Guenther's Jeddah E-Prix hat trick wasn't as easy as it seemed

Maximilian Guenther may have secured a hat trick of pole position, fastest lap and the race win in the first race of the Jeddah E-Prix, but his day wasn’t as easy as the results might show.

He might have ticked every box on the stat sheet, but it was a last lap pass that secured him the win, making him the first polesitter to take victory in Formula E in 17 races. Helping his case was an extra Attack Mode, with eventual second place finisher Oliver Rowland having used his first before going into the pits. With that extra power on tap, plus Rowland’s need to save energy in the closing stages of the race, Guenther was able to move to the fore – something that seemed somewhat unlikely after he pitted.

“I wasn’t amused, but I still knew I’ve got the two attack modes remaining, and I knew a few cars were pushing a lot or took Attack Mode,” Guenther said of emerging from the pits after his 30-second fast charge in eighth. “At the end, we just did our race, and I saw it’s possible to recover pretty well.

“At the end, I was thinking, ‘Okay, podium is realistic today,’ but then I saw I was able to close the gap to Oli, and I tried it until the end.

“He was defending so well that it was just about if he gets the cut or not for the last corner, because he did everything right. He made himself very wide, but obviously I knew if he had to lift early, then I’ve got the chance, and I took it at the end.”

The win was Guenther’s sixth in Formula E, but his first for DS Penske since moving to the American team in the off-season, and he says it was the culmination of an already positive season.

“It means a lot to me,” Guenther said. “I think we’ve had a very good start of the season, actually, always performing well on the first three weekends. unlucky in Sao Paulo, solid last time out in Mexico, and here perfect day with pole, fastest lap, and the race win.

“The race was actually really difficult. I think Oli did an amazing job until the end, defending so well. We just stayed patient, and we had more energy at the end, so I was able to get him, but it was hard work.

“If you want to win a race in Formula E, really all the stars have to be aligned,” he added. “I think this was the case today. Tomorrow, everybody is starting from zero. The competition here is so incredibly tight, and you always have to stay with both feet on the ground. We’ll do our homework tomorrow. I like the track; so far it’s going well, and yeah, I’ll give my very best tomorrow again.”