Buemi claims pole for Formula E’s 150th race

In Mexico: Swiss experience prevails over Taylor Barnard’s youth in a surprise-filled session in Mexico City

Sebastián Buemi secured pole position for round two of the Formula E Season 12, held in Mexico City. Qualifying was heavily influenced by the low temperatures in the Mexican capital, which forced teams to begin the session with three warm-up laps — a strategy adopted to bring the tyres into their ideal operating window.

Group stage

In the group stage, Group A saw Jake Dennis, Dan Ticktum, Nico Müller (Porsche), Taylor Barnard and Edoardo Mortara (Mahindra) progress to the duels. In Group B, the decisive moment came in the final seconds, when Dan Ticktum pushed to the limit, brushed the wall, but still managed to set a lap time good enough to advance. Sebastián Buemi, Mitch Evans and Oliver Rowland completed the list of drivers moving on.

The biggest surprise of the opening phase was the elimination of Pascal Wehrlein, the most successful pole-sitter at the Mexican circuit and one of the standouts from the weekend’s free practice sessions. Another curious detail was the lack of improvement on the drivers’ second flying laps during the group phase, a direct reflection of the challenging track conditions.

Quarter-finals

In the quarter-finals, Taylor Barnard went up against Nico Müller and, despite making a mistake during the lap, managed to recover and progress. In the second duel, Edoardo Mortara confirmed the strong form shown during pre-season testing in Valencia and beat Jake Dennis. Mitch Evans got the better of Dan Ticktum in a closely fought contest, while Buemi eliminated Oliver Rowland thanks to an advantage built mainly through sectors two and three.

The semi-finals saw Mortara face Barnard. After a balanced first sector, the Mahindra driver lost rear traction in the final corner, allowing Barnard to advance to the final. In the other semi-final, Buemi was once again flawless in sector three and defeated Mitch Evans, securing his place in the final.

Pole shootout: experience versus youth

Taylor Barnard initially set the fastest time, but struggled with slides in the final sector, exceeded track limits and had his lap deleted.

As a result, Buemi claimed pole position for Formula E’s historic 150th race — his first since Berlin in 2023 — and will start from the front row in Saturday’s race (10).