ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team fastest in practice as Extreme E debuts in Chile

The three-kilometre course of the Antofagasta Minerals Copper X Prix has proved one of the most remote and extreme settings for the championship so far. As the drivers took on the most thrilling course yet, Extreme E made the perfect entrance at its first-ever South American event.

René Aguilar, Antofagasta Minerals’ Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Affairs, said: “We’re very proud to be hosting Extreme E’s first race in South America. I think Extreme E and Antofagasta Minerals share a common purpose, which is the fight against climate change.

"Copper is a key material for electric cars and renewable technologies and its demand is surging as a result of our global shift to these technologies. Antofagasta Minerals invited Extreme E to Chile to explain to the world how we are meeting global demand, but with industry leading sustainable innovations being the core to our strategy.

“We are really looking forward to this weekend’s racing, and we look forward to seeing how all the teams take to this very exciting course, located in our backyard.”

With Rosberg X Racing (RXR) needing a 31 point lead to lift the championship trophy this weekend, the Antofagasta Minerals Copper X Prix will ask the most of the other Extreme E contenders as they look to steal glory in Chile.

Quickest out of the blocks in Free Practice were ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team with a time of 9:10.167. Having shown pace in Sardinia without results, Carlos Sainz Sr. and Laia Sanz laid down the marker in the Atacama Desert as the teams prepare for Qualifying tomorrow.

Carlos Sainz Snr., ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team, said: "The race in Chile will be important for ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team as an individual event but also in the bigger picture for the final stages of the championship because there are only two events to go in the calendar.

“We are traveling to a different continent and we visit South America for the very first time. I have fond memories of my time there with the World Rally Championship and the Rally Dakar and I am sure that Extreme E will also receive a warm welcome. It will be an excellent race. I am already looking forward to discovering the terrain where we will be racing and I want to see what challenges the track entails".

Laia Sanz, ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team, said: "Both Carlos and I are really looking forward to the Copper X Prix because we were really competitive in Sardinia but we were not able to translate our potential into a good result. I am optimistic and I think that we can stand out in Chile because in the last events we have had the pace to fight for everything. I am convinced that we will keep that same level in what remains of this season. We will work flat-out to do so."

In FP2, ABT CUPRA XE's Jutta Kleinschmidt suffered a heavy landing after crashing, which ruled the team out for the rest of the session. The German was later taken to hospital as a precaution, and will need to stay in hospital overnight for further checks. Everyone at Extreme E wishes Jutta a speedy recovery.

In a statement, an ABT CUPRA XE spokesperson said: “After her accident in Free Practice 2 Jutta will need to stay in hospital overnight for further observation. The entire ABT CUPRA XE team is in close contact with Jutta and wishes her the very best.”

ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team’s nearest challengers were Genesys Andretti United Extreme E who, off the back of their podium in Sardinia, maintained their momentum with a time of 9:15.905 in FP2. Also setting their best time in the second session were X44 Vida Carbon Racing, who rounded out the top three with a 9:25.555.

Both of the Hansen brothers demonstrated their rallycross pedigree in Free Practice, as a blistering lap from Kevin initially put Jenson Button’s JBXE third in FP2, but a penalty denied them their spot in the top three and so finished fourth overall.

Championship leaders RXR were fifth overall in Practice, but Johan Kristoffersson ended the day with the fastest individual lap. Sending a warning to the rest of the grid, the Swede delivered a 1:48.116 lap time in FP2.

Veloce Racing recovered well after suffering misfortune in Sardinia to finish sixth overall and will be aiming to kickstart their season with a strong Qualifying performance tomorrow.

Runners up in the championship standings, No.99 GMC Hummer EV Chip Ganassi Racing, showed speed but an accumulation of penalties resulted in an overall best time of 9:40:060, denying us any glimpse of their true pace.

Alongside ABT CUPRA XE, the other teams that were unable to complete a full day of Free Practice running were XITE ENERGY Racing and NEOM McLaren Extreme E due to incidents in FP1 and FP2, respectively.

Catie Munnings, Genesys Andretti United Extreme E, said: "It's amazing, this is my first time in South America. The course is very different to what we’ve had before and I think it suits the rallycross guys but I’m really enjoying it.

"Hopefully there won't be too much contact as we all want to have good weekends without wrecking any of the cars. There are a lot of different lines where we can get past each other which is new this season and will help."

Cristina Gutiérrez, X44 Vida Carbon Racing, said: “It’s not easy to see the good lines here, so this practice has been to check those. This lap is much quicker for everyone so I think all the times will be very close.

"It's important to adapt as quickly as possible because you have only a couple of laps to figure things out, so for me the trickiest thing is changing my driving style to suit each track as quickly as possible."

Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinksy, Rosberg X Racing driver, said: "Of course it would be a dream come true to take maximum points this weekend but we can already tell that it's going to be so tight and so competitive on this track.

"We need to try to be as quick as possible but also mistakes here are going to cost a lot so we need to be careful."

Free Practice combined timings:

1. ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team: 9:10.167 (FP2)
2. Genesys Andretti United Extreme E: 9:15.905 (FP2)
3. X44 Vida Carbon Racing: 9:25.555 (FP2)
4. JBXE: 9:28.862 (FP2)
5. Rosberg X Racing: 9:33.104 (FP1)
6. Veloce Racing: 9:38.466 (FP2)
7. No.99 GMC HUMMER EV Chip Ganassi Racing 9:40:060 (FP2)
8. XITE ENERGY Racing: 9:40.259 (FP2)
9. NEOM McLaren Extreme E: 9:54.785 (FP1)
10. ABT CUPRA XE: 9:58.072 (FP1)

Extreme E’s South American racing debut promises to be a special one.  Find out where you can watch the action here.