ROKiT Venturi driver Edoardo Mortara was in imperious form as he sailed to victory at the 2022 Marrakesh E-Prix and also took control of the Drivers’ Championship with the win.
Round 10 of the Formula E season saw Antonio Felix da Costa in the DS Techeetah start on pole position, with Mortara also on the front row, and the second DS Techeetah of Jean-Eric Vergne in third.
Mortara made a great start and took first position after the opening round of Attack Mode activations, and that was where he stayed for the entire race, despite coming under some late pressure from Da Costa.
“I must admit after Free Practice 2, we had a lot of issues and I was not thinking we could turn this thing around,” Mortara said.
“But, I have an incredible team behind me and they managed to do an incredible job already in quali. Then during the race, they had a plan, they had a strategy, we executed it and it was perfect.
“You have the guys putting you under a lot of pressure. I was trying to be intelligent, trying to manage. There was a lot to manage today – tyres obviously, but also battery temperatures, energy.
“It was very difficult, I had some issues with the car today, I was a little bit by myself let’s say, but we did that and I’m extremely happy.”
That made it Mortara’s third win of the 2022 Formula E season, and he usurped previous incumbent Stoffel Vandoorne who started in 20th place after a brake problem on his Mercedes EQ car.
As we reach the climax of the season, fellow title challengers Vergne and Mitch Evans in the Jaguar, also earned crucial championship points as the New Zealander made it onto the podium after starting sixth, all thanks to a late lunge on Verge.
With temperatures reaching 33 degrees Celsius, battery efficiency was of upmost importance, and most drivers took their two Attack Modes early while the battery was at its coolest.
Vandoorne surging through
Vandoorne had a great drive after starting in Marrakesh from the back of the grid, and made up 12 places to end the race in eighth. While his Mercedes EQ teammate Nyck de Vries ended up in sixth.
However, that means Mortara now has an 11-point lead in the Drivers World Championship, with Vergne second and Vandoorne third.
Marrakesh E-Prix Results – Round 10
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Time | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edoardo MORTARA | VENTURI | 46:45.410 | 25 |
| 2 | Antonio Felix DA COSTA | DS TECHEETAH | + 2.297 | 21 |
| 3 | Mitch EVANS | JAGUAR | + 6.270 | 15 |
| 4 | Jean-Eric VERGNE | DS TECHEETAH | + 6.965 | 12 |
| 5 | Lucas DI GRASSI | VENTURI | + 7.787 | 11 |
| 6 | Nyck DE VRIES | MERCEDES-EQ | + 8.394 | 8 |
| 7 | Jake DENNIS | AVALANCHE ANDRETTI | + 12.084 | 6 |
| 8 | Stoffel VANDOORNE | MERCEDES-EQ | + 14.541 | 4 |
| 9 | Sam BIRD | JAGUAR | + 15.048 | 2 |
| 10 | Oliver ROWLAND | MAHINDRA | + 15.270 | 1 |
| 11 | Oliver ASKEW | AVALANCHE ANDRETTI | + 16.336 | |
| 12 | Pascal WEHRLEIN | PORSCHE | + 30.043 | |
| 13 | Nick CASSIDY | ENVISION | + 31.970 | |
| 14 | Alexander SIMS | MAHINDRA | + 32.332 | |
| 15 | Andre LOTTERER | PORSCHE | + 32.364 | |
| 16 | Sebastien BUEMI | NISSAN E.DAMS | + 33.707 | |
| 17 | Oliver TURVEY | NIO | + 35.018 | |
| 18 | Robin FRIJNS | ENVISION | + 35.686 | |
| 19 | Antonio GIOVINAZZI | DRAGON / PENSKE | + 40.887 | |
| 20 | Sergio SETTE CAMARA | DRAGON / PENSKE | + 42.764 | |
| 21 | Maximilian GUNTHER | NISSAN E.DAMS | DNF | |
| 22 | Dan TICKTUM | NIO | DNF |
