Why Extreme E's Senegal round hints at the series' true potential

Epic locations, thrilling car chases and executives who possess more than a passing interest in (the) Amazon. There are just about enough similarities to draw comparison between Extreme E and the James Bond film franchise. And that’s before mentioning the RMS St. Helena ‘floating paddock’ that freights the championship’s cargo from one venue to the next. No hollowed-out volcano, but it surely has all the credentials of a nautical villain’s lair.

Stretch the analogy a little further and an inaugural event for the all-electric SUV off-road racing series in Saudi Arabia back in April was akin to Dr. No releasing in 1962. A fine entry but perhaps a touch plain with no overtakes coming beyond the first corner of each race. Nevertheless, it provided a sound enough platform upon which to tinker with the idea.

PLUS: How Extreme E exceeded expectations to pass its first major test

That’s exactly what Extreme E did in time for last weekend and a visit to Lac Rose in Senegal, as the Rosberg X Racing duo of Johan Kristoffersson and Molly Taylor again snared the glory.

When the crabs had danced around the plastic-strewn beachfront and the sea eagles had flown out of shot, this From Russia with Love-style sequel retained all the successful hallmarks of the first round and refined the format to deliver sterling action scenes and compelling storylines. All that’s needed for the next event in Greenland in August is a thrilling climax like the siege of Fort Knox in Goldfinger. Find that in time for the third instalment of this fledgling and disruptive series and Extreme E will have entered its stride.

The tweak that was to be relished most for the second round was the addition of another entry to the finale. Excessive dust levels in Saudi had meant qualifying heats on Saturday were dispensed with in favour of single-car time trials. Initially underwhelming, that soon didn’t seem to matter as it gave the weekend a natural crescendo and such a set-up remained in place for Senegal. As did the three-car semi-finals and a wooden spoon Shootout race to decide positions seventh through to ninth.

Molly Taylor, Johan Kristoffersson, Rosberg X Racing, Cristina Gutierrez, Sebastien Loeb, X44, and Jutta Kleinschmidt, Mattias Ekstrom, ABT CUPRA XE

Photo by: Colin McMaster / Motorsport Images

But with the Atlantic Ocean shoreline sand far more settled for the four-mile lap this time around, it was deemed safe enough for the final to gain another entry. Now, two cars would progress from each semi-final to decide the grid and with a unique format, it bestowed the showdown with added prestige. That kudos was only enhanced when it transpired that the three teams of fellow Formula 1 world champions Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg and Jenson Button would feature alongside Veloce Racing in the battle for the champagne spoils.

Rosberg X Racing and the X44 squad that partners nine-time World Rally champion Sebastien Loeb with spare-time orthodontist Cristina Gutierrez - cherrypicked by Prodrive chairman David Richards after impressing on the Andalucia Rally - earned their progression from the first semi-final at the expense of Abt Cupra.

Two massive Saudi shunts for Claudia Hurtgen had left the team to burn the midnight oil to repair its car in time for Friday practice. With strict deadlines to load the St. Helena and limited spares on site, it wasn’t possible to complete the rebuild in the AlUla desert. That left the outfit to work with constructor Spark Racing Technology, with Veloce Racing also lending a hand, to sort the machine from Tuesday through to Thursday in Senegal.

"I had the inside of the corner and then it’s quite a steep bank as you go through there. You’re just trying to keep the car in as tight as you can but unfortunately, we made some contact" Molly Taylor

Team technical director Florian Modlinger said: “The mechanics were there for one more day to build down in Saudi, to take the tents down and during this time they already stripped the car. They checked what was the main damage and in collaboration with Spark they had a complete damage picture and diagnosis. The spare parts needed for Senegal were already listed, the whole diagnosis was done at AlUla but the car was still as it had left Saudi.”

The better part of €95,000 later, Abt Cupra lead charge Mattias Ekstrom flew out the blocks. With toasty temperatures again dictating that power for all cars was wound down from 535bhp to 300bhp, the two-time DTM title winner and 2016 World Rallycross king posted the fastest individual lap in practice. He ran to third in first qualifying and was second in the afternoon bout. That earned the Swedish ace, alongside temporary team-mate Jutta Kleinschmidt, his place in the opening semi-final.

He enjoyed the best launch from the outside of the grid and sat comfortably in first place. As Kristoffersson firmly shut the door in his scrap with Loeb, it allowed Ekstrom to break into a defined lead of around one second. But suspect parking at the driver changeover meant Kleinschmidt couldn’t see when to rejoin and so fell to third. She clawed the gap back valiantly but finished 2s adrift and sent Abt Cupra for an early bath as Taylor won for RXR and Gutierrez arrived home in second for X44 to book places in the final.

There they would be joined by JBXE and Veloce Racing. With Button working remotely from Los Angeles, not necessarily unrelated to his chagrin at the Odyssey 21’s skittish rear axle that fires the car into the air at will, Kevin Hansen was called up alongside Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky with the genuine prospect of holding on to the seat for the remainder of the season.

Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky, Kevin Hansen, JBXE Extreme-E Team, Jamie Chadwick, Stephane Sarrazin, Veloce Racing

Photo by: Charly Lopez / Motorsport Images

Wearing its Brawn GP livery homage, the JBXE machine was the runaway winner in the second semi-final as the team streaked clear for a 30.95s triumph. Veloce Racing’s Stephane Sarrazin, fresh from testing for the Nissan e.dams Formula E concern, overcame a faulty pit-limiter that sporadically cut in to robustly bash his way past Christine Giampaoli Zonca for the rebranded Xite Energy Racing - with the Hispano Suiza name and much of the Spanish electric automotive manufacturer’s presence dialled back in Senegal.

