Maximilian Gunther dominated the eleventh round of the 2022–23 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship – Jakarta E-Prix – with an incredible triumph after Sunday’s race win.
Maserati MSG’s Maximilian Gunther won Sunday’s Jakarta E-Prix race after securing his second straight Formula E pole position there. By the time he crossed the finish line, the German driver had built up an impressive lead to around three seconds over the rest of the field.
Gunther’s victory was Maserati’s first World Championship triumph in a single-seater since Juan-Manuel Fangio’s historic win at the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring in 1957.
Andretti’s Jake Dennis took the lead during the first round of attack mode activations, but Gunther showed great timing by intentionally waiting behind Jake.
Gunther strategically delayed his second ATTACK MODE deployment while Dennis seized the initiative much earlier, and it was the turning point. With the help of his final 50kW boost on Lap 18, the German driver was able to close a big enough deficit and overtake his rival as a result of this strategy.
By the time the two were crossing the finish line, Gunther had increased his lead over Dennis to 2.822 seconds, more over 18 seconds ahead of third-place finisher Mitch Evans.
No one had won by more than two seconds in the GEN3 era since Dennis’ season-opening victory in Mexico City.
For Nick Cassidy, who is currently in the top spot in the overall standings, Round 11 was dramatic. With only one non-scoring finish, a 13th place in Diriyah, the Envision Racing driver had maintained consistency throughout the entire season.
On Lap 20, he made a costly error while attempting to pass Pascal Wehrlein driving the TAG Heuer Porsche. Cassidy ultimately came out on the wrong side of the fight, falling to the rear of the field and settling for 19th place as a result of the damage he suffered.
Given Dennis’ second-place finish and Wehrlein’s rise to P6 after winning in Jakarta on Saturday, this setback turned out to be even more significant.
The Nissan pair of Sacha Fenestraz and Norman Nato made significant progress in the closing laps of the race, moving up from their respective starting positions of seventh and twelve to take fourth and fifth, respectively.
Their performance was particularly noteworthy when Stoffel Vandoorne of DS Penske was taken by surprise by a daring maneuver performed by Fenestraz at the hairpin. Nato cleverly replicated and took advantage of the opportunity.
Vandoorne dropped to ninth after the overtake, while Wehrlein, Antonio Felix da Costa, and Edoardo Mortara easily passed him to take sixth, seventh, and eighth place, respectively. Sebastien Buemi rounded out the top 10 indicating Envision Racing’s afternoon was low with just a single point earned.
The top three Drivers spots in the standings remain extremely close, with just six points between them. Nick Cassidy, who had a terrible afternoon and now only has 128 points to his credit, is in third place in the championship, trailing Wehrlein by just a single point (134), Dennis by a point (133), and Cassidy by a point (132).
