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Rosberg X Racing takes second victory of Extreme E Season 2 in Island X-Prix II

Following the first round of the NEOM Island X-Prix on the island of Sardinia in Italy last week, the second round of the same event this weekend saw Rosberg X Racing (RXR) taking a with a late overtake to secure their second victory of Extreme E Season 2. X44 finished second and Genesys Andretti United Extreme E third after ABT CUPRA XE were disqualified following a safety infringement.

With team owner Nico Rosberg watching his team’s progress, a superb pass by Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky on ABT CUPRA XE’s Jutta Kleinschmidt sealed the win. Ahlin-Kottulinsky, and team-mate Johan Kristoffersson, who headed the standings prior to the double-header on the island off the coast of Italy, now have a lead of 37 points ahead of their nearest challengers No.99 GMC Hummer EV Chip Ganassi Racing, with X44 now up to third.

RXR also scored maximum points from Round 3, with the quickest combined time in the Continental Traction Challenge adding 5 points to their tally, bringing their total overall to 80 points.

“It is such a pleasure for me to work with this team. It reminds me of my F1 days. It’s been a great team effort with everyone giving their best and being at the height of their game. Both drivers have been performing at an incredibly high level. Johan was the star of Race 1 in NEOM. Mikaela was the star of this weekend with her speed and incredible pass for the win through the water during the last lap. I couldn’t be prouder, said former F1 world champion Rosberg.

“It was a phenomenal weekend for us, starting with a good qualifying and we were also very fast in the super sector. The car felt amazing all week and we have got to thank the team for that. They worked very hard, and it paid off. My run was smooth, but Nasser was incredibly fast, so I just tried to stay as close as possible to him to give Mikaela the best possible basis for her run, and she made good use of it with a fantastic move. It’s a team achievement that we can all be proud of,” added Kristoffersson.

The scene was set for a thrilling climax to the double-header as ABT CUPRA XE’s Al-Attiyah lined up in the favoured number 2 spot between Timmy Hansen (Genesys Andretti United Extreme E) and Sebastien Loeb (X44). On the other end of the start line, Kristofferson was joined by Carlos Sainz (ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team), following their dramatic collision in last round’s Final. In that incident, RXR received a 30-second penalty that pushed the team from first to third.

As the teams set off, Sainz (father of the Ferrari F1 driver) experimented by taking his electrically-powered ODYSSEY 21 down the furthest possible lane on the right, away from Kristofferson’s car. The Spaniard’s gamble did not pay off, and he came out at the back of the pack as the cars merged into the single lane.

Meanwhile, Al-Attiyah stayed on the preferred line which proved the better one as he surged to the front of the group. Kristofferson kept the ABT CUPRA car in sight, followed by Loeb. After the 3 leading cars was Hansen holding fourth as he chased them along the rough and muddy course.

The ABT CUPRA XE driver picked his lines well and opened by a gap of 5 seconds, which was the same gap that Kristofferson had with Loeb. Further back, Sainz’ car had a problem and the ACCIONA | SAINZ XE car dropped off the back of the pack and eventually come to a stop out on track.

It was still a 4-way battle as the leading cars entered the Switch Zone until disaster struck for ABT CUPRA XE. During the mandatory driver switch, Jutta Kleinschmidt failed to properly buckle her seatbelt as she entered the car. This would later lead to the team’s disqualification from the Final, after they finished second on the course. ABT CUPRA’S loss of the lead occurred when an incredible overtake was done by from RXR’s Ahlin-Kottulinsky in the closing stages of the race.

ABT CUPRA XE’s disqualification also promoted X44 into second and secured Genesys Andretti United Extreme E the third place, their first top three finish of the season. It was a huge boost for both teams after a difficult start to the Sardinian double-header.

