enter the Extreme E series for electric SUVs next year came as something of a surprise. But it brings benefits that other championships it could seek to enter cannot, while providing a timely boost to a start-up that has had to cancel two of its South American rounds
Why Extreme E's Senegal round hints at the series' true potential
Extreme E's second round on the sands of Senegal refined some the more clunky aspects of the series' debut event in Saudi Arabia. Even though its star-studded finale between Lewis Hamilton's X44 team and Rosberg X Racing proved anticlimactic, the pieces are in place for the series to only get better
The key area where a start-up series is outdoing F1
While there are those – including several major car manufacturers – who think Formula E has had its day, FE founder Alejandro Agag is continuing to innovate with the new Extreme E series. MARK GALLAGHER sees one element in which it has Formula 1 beaten