2023 Hyderabad ePrix

The 2023 Hyderabad ePrix, known for sponsorships reasons as the 2023 Greenko Hyderabad ePrix,^[2] was a Formula E event held at the Hyderabad Street Circuit in the city of Hyderabad, Telangana, India on 11 February 2023 as the fourth round of the 2022–23 Formula E World Championship.^[3] This was the inaugural running of a Formula E event at the track, as well as the first time an ePrix was held in India. It was also the first motorsport event hosted by the country as part of an FIA-sanctioned World Championship since the 2013 Indian Grand Prix almost a decade prior.

2023 Hyderabad ePrix
Race 4 of 16 of the 2022–23 Formula E season ← Previous race Next race →
Race details
Date	11 February 2023 (2023-02-11)
Official name	2023 Greenko Hyderabad ePrix
Location	Hyderabad Street Circuit, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Course	Street Circuit
Course length	2.835 km (1.762 mi)
Distance	33[a] laps, 93.555 km (58.132 mi)
Scheduled distance	32 laps, 90.720 km (56.371 mi)
Attendance	31,000[1]
Pole position
Driver	Mitch Evans	Jaguar
Time	1:13.228
Fastest lap
Driver	Norman Nato	Nissan
Time	1:14.698 on lap 28
Podium
First	Jean-Éric Vergne	DS
Second	Nick Cassidy	Envision-Jaguar
Third	António Félix da Costa	Porsche
Lap leaders

Background

History

Hyderabad was one of a number of Indian cities bidding to host a round of the FIA Formula E Championship, although it was only seriously considered after the COVID-19 pandemic had halted the discussions between the FIA and proposed hosts in Delhi and Mumbai. ^[4] On 17 January 2022 the Government of Telangana signed a "letter of intent" with Formula E to stage the Hyderabad E-Prix, with a planned debut as a round of the 2022–23 season, towards the start of the season.^[4] The Hyderabad E-Prix was subsequently listed on the first provisional calendar for 2022–23 Formula E World Championship as the fourth round of the season, on 11 February 2023. The Hyderabad E-Prix was staged on the Hyderabad Street Circuit, which was set up on the banks of the artificial Hussain Sagar Lake, which was set to host its first event, a round of the Indian Racing League, in 2022.

Circuit

Main article: Hyderabad Street Circuit

Hussain Sagar Map

The initial design of the track, which was designed with help from PPE Racing, a Filipino constructor and race track designer, was heavily criticised by drivers, with Norman Nato describing it as "looking like a dildo" after he drove on the track in a simulator.^{[citation needed]} The track was later redesigned by Driven International, who also designed the 2021 layout of the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi and the reception was positive.^[5]

Championship standings

Pascal Wehrlein entered the fourth round of the season as the points leader in the Drivers' Championship after winning both races at Diriyah, with Jake Dennis second by 6 points. In the first three previous races this season, only Wehrlein and Dennis finished in the first two positions. Avalanche Andretti led the Teams' Championship, 2 points ahead of TAG Heuer Porsche.^[6]

Impact

The government of Telangana introduced three double-decker electric buses in preparation for the race. This marks the return of double decker buses to Hyderabad for the first time since 2003.^[7]

A study by Nielsen Sports Analysis found that the event contributed $83.7 million to Hyderabad's economy.^[8]

Free practice

In Free Practice 1, held on 10 February at 4:30 PM, Pascal Wehrlein crashed hard into the barriers with an apparent vehicle malfunction causing Porsche to pit all of the cars on both Porsche teams – TAG Heuer Porsche and Avalanche Andretti.^[9]

Classification

(All times are in IST)

Qualifying

Qualifying took place at 10:40 AM on 11 February.^[10]

Group draw
Group A	WEH	BUE	HUG	DIG	EVA	DAC	FEN	VAN	GUE	ROW	SET
Group B	DEN	BIR	RAS	LOT	CAS	JEV	MOR	TIC	NAT	MUE	VDL

Qualifying duels

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

A3

Sébastien Buemi

A2

Sacha Fenestraz

Sébastien Buemi

Mitch Evans

A4

Maximilian Günther

A1

Mitch Evans

Mitch Evans

Jean-Éric Vergne

B3

Sam Bird

B2

Jean-Éric Vergne

Jean-Éric Vergne

*

B4

Edoardo Mortara*

B1

René Rast*

* Sam Bird, Edoardo Mortara and René Rast all had their quarter-finals times deleted for exceeding track limits. Mortara and Rast had been seeded into the same duel, so neither driver advanced to the semi-finals. For this reason, Jean-Éric Vergne was not matched against any driver in the semi-finals and automatically advanced to the finals.

