Jakarta E-Prix: Vergne leads DS Techeetah's late Formula E FP2 sweep
DS Techeetah's Jean-Eric Vergne pounced to the top of the Jakarta timing boards at the very end of practice, beating team-mate Antonio Felix da Costa with a late 1m07.594s.
Da Costa had only just cleared Jake Dennis from the top of the FP2 times, the 2019-20 champion logging a 1m07.993s to go quickest at the chequered flag, but Vergne put his car on top even later into the session to hammer home a clear Techeetah advantage.
As the mercury pushed 32 degrees C in time for FP2, the drivers had to intersperse their laps with tentative cooldown tours to ensure the tyres were not too punished by the escalating track temperatures.
This ensured that traffic proved to be a difficult factor to manage throughout the session, with a number of promising laps failing to yield consistent performance across all three sectors.
Lucas di Grassi was first into the 1m08s, logging a 1m08.750s to set an early marker - where he was followed into the same bracket by Nissan e.dams duo Sebastien Buemi and Maximilian Guenther.
The Brazilian driver was then dispatched from top spot by points leader Stoffel Vandoorne, who found a tenth and a half over the Venturi ace.
Sergio Sette Camara looked good to kick Vandoorne off the top, but a less successful final sector contrived to place the Dragon Penske driver in third, behind compatriot di Grassi.
Pascal Wehrlein then hustled his Porsche to the leading time, clocking a 1m08.410s to beat di Grassi's best lap from FP1 despite losing a smidgen of time in the final sector.
But it was then the turn of the NIO 333 pair to bask in the sun as Oliver Turvey shaded Wehrlein's time by 0.031s, but was immediately displaced by Dan Ticktum who scorched to a 1m08.338s.
As the session then ticked down into its final 10 minutes, Jake Dennis powered to the top of the timing boards with a 1m08.253s, but the Avalanche Andretti had to see off an assault from Edoardo Mortara and Mitch Evans.
Neither driver beat his time, and Dennis even had a chance to beat his own chart-topper - but ultimately trailed it by under half a tenth.
But just as it looked good for Dennis, the brace of DS Techeetahs catapulted their way to the top of the times to move the Brit down to third.
Antonio Felix da Costa, DS Techeetah, DS E-Tense FE21, Lucas di Grassi, Venturi Racing, Silver Arrow 02
Photo by: Sam Bagnall / Motorsport Images
Evans and Mortara closed out FP2 in fourth and fifth, ahead of Ticktum and Turvey, while Wehrlein was eighth - a tenth clear of arguably ninth-place Antonio Giovinazzi's best lap in Formula E so far.
Turvey and Ticktum set the first representative laps of FP1, the latter managing a 1m13.561 off the bat as the new track surface was slowly dusted down.
The times quickly dropped into the 1m10s, Buemi pouncing ahead of Jake Dennis to grab a 1m10.283s - the Swiss driver having been the first driver to take to the track in Friday's shakedown.
Evans then brought the session into the 1m09s, before being quickly shuffled down a place by Dennis, before di Grassi threw his first proper effort into the mix and stood fastest with a 1m09.766s.
Jaguar's Evans then linked up with top spot once more, setting a 1m09.246s, as Pascal Wehrlein and Sam Bird then wedged themselves into the top three before the halfway point of the session.
Wehrlein carries a five-place grid penalty for Jakarta as a result of the FIA seals being broken on one of his two DCDC units.
Jean-Eric Vergne then punched in the first 250kW lap of the session to go fastest, posting a 1m08.703s, which went unchallenged for a good portion of the session despite challenges from Dennis and Andre Lotterer on full power - as Oliver Rowland came across traffic in Antonio Giovinazzi which meant he was unable to eclipse Vergne either.
Di Grassi did, however, returning to the top of the timing board with a 1m08.538s - with Dennis finding a lap just 0.018s down.
But at the chequered flag, Rowland peeled past di Grassi with a 1m08.433s to head FP1, with former team-mate Buemi firing up to second at the death with a lap just 0.09s down on the Mahindra driver.