No.99 GMC Hummer EV Chip Ganassi Racing scores first victory in Extreme E series in Italy (w/VIDEO)

Extreme E Season 2: RXR wins opening round of all-electric series in Saudi Arabia

Reigning Extreme E champions Rosberg X Racing (RXR) continued their winning ways with overall victory in the opening round of the all-electric off-road series in NEOM, Saudi Arabia. This is the second season of Extreme E and for this season, RXR (owned and managed by Nico Rosberg, the former F1 champion) retained the services of Johan Kristoffersson with a new team-mate. Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky.

The pair were the victors in a Final of two halves, as a red flag was brought out at the end of the first lap following a big accident for McLaren XE’s Tanner Foust who, in a bid for third place clipped the back of the RXR car driven by Ahlin-Kottulinsky and then rolled his ODYSSEY 21 on the opening lap.

The race resumed for a one-lap shootout, with the four teams released at intervals that matched how they had entered the Switch Zone. X44’s Cristina Gutierrez attempted to close down Laia Sanz in the ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team car, while Kristoffersson closed the gap on the two Spaniards from third.

The RXR driver soon passed Gutierrrez on the inside, setting his sights on Sanz. As the Desert X Prix entered its closing stages, Kristoffersson took a wide line into the second to last corner for an aggressive overtake on Sanz and secure a dramatic win ahead of ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team, with X44 completing the podium.

Chip Ganassi Racing came fourth having secured a spot in the Final with a win in Semi-Final 2, and McLaren XE finished fifth despite Foust’s crash having made an excellent comeback from Qualifying to win the Crazy Race.

“It feels really good, but every week feels good. Every time we go for a race, we have the aim to win, but the competition is so high this year, especially with McLaren coming in, which raises the bar even higher. We learned quite a lot last year, but now things are even tighter we’ll have to work even harder. I’m just very happy to start off the season with maximum points,” said Kristoffersson.

RXR’s win was not surprising as the team set the pace in the first qualifying session. It was a dramatic first session over the 6.9-km course which was disrupted by a red flag following a crash for Veloce Racing’s Christine GZ. The Spanish driver, partnering Lance Woolridge, had looked strong throughout their Qualifying run, but the huge crash denied them a shot at the top spot. GZ was able to exit the car but sustained an injury to her foot.

There was also drama in the first of the new 5-car Heats in Qualifying 2. Sebastian Loeb and ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team’s Carlos Sainz Snr. delivered the strongest starts with Nasser Al-Attiyah running third ahead of Sara Price, all taking very different racing lines up the hill.

As the front three pulled away, the ABT Cupra XE car passed Sainz on the inside, but Nasser Al-Attiyah’s pace caused him to miss the flag and, in recovering, he collided with the Spaniard. Sainz brought the damaged ODYSSEY 21 back to the Switch Zone before retiring from the Heat. After the Stewards reviewed the collision, ABT CUPRA XE were classified last of the 4 runners in Heat 1, with the team relegated to ninth overall.

Championship Standings after Round 1
1. Rosberg X Racing – 30 points
2. Acciona | Sainz XE Team – 18 points
3. X44 – 15 points
4. Chip Ganassi Racing – 12 points
5. McLaren XE – 10 points
6. Genesys Andretti United Extreme E – 8 points
7. XITE Energy Racing – 6 points
8. ABT Cupra XE – 4 points
9. JBXE – 2 points
10. Veloce Racing – 1 point

Following the opening round, the next one will be held in Sardinia, Italy, on May 7/8. The long gap between rounds is partly because the cars and equipment travel by a ship to reduce the carbon footprint of the event which is also being used to promote climate and environmental issues on the planet.

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Nico Rosberg’s RXR team overall winner in first season of Extreme E off-road series for electric SUVs

Nico Rosberg, Formula 1 World Champion in 2016, can add another title to his name – the first champion of the Extreme E series. His team (but he did not drive) – Rosberg X Racing (RXR) – claimed the title after finishing fourth in the season-ending Jurassic X Prix in the UK recently. Despite finishing level on 155 points with Jurassic X Prix winners X44, RXR’s Johan Kristoffersson and Molly Taylor took the championship due to having more X Prix victories, with 3 wins from 5 events.

