Analysing and Reviewing the two Qualifying Rounds, the factors that played into them, and how the drivers and teams performed!
Extreme E went qualifying in Greenland, creating history, and the track which was analysed to be one that would be technical, rough on the cars, and very challenging in the ANALYSIS OF THE COURSE, stood up to its first impressions. A lot of it came down to the finer differences in car setup and handling, which meant that the more experienced drivers put up performances, if not overall then in some sections of the track, that set them apart. But overall, everyone presented performances that highlighted several factors that could play a crucial role. The Qualifying rounds had a lot in them and there is a lot to analyse.
QUALIFYING ROUND 1
The Qualifying Round 1 was about understanding the limits, as even after the Shakedown and Free Practice, not all drivers were able to properly drive or assess the track enough and hence, the Qualifying Round 1 was still the on where answers to questions such as which sections have to be handled in which manner were to be answered. And they were answered. This section was made a little less close between the cars by the number of technical issues that the teams faced, and also the suspension damage that JBXE faced. The track evolved a lot throughout the session. The track started, already evolved, as it had been at the end of the Free Practice session the day before. But then the tyre tracks become deeper and deeper and the rocks moving around after hitting the cars’ wheels, in the rock garden section, which created a cleaner section at places and rougher sections as well. The track evolution aided some teams, in some parts of the track as it helped them with their line and the way the car behaved, whereas for some, it made it tougher, with the car now going out of control being slightly more punishing in some sections. The first Qualifying Round did help the teams understand their approach to Qualifying Round 2, which many concluded, needed to be cautious as the track was unforgiving to the car. Acciona Sainz XE Team were also required to do better than in the second round in the Switch Zone, as the team where the slowest in that zone taking around 5 seconds more than the minimum 45 second time limit, to make the switch and have the car moving. These small differences meant that some teams were able to grab more points and end up in a safer position.
THE ROCK GARDEN
The small but very impactful ‘Rock Garden’ section had major impacts on the qualifying results. Each driver had a different approach to that section in both the Qualifying Rounds and it meant that they got varying results. JBXE went with a sort of full send in that section and had a wheel that was rotated 90 degrees on the horizontal plane, and a suspension that was damaged. Laia Sanz took a very cautious approach in the second round, and lost some time. What can be concluded is that there exists one perfect line and perfect speed, and one next best with other causing the teams a loss in some manner, even a fraction of a second. In the qualifying, drivers who went out after others seemed to benefit by taking lines from which larger rocks had been moved by the drivers who drove over and around them previously, giving them a slightly less dangerous rocky section to venture through. A full send is dangerous, especially with more than one car in that area, and a slow approach loses you a lot of time, and hence, it is just the drivers who have good throttle control and is with a car that has a proper suspension setup, who will be able to master that rock garden.
TRACK EVOLUTION
Track Evolution was evident. As more and more cars took to the track, the track evolved with the racing lines becoming more prominent and deeper, some areas cleaning up, some allowing rocks to fall and disrupt the cars on their racing line. Track Evolution might also take place through the 3 sessions before the Final Race, which could change how the lines seen in the Qualifying and Free Practice sessions to be helpful and advantageous actually turn out to be.
CAR SETUP
The suspension setup was very important for this weekend as the car had to handle largely varying surfaces and terrains and Andretti United Extreme E were one of the teams who seemed to have found a good spot with their car’s setup which seemed smooth through several areas. Apart from that, some cars held up better than the rest even at almost equal speeds and that also comes down to how the car was handled at that driving speed and how the car was setup as in how much shock it was able to absorb, and what was the angle of the tyres and so on.
It was again, just like in the previous two rounds, X44 who were exceptional in both the Qualifying Rounds, with Loeb playing the main role with his car control setting him apart. Although, in the second round he seemed to lose the car quite a bit at places, and then also had a slightly more cautious approach, in the first Qualifying Round he was able to drive fast and have proper control on the car. Losing control even a slight bit was sending the car sliding and that is what led to many drivers losing time. X44 were advantaged a bit by RXR facing technical issues with the car in the first round, which lost them about more than a minute, even before the tumble which Molly Taylor handled superbly and continued with broken bodywork to keep them in the hunt. This meant that X44’s main competitor, instead of getting advantaged much by the points system that was introduced, got disadvantaged a bit, and were not in contention for that top spot post the two qualifying rounds, which almost confirmed X44’s 12 championship points and Semi – Final 1 spot.
Cristina Gutierrez also showed improved performance from the previous two rounds, which was especially commendable considering that she comes into this round after recovering from two ruptured vertebrates, which took place in a rally just after the previous Extreme E Round 2 months ago. X44 ae going up with their performance, and their first round performance allowed them to take a much more cautious approach in the second round which they did. Loeb still stays very important to X44’s results, and his slight slip offs in control in the second round may have cost them about a second or so, which although wouldn’t have made any difference in this race, is still something the team can look at. What also got them through was there consistency and a car that was able to handle jolts well.
All in all, it was a qualifying day that was filled with drama but was dulled a bit by how the cars’ faced technical and mechanical issues, and some were jolted hard and the car bodywork and the tyre rim were not strong enough to sustain that much force. A lot of this comes down to the setup and a lot of it comes down to the driving style, but a major part comes down to the ODYSSEY 21 build. The Final Race could have a mixed up field as the best in the championship find themselves spread out in the two semi – finals and with more cars to be a part, some dynamics might change more than expected, but what will be the most crucial aspect will be the GridPlay as getting ahead early in the race will matter a lot.
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