Formula E Jakarta E-Prix FP2 results
Formula E Jakarta E-Prix FP1 results
| Cla | Driver | Team | Laps | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Oliver Rowland |
 Mahindra Racing |
18 | |
| 2 |  Sébastien Buemi |
 DAMS |
18 | 0.090 |
| 3 |  Lucas di Grassi |
 Venturi |
21 | 0.105 |
| 4 | Jake Dennis |
 Andretti Autosport |
19 | 0.123 |
| 5 | Jean-Eric Vergne |
Techeetah |
18 | 0.135 |
| 6 |  Mitch Evans |
Jaguar Racing |
20 | 0.183 |
| 7 |  Antonio Felix da Costa |
Techeetah |
18 | 0.231 |
| 8 |  Nyck de Vries |
 Mercedes |
21 | 0.234 |
| 9 | Pascal Wehrlein |
Porsche Team |
21 | 0.365 |
| 10 | Robin Frijns |
Virgin Racing |
15 | 0.416 |
| 11 | Edoardo Mortara |
Venturi |
21 | 0.417 |
| 12 | Andre Lotterer |
Porsche Team |
20 | 0.456 |
| 13 | Sam Bird |
Jaguar Racing |
21 | 0.527 |
| 14 | Alexander Sims |
Mahindra Racing |
21 | 0.668 |
| 15 | Oliver Turvey |
NIO Formula E Team |
20 | 0.687 |
| 16 |  Stoffel Vandoorne |
Mercedes |
21 | 0.780 |
| 17 | Oliver Askew |
Andretti Autosport |
18 | 0.842 |
| 18 | Maximilian Gunther |
DAMS |
18 | 0.859 |
| 19 | Dan Ticktum |
NIO Formula E Team |
21 | 1.078 |
| 20 |  Antonio Giovinazzi |
Dragon Racing |
20 | 1.098 |
| 21 | Sergio Sette Camara |
Dragon Racing |
19 | 1.276 |
| 22 | Nick Cassidy |
Virgin Racing |
19 | 1.293 |
| View full results | ||||
Evans: Jakarta E-Prix heat could result in a Formula E "endurance"
Jakarta E-Prix: Vergne beats da Costa in all-DS Techeetah pole battle
Porsche boss “as surprised as anyone” over Gulf-Williams F1 social media frenzy
Porsche’s head of motorsport Thomas Laudenbach found it “funny” that streamlining its Instagram channels caused a Formula 1 social media speculation frenzy last month.
Why Albon won't be "throwing around laptops" to gain a 2023 F1 edge
OPINION: At the Williams 2023 Formula 1 season launch, Alex Albon’s easy-going nature was again a point of focus. But does being “too nice” really matter in modern F1? Albon’s own expressions put that in an intriguing new light
Why Alfa Romeo has kept its blade roll hoop on 2023 F1 car
The Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team has retained its unique blade roll hoop for the C43 but designed it to withstand load tests that the FIA will introduce in 2024.
Daly to attempt 2023 Daytona 500 with The Money Team
IndyCar driver Conor Daly has announced plans to enter the 2023 Daytona 500 with The Money Team, making his superspeedway debut in NASCAR Cup.
The key factors behind Porsche's strong start to Formula E's new era
A low-key Valencia test left some quarters of Porsche's Formula E squad worried, but a 100% winning start for the German manufacturer's powertrain in 2022-23 underlines its early race day advantage. Porsche's key figures explain the strong start in Gen3, and why the work is only just beginning
How Wehrlein's Diriyah double reveals Formula E's form book shake-up
After Porsche-powered drivers locked out the top two positions to open Formula E's new Gen3 era in Mexico, the order was reversed in Diriyah. Ex-Formula 1 driver Pascal Wehrlein's factory car headed Jake Dennis's customer Andretti machine in both races under the Riyadh lights in a display that leaves little doubt as to which package currently has the edge
The first impressions of Formula E's brave new era
OPINION: Formula E kicked off its Gen3 era at Mexico City with keen anticipation - and anxiety - surrounding its new, more powerful cars. Here's how the new machinery got on in its first race, and what could be open to improvement later down the line
How Dennis dominated Formula E's new generation opener
Formula E’s Gen3 era kicked off with more unpredictability as Andretti’s Jake Dennis recovered from poor pre-season testing to dominate in Mexico. Here's how it played out and what the opener hints at what is to come in the new generation of the electric series
Is this a Formula E 'nearly man's' best chance yet at title glory?
With braking issues scuppering his championship hopes at a crucial moment in the 2021-22 Formula E season, Mitch Evans is more determined than ever heading into this year. He explains how he plans to make it third time lucky after two title near-misses
Can McLaren make a success of its foray into Formula E?
McLaren kept a two-time title-winning Formula E team alive after purchasing the Mercedes entry. But with new drivers and a switch to customer status, can it continue to succeed in its new orange era?
10 things we learned from Valencia Formula E testing
The prologue to the 2022/2023 Formula E season has concluded as the series gets set for the new Gen3 era. After almost four days of testing in Valencia this week, Autosport takes a look at the 10 major talking points that will dominate the build-up to the new campaign getting underway in January.
How Jaguar got its teeth into Formula E's Gen3 development race
With Mercedes gone and DS moving teams, Jaguar has a big opportunity at the start of Formula E's Gen3 era. The technical challenges in understanding the new car have been vast, with senior figures James Barclay and Phil Charles outlining to Autosport the pitfalls along the way
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.