Sebastien Loeb and Cristina Gutierrez finally took their first Extreme E win at their fifth attempt, as well as 5 extra points for being fastest through the Continental Traction Challenge at the wet and muddy course.

With 5 cars vying for position to get the best traction and grip off the line in the final, the start was crucial. It was the championship contenders who got the best getaway, with X44’s Gutierrez flying into the lead ahead of RXR’s Taylor, and then JBXE’s Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky, Andretti United Extreme E’s Catie Munnings and ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team’s Laia Sanz fighting for positions behind.

As Gutierrez began to pull away from the chasing pack, the tension began to grow in the RXR team as Taylor fell into the clutches of those behind, losing places to Ahlin-Kottulinsky and Munnings to slip back to fourth, just ahead of Sanz in fifth place. This was dangerous territory for RXR, who needed to finish fourth or higher to claim the title.

The battle for third place in the standings was similarly competitive – with just a point separating JBXE and Andretti United Extreme E ahead of the Jurassic X Prix. Their closely fought contest continued as Munnings closed in on Ahlin-Kottulinsky, but there was drama as they both attempted to enter the Driver Switch Zone, with contact between the pair sending Munnings into a spin.

Fortunately, she was able to get going again and retain third place, such was the pace advantage the leading trio had over RXR and ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team. The order was maintained after the driver switch, with Loeb preserving X44’s lead over JBXE’s Kevin Hansen in second and Andretti United Extreme E’s Timmy Hansen in third.

The stage was set for Kristoffersson and Carlos Sainz Snr. to fight it out for the title-deciding fourth place finish, but it was a battle which fizzled out after problems in the Driver Switch Zone meant ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team lost ground. This gave RXR breathing space in their bid to score the crucial points needed to seal the championship.

“We are really happy with the first Extreme E season. It has not been easy in the middle of a pandemic, but we have delivered five X Prix events, and the Finale in Dorset, UK produced some spectacular racing. Since our first event in Saudi Arabia, we have had a lot of eventful and incredible moments ending in a brilliant title decider today,” said Alejandro Agag, Founder and CEO of Extreme E. “We are now looking forward to what we hope will be a fantastic Season 2.”

*Although having same number of points as the X44 team, RXR is the overall winner due to having more X Prix victories, with 3 wins from 5 events.*

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Extreme E Island X Prix: Rosberg X Racing wins again to maintain championship lead

On the same weekend that Formula 1 was having its 17^th round of 2021 in Texas and the 2^nd round of Vios Challenge Season 4 was being run in Malaysia, the fourth round of the Extreme E series took place in Sardinia, an island adjacent to Italy. Unlike the cars in the other two events, those in Extreme E do not consume any petrol or diesel and emit virtually zero toxic emissions. They are fully electric SUVs and the series is all-new, with a focus on environmental issues as well.

The round in Sardinia – called the Enel X Island X Prix – was won by Rosberg X Racing (RXR), which made it 3 wins from 4 rounds. This puts the team, owned and managed by former F1 World Champion Nico Rosberg, in a commanding championship lead.

“It was pretty slippery out there, so it was a bit difficult to judge at first. From that point, it was just trying to manage the risk and I think that is what we did really well. Johan brought it home and again it was just an amazing effort by all of the team. We had a very challenging weekend from our side, but we never gave up and are very happy to be the winners here,” said RXR’s Molly Taylor, who was partnered with Johan Kristoffersson.

Consistent in changing conditions
The RXR drivers remained consistent in changing conditions to seal a dramatic victory ahead of ABT CUPRA XE, who secured their best result of the season in second. It was heartbreak, though, for long-time leaders in the Final – SEGI TV Chip Ganassi Racing – after Sara Price’s crash on Lap 2 caused terminal damage and meant she had to stop on track, ensuring the team could only finish as high as fourth on their Finals debut.

