- Carlos Sainz and Laia Sanz score 10 championship points in Senegal. They now stand in sixth place
- The chances of the team were compromised on Saturday by a technical issue in Qualifying
Dakar, Senegal
ACCIONA | SAINZ XE Team closed the Ocean X Prix with a second-place at the Shoot Out race. With this result, the team finishes eighth in the second round of the calendar and now stands sixths in the general standings of the Extreme E championship.
Carlos Sainz and Laia Sanz qualified for the Shoot Out race following a technical issue in Qualifying 1, where they experienced a loss of water pressure following a leak on the radiator of the electric engine of the Odyssey 21.
Even though the speed they showed in Qualifying 2 was enough to reach the Semi-Finals, their chances were already compromised given that the Qualifying results take into account the aggregate lap-time of both sessions.
On Sunday, Carlos Sainz took the lead in the Shoot Out following a brilliant start. He also set the fastest lap of the race. Laia Sanz got behind the wheel for the second half of the race and crossed the finish line in second place.
The Arctic X Prix is the next event on the Extreme E calendar. It will take place on the 28th and the 29th of August in Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. The championship will focus on the retreat that glaciers are experiencing and the melting of the Arctic Sea as a result of global warming.
Quotes
Carlos Sainz, driver:
"Obviously it wasn’t the weekend that we were looking for. The positive thing is that our overall pace was better than in Saudi Arabia. It is a shame that we didn’t translate that into a good result, but given that I would rather see the glass half full instead of half empty that’s what I take with me. Our rhythm was closer to the cars in front, but it is a shame that we couldn’t show it".
Laia Sanz, driver:
"It is a shame that this weekend ended like this because this track suited us and both Carlos and myself were feeling really comfortable in Free Practice. Unfortunately, we had a technical issue in Qualifying 1 and we lost all our chances for the weekend. Today we tried to recover and to gather valuable information for the next X Prix, which will be in Greenland. We have to keep in mind the positive things of this weekend: we are getting to know the car much better and I am also gaining more experience. Hopefully, in the next event the results will be more on our side".
Albert Fàbrega, team principal:
"Of course, we can’t say that we are happy with the overall result of this weekend. The good thing is that in today’s race Carlos and Laia showed that we are as fast as the leading cars of the championship and that we have the speed we need to fight for better results than the one we achieved in Lac Rose. The championship is like this and the issue we had on Saturday compromised all our preparation work and the good performance that Carlos and Laia had shown. We leave Dakar convinced that we have the speed and the drivers necessary to fight further up the grid for better results in the next events, so this will be our goal in the three X Prixes that remain in the championship".
