Qualifying
If FormulaE CEO, Alejandro Agag wrote the script for the inaugural ePrix, he could not have written a better one.
All the ingredients were present for an electrifying debut for this exciting new series. The weather was perfect! Aside from the fantastic turn out, we had 40 fully functional cars, duelling drivers, a spectacular crash with no serious injuries and a worthy winner. Add a pinch of dignitaries and sponsors flocking to congratulate him to consider it a success.
The race format stipulates that the Practice, Qualifying sessions and the Race are held on the same day. This is to minimise disruptions to cities and streets on which the races will run. The morning was for two Practice sessions topped by Lucas Di Grassi (1.41.934s) and Bruno Senna (1:41.341s) respectively.
The qualifying session was split into four groups with drivers selected randomly for each group. Karun Chandhok set the fastest time of 1:42.461s and was on provisional pole after two groups had run.
The last 2 groups saw Prost set the fastest time of 1:42.200s. In an attempt to improve on his time, Prost had a minor shunt, but his time was good enough for Pole Position, (the first of the series, and hence made him the championship leader with 3 points awarded for Pole Position). The top 10 qualifiers were: PRO, DIG, ABT, CHA, MON*, HEI, ALG, PIC, BUE, PIQ
Buemi, Trulli, Cerruti, Sarrazin, and Tung were handed a 10 place grid penalty for gearbox changes ahead of the race.