“Unfortunately, I [and team-mate Jamie Chadwick] have a problem with the pit-limiter,” explained Sarrazin. “It was coming on, a cable contact kept dropping out. When I got in the car, first corner, woah, 28km/h. I pressed it off, it was OK, I overtook. In the last sector it came on again, woah, and it was not possible to remove it. I blocked and [Giampaoli Zonca] was coming, coming, coming. Then the car restarted and we got P2.”

Up to this point, there had been just six races in the very short history of Extreme E. But even within that limited context, the two semi-finals were outstanding for their drama. Unfortunately, events conspired to deny a similarly gripping battle between the red-hot favourites X44 and Rosberg X Racing in the decider.

A new rule for Senegal compelled teams to alternate their starting driver. As such, with Loeb and Kristoffersson in the very hot and sweaty seat for the semis, it was over to 2016 Australian Rally champion Taylor and Gutierrez to belt in first for the finale.

As they drifted across the course at the launch, Sarrazin was sandwiched with Ahlin-Kottulinsky and soon dropped three car lengths. Taylor and Gutierrez both thumbed their ‘Hyperdrive’ power boosts to streak into the lead on the long run to the first corner, a 90-degree right hander. But akin to the tearing up of a rally stage as each car passes over, come the last race there were clear and deep ruts in the sand. At the apex, Taylor clouted one of these banks and it jolted the nose of her car into the side of the X44 machine. Gutierrez bore the brunt of the whack and was eliminated almost immediately when the steering arm cried mercy and snapped.

Taylor said: “I had the inside of the corner and then it’s quite a steep bank as you go through there. You’re just trying to keep the car in as tight as you can but unfortunately, we made some contact. It’s close racing.”

Very soon after, just two cars were left in contention. Ahlin-Kottulinsky decided to swap lanes on the beach and as she traversed a crest of sand, it buckled the right-rear corner as the suspension and driveshaft failed in tandem.

Molly Taylor, Johan Kristoffersson, Rosberg X Racing, and Cristina Gutierrez, Sebastien Loeb, X44, race and collide into the first corner of the final

Photo by: Charly Lopez / Motorsport Images

The Rosberg X Racing machine wasn’t a patch on its imperious Saudi set-up, lurching this way and that and exaggerating every bump on the course. Nevertheless, Taylor fought off Sarrazin to lead by 1.53s as they pulled in for their drive change over.

However, with recovery vehicles still attending to the stricken X44 and JBXE runners, Formula E and Extreme E race director Scot Elkins flew the red flag. He would later opt for the two remaining cars to return to the starting grid and line up in formation, calling for Kristoffersson and Chadwick to sub in for their turn. An inside line at the restart gave Kristoffersson the advantage, overcoming his previous poor starts that had necessitated his first-corner heroics in Saudi. Chadwick shied away from bullying it up the inside and that allowed Kristoffersson to streak clear for an emphatic 14.676s triumph to uphold a perfect record for RXR.

It was no doubt an anti-climax, like Bond’s clumsy fist fight with Rosa Klebb in the final minutes of From Russia with Love arriving after the brutal train bout between the double-0 agent and Red Grant

“We weren’t really 100% on pace when we arrived here,” was the lanky Swede’s assessment. “We managed to pick it up in the crucial moment. We’ve been able to manage the pace a little bit and try to keep the car in one piece and not go completely crazy. It was a well-balanced weekend. We were fast when we needed to be, and we were able to do the overtaking and good starts when we needed to.”

It was no doubt an anti-climax, like Bond’s clumsy fist fight with Rosa Klebb in the final minutes of From Russia with Love arriving after the brutal train bout between the double-0 agent and Red Grant. But as with Goldfinger, perhaps an American influence can restore the drama in Greenland. Extreme E is yet to see the full potential of the Chip Ganassi Racing squad and its potent combination of Kyle LeDuc and Sara Price.

LeDuc’s Senegalese qualifying heroics were curtailed by a “one in a million” occurrence when running through the wooded section. A rogue branch yanked a loop on the rear-three quarter panel to prime the onboard fire extinguisher and shut the car down. But the way in which he strongarmed his way past his Andretti United rival on Sunday - a muted precursor to that evening’s Indianapolis 500 - and then quite literally jumped ahead of the Acciona Sainz machine of Carlos Sainz Sr and Laia Sanz for the Shootout victory was the highlight of the weekend for many. Following on from his rollover crash before wiping out Hurtgen in Saudi, there’s an air of Colin McRae to LeDuc. A win or bust, trees or trophy streak that is incredible to watch.

A truncated five-race calendar, with two contests already run, makes CGR something of an outsider for the title. Its team principal Dave Berkenfield also called on Extreme E organisers not to make “knee-jerk” changes to the rules that might help his squad: “These are the storylines. That’s what the season wants. That’s what our fan base wants - the underdog dealing with adversity."

Should the team find its rhythm in Greenland and should X44 survive any further skirmishes, Rosberg X Racing won’t have it all its own way. If that comes to fruition, this box-fresh championship is already capable of creating a vintage motorsport spectacle.

Sara Price, Kyle Leduc, Chip Ganassi Racing and Catie Munnings, Timmy Hansen, Andretti United Extreme E

Photo by: Colin McMaster / Motorsport Images