Mortara explains how he kept his cool in “very strategic” Diriyah E-Prix
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Venturi Formula E driver Edoardo Mortara says keeping his “head cool” was crucial to beating his rivals to the win in the second Diriyah E-Prix.
Starting from second on the grid, Mortara lost out to his teammate Lucas di Grassi through the attack zone phases.
Di Grassi managed to overtake race leader Nyck de Vries, with Mortara getting past shortly after.
The Swiss got back ahead of his teammate into Turn 1 and wasn’t threatened again as the race finished under the Safety Car due to Alexander Sims’ stricken car.
“What a mega race and what a mega result for the team,” he said. “I'll take that. I'm very glad to bring that win to the team and a one-three - it's amazing.
“It was a very strategic race and very difficult for the nerves because I didn't have a lot of energy, as did the other people around me, so they were playing a strategic game - trying to attack me and trying to make me consume [energy]. I just tried to keep my head cool and it worked.
“I was basically fighting with everyone. I was trying to manage the gap to make it big enough because, on the back straight, Lucas and Robin were quicker than me. It was for sure an eventful race but in the end, I'm glad we managed to win this one.”
His third career victory has propelled him into the lead of the drivers’ championship after two rounds.
Mortara isn’t getting too carried away by his strong start to the 2022 season.
“It's great to be leading the championship but it's only the second race out of 16 rounds, so it's pretty early in the season. But I'm very happy that Lucas and I are scoring good points for the team - it's very important to have a good start to the season, especially with the new rules in this championship.
“But let's see now how we get on in Mexico City.”