Pascal Wehrlein clinches second consecutive virtual Formula E win for Mahindra Racing

London: Germany’s Pascal Wehrlein took his second successive virtual Formula E win for Mahindra on Saturday to replace compatriot Maximilian Guenther in the overall lead of the Race at Home Challenge.

The esports series features the regular race drivers competing on simulators from their homes and aims to provide some action for fans of the all-electric championship, with racing on hold in real life due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BMW i Andretti driver Guenther won the first two races of the series but collected a drive-through penalty for a jump start on Saturday’s Hong Kong layout and then hit the wall and was eliminated without points.

Swiss driver Edoardo Mortara, winner of the real Hong Kong ePrix for Venturi last year, started from pole after a simulated wet qualifying on the harbourfront track but made a mistake and finished fifth.

Wehrlein cruised to victory to go six points clear of Guenther with Stoffel Vandoorne finishing second for Mercedes and Jaguar’s James Calado third.

“Today was a bit special because of the wet conditions in qualifying that we didn’t know about, that was unexpected for everyone,” said Wehrlein.

“The race was a bit chaotic at the beginning, my car was actually a bit damaged, the steering was to the left, but I was fast in dry conditions as well and brought it home.”