The Race In Numbers
Edoardo Mortara
FP1 // P2
FP2 // No Time
Qualifying One // P6 [1:08.704, Quarter-Final 4]
Race One // P6
Fastest Lap // 1:10.521
Championship Position // P17 [13 points]
Maximilian Günther
FP1 // P1
FP2 // P1
Qualifying One // P1 [1:08.141, Final]
Race One // P3
Fastest Lap // 1:10.263
Championship Position // P10 [42 points]
Maserati MSG Racing
Championship Position // P7 [55 points]
The Report
Maserati MSG Racing returned to the podium in the first part of the 2023 Jakarta E-Prix, with Maximilian Günther taking third after starting from pole position in the Indonesian capital.
Max showed fine form throughout the weekend and led the way in both practice sessions before setting the fastest time in his qualifying group to progress to the duel stages.
He was accompanied in the head-to-heads by team-mate, Edoardo Mortara, but after pipping the Swiss-Italian – who went on to start sixth – defeated Pascal Wehrlein to secure a place in the Final.
Max outpaced Andretti’s Jake Dennis by 0.341 seconds to secure the first pole position of his Formula E career and took advantage of his place on the front row with a good start to the race.
The young German took an early lead off the line while Edo lost ground after being overtaken by Robin Frijns, although he soon overtook the Dutchman at the end of lap three.
While underconsuming energy during the opening phase, Max yielded the race lead to Pascal Wehrlein on lap four, but repassed the Porsche driver who activated Attack Mode one tour later.
Max activated his first use Attack Mode in response, and after regaining the lead, settled into second with his final activation.
Edo, meanwhile, remained in the fight for fifth and after an early battle with Jean-Eric Vergne, entered a duel with Nick Cassidy by overtaking the New Zealander on lap 26 of 36.
In the battle for the lead, Max lost position to Jake Dennis who opted for an overcut strategy and finished third after chasing the Briton to the chequered flag.
Edo completed a double top-10 finish by taking home sixth to complete a total haul of 26 points from Race One, allowing Maserati MSG Racing to overtake Nissan in the World Teams’ Championship.
The double-header Jakarta E-Prix will continue on Sunday, 4 June, and will be held over a longer distance of 38-laps.
In Their Words
James Rossiter, Team Principal, Maserati MSG Racing
“We showed a great team performance today. From the first green light on Friday, the car was in a good position and Max topped every session and secured a dominant pole position in qualifying. The team executed a strong race, and it felt good to return to the podium. After missing the entirety of FP2, Edo delivered a truly remarkable recovery to qualify sixth and achieve his best result of the season so far, and also complete our highest points haul yet. We have lot of data to analyse, and I believe there is some more performance we can unlock so now we need regroup and come back even stronger tomorrow.”
Edoardo Mortara, Driver, Maserati MSG Racing
“A positive day for me, and it feels good to be back inside the top 10. We showed good early pace in FP1, and despite losing some track time in FP2, I was able to make it into the duels to start sixth. The high temperature and humidity meant that the race was very intense, and because there wasn’t as much energy saving, we didn’t see too much overtaking. I finished where I started to score some good points for the team, and now, we need to make sure that we maintain this level of performance for the rest of the season.”
Maximilian Günther, Driver, Maserati MSG Racing
“As a racing driver, when you start from pole position you always want to win, but I’m happy and satisfied with today’s performance. I had a good car underneath me, we led for quite a few laps at the start, and we were in the mix throughout but unfortunately, we didn’t have quite enough performance to beat Pascal [Wehrlein] and Jake [Dennis]. It feels good to be back on the podium, and I’m happy with what we have achieved so far this weekend. We gave our all today, and we will try to keep improving and building on our progress so we can hopefully achieve the same, or even better, tomorrow.”
Giovanni Sgro, Head of Maserati Corse
"Incredible start to the Jakarta race weekend with our first pole position start and another podium finish. Max and Edo had a very strong day and the team's efforts are paying off. Great to have both drivers earn additional points as we get ready for tomorrow's race."
