"Disappointed" Lotterer says Wehrlein deserved first Porsche Formula E win
Andre Lotterer says team-mate Pascal Wehrlein deserved his victory at the Mexico City E-Prix but admitted he’s “disappointed” that he couldn’t deliver Porsche's first Formula E victory himself.
Photo by: Alastair Staley / Motorsport Images
With Porsche running first and second after wresting control of the race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, Lotterer was asked not to challenge Wehrlein for the lead to preserve a 1-2 finish.
As a result, Wehrlein finally claimed victory in Mexico after two previous occasions in which he lost the honour: he dropped a win at the line in Mexico City in 2019 as he ran out of useable energy and was then disqualified from last year's first Puebla race after Porsche submitted an incorrect technical passport.
Lotterer said that Wehrlein deserved victory following his prior misfortune but added that his own error in qualifying set the order for the Porsche duo in the race.
“Yeah, obviously with the mistake of qualifying, that's probably what put me in this position,” Lotterer conceded.
“From the beginning on, we had a clear teamwork, strategy to focus on the race and not race each other and obviously as a team, you know, that's clear. And I just have to be in front next time!
"Congrats to Pascal, I think after the robbed win last year, he deserves it back. It's a tremendous result for the team; we put so much effort in and, after the difficult season last year, too many ups and downs, I think we are starting to start to put things together."
Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche, Porsche 99X Electric, Andre Lotterer, Porsche, Porsche 99X Electric
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Images
When asked by Autosport if he felt disappointed that he was unable to break Porsche's Formula E duck given his long association with the German manufacturer, Lotterer said that he thought victory was possible “on paper”.
“Yeah, I mean it would have been possible to do more, but we worked as a team and I stayed behind,” he said. “It's just a shame qualifying cost me.
“I'm a bit disappointed because on paper [I] should have been there. But, when you fight your team-mate, it's just a different story.”
Lotterer also admitted that he felt nervous about Porsche's plan to take the race to 40 laps, where Wehrlein was asked to speed up to ensure Porsche could hit that target, but later commended the team for its efforts.
“I was a bit nervous at the beginning, when the team told us we're going to go for that,” he added. “But we stuck with the plan, followed our targets and it paid off.
“So hats off to the team for calculating that from the beginning.”
Be part of the Autosport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Related video
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.
Top Comments