That moved JBXE into their third podium finish in succession with third place despite also suffering damage out on the course. Bad luck once again befell X44, the fastest qualifiers, in the final as Sebastien Loeb was forced to stop out on track and retire with broken steering. Loeb was running in second behind SEGI TV’s Kyle LeDuc despite driving with a slow puncture at the time of the stoppage, which meant the team now fall even further behind winners and championship leaders RXR in the standings.

Wet Final, new challenges
A heavy downpour prior to lights out made for the first ‘wet’ Final of the Extreme E season, providing the 5 finalists with a new challenge to overcome in their bid for victory. X44 was able to take their place in the Final despite suffering heavy damage in the opening Semi-Final of the day. In a sign of the unique camaraderie demonstrated across the Extreme E paddock, X44’s efforts to rebuild their damaged car were boosted by the support of mechanics and engineering teams from the Andretti United Extreme E team. The joint efforts ensure that their ODYSSEY 21 e-SUV WAS ready in time for the Enel X Island X Prix showpiece.

In treacherous conditions, 4 of the 5 teams were able to get off the start line cleanly, although ABT CUPRA XE were left with plenty of work to do after Jutta Kleinschmidt stalled on the grid. It looked like X44 had staged a remarkable comeback to lead into the first corner, but were beaten spectacularly by LeDuc who managed to get in front after using the alternate route.

A spin for Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky put JBXE at the back of the field, while the slow-starting Kleinschmidt quickly made up ground on RXR’s Taylor to battle for third. This soon became a 3-way tussle for second as Loeb began to lose pace as he struggled with a slow puncture, allowing LeDuc to build an impressive lead out in front.

After Loeb was forced to retire with broken steering, Taylor and Kleinschmidt remained nose-to-tail in their battle for second as they headed towards the Driver Switch zone. As LeDuc exited his car in the zone following a superb opening lap, it appeared the so-far luckless team was about to complete a heroic turnaround and bring home their first Extreme E win. However, they were cruelly denied as Price suffered terminal damage to her car after making contact with a rock out on the course, which ruled them out of contention for victory and meant they could only finish as high as fourth.

This left RXR’s Kristoffersson in the lead and chased by Mattias Ekstrom, who continued on at great speed despite driving without his left-hand door throughout the lap! The ABT CUPRA XE driver was no match for Kristoffersson, though, who kept up the pressure to extend his lead and take RXR’s third win of the campaign and put his team as the firm favourites for championship glory at the final of the season in the in December.

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Extreme E/Round 3: Can Nico Rosberg’s team make it three in a row?

Next week will see Extreme E’s third X Prix of Season 1 which is the Arctic X Prix in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland on August 28. It will be the first ever international motorsport event to be staged in the country. The all-electric SUVs have been transported by the specially configured St Helena cargo ship as sea travel is less carbon intensive than air freight. The ship also acts as a research hub informing the world about the impacts of the climate crisis on our oceans (it even has a scientific laboratory onboard) as it goes from location to location.

The Ocean X Prix in Senegal, in May saw Rosberg X Racing (RXR) claim back-to-back victories to extend their championship lead, as they head the overall standings with 71 points. Although X44 topped the timesheets in qualifying once more, first-lap contact during the Final between Cristina Gutierrez and RXR’s Molly Taylor meant X44’s all-electric ODYSSEY 21 was forced to retire, seeing them finish in fourth place. Button’s JBXE team leapt up the standings to third following a strong showing in Senegal, after claiming third place despite Mikaela Ahlin-Kottulinsky picking up rear-wheel damage before the first corner of the concluding race of the weekend.

