Edoardo Mortara delivered one of the most committed laps of the season to claim pole position in Jeddah, placing Mahindra back at the front of the grid and ending a long run of poles shared by Porsche and Jaguar powertrains. In the decisive Duel, Mortara pushed to the absolute limit, running inches from the wall on his final lap to beat the DS Penske of Maximilian Günther and secure his fourth pole position in Formula E.
Beyond the prestige, the result carries tangible value. Pole position is worth three championship points, a small number on paper but significant in a series as competitive and tightly packed as Formula E, where margins are often measured in thousandths and every point matters.
For Round 4, the importance of starting first is even greater. With the mandatory PIT BOOST in play, drivers will be able to push harder for longer, reducing the need for aggressive energy saving in the opening phase of the race. Track position, especially from pole, becomes a genuine strategic advantage.
How the group phase unfolded
Qualifying took place in the late afternoon on Friday, marking the second on track session of the day after a demanding FP2 held under extreme heat. At the start of the group phase, track temperature was still around 51 degrees, very similar to the conditions that had challenged drivers earlier in the day.
Group A sets the tone
One of the biggest stories of Group A was the early exit of championship leader Nick Cassidy. Forced to abort his lap, Cassidy ended the session outside the top four and failed to progress to the Duels, a costly setback in a tightly fought title fight.
At the front, Edoardo Mortara was the reference. The Mahindra driver topped the group with a 1m17.378s lap and was quickest across all three sectors, underlining both confidence and balance in challenging conditions. He was joined in the Duels by Norman Nato, Nico Müller and Jean-Eric Vergne.
Müller initially finished second but had a lap time deleted, dropping him to third. Behind the leading quartet, Cassidy’s elimination stood out, with Jake Dennis and Nyck de Vries classified in fifth and sixth.
Speaking to Brazilian journalist Letícia Datena after the session, Dennis revealed that his Andretti lacked grip. That comment quickly gained importance, as his teammate Felipe Drugovich was about to head out in Group B.
Group B confirms balance and surprises
Group B was led by Pascal Wehrlein, followed closely by Antonio Felix da Costa. The two DS Penske drivers, Günther and Taylor Barnard, completed the top four and advanced to the Duels.
Despite topping the timesheets in FP2, Dan Ticktum failed to reach the top four and was eliminated, along with reigning World Champion Oliver Rowland. Rowland endured a difficult day after feeling unwell earlier in the week and then crashing his Nissan in FP2, damaging the suspension.
As hinted by Dennis earlier, Andretti continued to struggle and Drugovich also missed out on a place in the Duels. With the group phase complete, attention shifted fully to the knockout battles.
Duels take centre stage
The opening quarter final saw an all French clash between Vergne and Nato. Neither driver had won a Duel this season, but it was Nato who progressed, claiming his first head to head victory of the year.
Another national battle followed, this time between Swiss drivers Müller and Mortara. Müller arrived as the most recent pole sitter after Miami, but in Jeddah it was Mortara who advanced comfortably, reinforcing his status as a pole contender.
Günther then made his first Duel appearance of the season, having started inside the top ten in both Mexico and Miami. The former Jeddah pole sitter progressed to the semi finals after beating Da Costa, a driver with strong historical ties to success in Saudi Arabia.
The final quarter final paired Barnard against Wehrlein. Despite Barnard boasting the highest career Duel win percentage among drivers with multiple appearances, it was Wehrlein who delivered the cleaner lap and moved on.
Semi finals shaped by a cooling track
By the time the semi finals began, the sun was dropping and track temperature had fallen to around 41 degrees. Strategists were forced to react quickly, as the cooler surface altered tyre pressures and grip perception compared to the start of qualifying.
The first semi final featured Nato against Mortara. Nato reached his second semi final since the start of last season but could not match Mortara’s pace. Although missing out on pole, Nato will still start ahead of his World Champion teammate Rowland for the third time in four races this season.
The second semi final echoed last year’s Duel Final in Jeddah, when Günther beat Wehrlein on the way to pole and victory. Once again, the DS Penske driver came out on top. Wehrlein struggled to piece together a tidy lap, while Günther secured a front row start by progressing to the final.
The Julius Baer Pole Position showdown
The final Duel brought an end to a nine race run of poles for Porsche and Jaguar powertrains. Mortara and Günther went head to head, with Mahindra chasing its first pole since Berlin 2024 and Günther aiming to score his first points since the opening round in São Paulo.
Both drivers pushed to the limit, but it was Mortara who delivered the decisive lap. Despite light contact with the wall, the Italian Swiss driver kept the car together and stopped the clocks quickest, securing the all important P1 and the Julius Baer Pole Position.
Mortara will now lead the field away at 20:00 local time for the first PIT BOOST race of Season 12, a scenario that makes his pole even more valuable.
Looking ahead to the race
There is a mandatory three hour interval between qualifying and the race, with the starting grid already set following the conclusion of the Duels. Track temperature has remained close to 50 degrees, keeping conditions broadly aligned with those seen in FP2. That continuity allows teams to revisit and fine tune set ups explored earlier in the day ahead of the race start.
In Jeddah, pole position goes beyond a headline. It represents a strategic platform, and Edoardo Mortara has placed Mahindra exactly where it wants to be for a race in which commitment, track position and execution are likely to define the outcome.
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