Buemi secures pole position in qualifying Diriyah ePrix

Qualifying came to an early halt when Maximilian Günther drove hard into the wall in Group A and could not continue. Race control decided to wave a red flag and send the drivers inside so that the car could be taken off the track. After resumption, Edoardo Mortara also failed to keep his car out of the wall.

Although it did not result in a red flag, Mortara had to give up a spot in the top four as well. Jake Hughes, Oliver Rowland, Dan Ticktum and Lucas Di Grassi were a lot happier. The quartet managed to record the four fastest times on the board, securing themselves a spot in the quarter-finals.

Group B experienced a qualifying session that was more spotty, with the end in particular causing a lot of tension. Sam Bird, Buemi, Mitch Evans and Rene Rast managed to do the best business by qualifying for the next round. It caused Stoffel Vandoorne, among others, to prepare early for the race.

Battle for pole position

Rowland and Ticktum were the first drivers to battle it out. The latter driver provided a sizeable lead in the early stages, which Rowland failed to make up in the remainder of the lap. Ticktum thus qualified first for the semi-finals.

The duel between Hughes and Di Grassi was also hardly exciting. Hughes grabbed a lead of a few tenths early in the lap and he did not give it away again. Evans and Buemi battled it out in third. Buemi fought his way back after falling slightly behind, keeping Evans from a semi-final. Bird then beat Rast in the final quarter-final.

Hughes and Ticktum were the first two drivers to battle it out in the semi-finals. Ticktum was immediately well away in the first sector and then continued to build his lead. Nevertheless, Hughes made it to the final after a big mistake by Ticktum in the last corner. Then it was the turn of Buemi and Bird, which the Swiss took to the line.

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Buemi and Hughes were therefore allowed to battle each other in the final for the front starting position during the race. The Briton was first out and grabbed and small lead over his rival. However, the difference was minimal. In the final corners, Buemi then managed to make up the deficit and thus secure himself pole position.