Expecting an unpredictable race
After the opening two races in Saudi Arabia and Senegal, mastering the conditions on what was once the mighty Russell Glacier, but which has now sadly receded and is rock salt, sediment-based terrain will provide a very different challenge for the drivers. “This feels like the most unpredictable race yet,” said Taylor. “The terrain is going to be really difficult for all the teams and it will be interesting to see how the first shakedown goes for everyone. This is undoubtedly the best thing about this series – every race location offers up a new set of challenges and I think Greenland is the most exciting yet.”

*Nico Rosberg, founder and CEO of Rosberg X Racing with his two drivers after winning the second round in Senegal.*

Asked whether RXR can make it a hat-trick of wins in Greenland, Founder Nico Rosberg said: “We could not have asked for a better start to the series with two wins from the first two races under our belt. But it would be foolish to come into this race predicting the same outcome for the team. We are working immensely hard to achieve another strong result in Greenland and I can’t wait to see how it unfolds across the weekend”.

X44 driver pairing Cristina Gutierrez and Sebastien Loeb showed their pace once again in Senegal, topping the qualifying standings before bad luck struck in the Final. Lewis Hamilton’s X44 team will be keen to convert their qualifying pace into a good result on raceday in Greenland as they are just 14 points behind RXR at the top of the table.

HISPANO SUIZA XITE ENERGY TEAM FOR 2021 EXTREME E — *Each team has a crew consisting of one male and one female, and both have to take turns driving. This is the Hispano Suiza XITE ENERGY team with Oliver Bennett and Christine Giampaoli Zonca.*

“I’m looking forward to getting behind the wheel again for X44” says Loeb. “One of the most exciting things about Extreme E for me is that each race is a new kind of challenge, and it’s going to be interesting finding out what it’s like to compete on this terrain. I was really proud of our performances in Senegal and in Saudi, but we had some bad luck in the Finals. I’m confident this time we can learn from what happened and make sure we get another podium finish.”

Injured Gutierrez will be ready for race
Teammate Cristina Gutierrez recently claimed victory at the Rally Kazakhstan but suffered injury fracturing two vertebrae, which has meant spending time recovering but she will be fit for Greenland. “I’m really excited to get back racing again in Greenland and to learn more about the work Extreme E is doing on the ground to address the climate crisis” she said. “Our team has learned a lot from the past two races and, despite the Final in Senegal not being what we hoped for, we will take the positives to ensure we come back fighting again for a win. For me, every race is another opportunity to learn and improve and I’m confident we can do even better this time.”

The team has been working hard behind the scenes to analyse the data from the Ocean X Prix, particularly on their starts to ensure they are not beaten off the line going into the all-important first corner.

The Swedish duo of JBXE
Third in the standings are JBXE which, after a strong showing in Senegal, leapt up the order following sixth place at the opening Desert X Prix in Saudi Arabia. World Rallycross Championship racer Kevin Hansen deputised for Button to partner Ahlin-Kottulinsky for the Ocean X Prix and the pair did not disappoint, finishing qualifying fourth fastest before winning Semi-Final 2 in commanding fashion to reach the Final. Contact at the start meant an early retirement, but JBXE were still able to claim a podium spot with third.

The two Swedes have been busy preparing for the Arctic X Prix. “Kevin and I worked hard to prepare ourselves the best we could ahead of Senegal, and same thing goes for Greenland” said Ahlin-Kottulinsky. “We’re trying to understand and find out as much info about the surfaces as we can ahead of the event, and also going through each part of the event to try to optimise every single thing. There is so little practice time ahead, so preparations are key to success.”

“We of course want to pick up where we left off,” added Hansen. “We had a really great first outing with JBXE and Mikaela in Senegal and particularly with me joining the team quite late, but I think we did a great job and we managed to get the car in the right direction.

“I think for Greenland it’s a completely new surface; it’s a completely new environmental issue that we will raise awareness of, and for sure the course will show that too. It’s a new challenge for everybody, but it’s nice to have one race under our belts and I’m super excited to go to Greenland and race in front of the of the glacier with a team that I now know. We are hungry to fight for the win so super excited to see how far we go,” he said.