Overall classification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	A	B	QF	SF	F	Grid
1	9	Mitch Evans	Jaguar	1:14.194	—	1:13:526	1:13.250	1:13.228	1
2	25	Jean-Éric Vergne	DS	—	1:14:095	1:13.503	1:13.472	1:13.249	2
3	16	Sébastien Buemi	Envision-Jaguar	1:14:503	—	1:13:599	1:13:533	—	3
4	23	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan	1:14:204	—	No time[b]	—	—	4
5	7	Maximilian Günther	Maserati	1:14:518	—	No time[c]	—	—	5
6	10	Sam Bird	Jaguar	—	1:14:187	No time[d]	—	—	6
7	48	Edoardo Mortara	Maserati	—	1:14:233	No time[e]	—	—	7
8	58	René Rast	McLaren-Nissan	—	1:14:091	No time[f]	—	—	8
9	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Porsche	1:14.663	—	—	—	—	12[g]
10	37	Nick Cassidy	Envision-Jaguar	—	1:14:234	—	—	—	9
11	8	Oliver Rowland	Mahindra	1:14:721	—	—	—	—	10
12	27	Jake Dennis	Andretti-Porsche	—	1:14.377	—	—	—	11
13	13	António Félix da Costa	Porsche	1:14:732	—	—	—	—	13
14	17	Norman Nato	Nissan	—	1:14.420	—	—	—	14
15	3	Sérgio Sette Câmara	NIO	1:14:756	—	—	—	—	15
16	33	Dan Ticktum	NIO	—	1:14.539	—	—	—	16
17	1	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS	1:14.823	—	—	—	—	17
18	51	Nico Müller	ABT-Mahindra	—	1:14:549	—	—	—	18
19	11	Lucas di Grassi	Mahindra	1:14:917	—	—	—	—	19
20	36	André Lotterer	Andretti-Porsche	—	1:14:818	—	—	—	20
21	5	Jake Hughes	McLaren-Nissan	1:15:118	—	—	—	—	21
22	4	Kelvin van der Linde	ABT-Mahindra	—	1:15:173	—	—	—	22
Source:[11]

Race

The race took place on February 11 at 3:03 PM.^[10]

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	25	Jean-Éric Vergne	DS	33	46:01:099	2	25
2	37	Nick Cassidy	Envision-Jaguar	33	+0.400	9	18
3	13	António Félix da Costa	Porsche	33	+1.859	13	15
4	94	Pascal Wehrlein	Porsche	33	+2.855	12	12
5	3	Sérgio Sette Câmara	NIO	33	+3.523	15	10
6	8	Oliver Rowland	Mahindra	33	+7.138[h]	10	8
7	17	Norman Nato	Nissan	33	+7.318	14	6+1
8	1	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS	33	+7.564[i]	17	4
9	36	André Lotterer	Andretti-Porsche	33	+8.703	20	2
10	48	Edoardo Mortara	Maserati	33	+9.073	7	1
11	51	Nico Müller	ABT-Mahindra	33	+10.622	18
12	23	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan	33	+11.635	4
13	7	Maximilian Günther	Maserati	33	+15.446[j]	5
14	11	Lucas di Grassi	Mahindra	33	+15.999[k]	19
15	16	Sébastien Buemi	Envision-Jaguar	33	+17.735[l]	3
16	27	Jake Dennis	Andretti-Porsche	33	+1:10.562[m]	11
Ret	58	René Rast	McLaren-Nissan	25	Collision damage	8
Ret	5	Jake Hughes	McLaren-Nissan	22	Accident	21
Ret	10	Sam Bird	Jaguar	18	Collision damage	6
Ret	33	Dan Ticktum	NIO	15	Suspension	16
Ret	9	Mitch Evans	Jaguar	12	Collision damage	1
Ret	4	Kelvin van der Linde	ABT-Mahindra	9	Suspension	22
Source:[12]

Notes:

• ^1  – Pole position.
• ^2  – Fastest lap.

Standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Pascal Wehrlein 80 2 Jake Dennis 62 8 3 Jean-Éric Vergne 31 1 4 Sébastien Buemi 31 5 5 Nick Cassidy 28

Teams' Championship standings Pos Constructor Points 1 1 Porsche 101 1 2 Andretti-Porsche 78 1 3 Envision-Jaguar 59 1 4 McLaren-Nissan 53 5 Jaguar 42

• Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

Notes

1. 32 planned laps and 1 extra lap
2. Fenestraz's time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
3. Günther's time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
4. Bird's time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
5. Mortara's time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
6. Rast's time was deleted for exceeding track limits.
7. Wehrlein received a 3-place grid penalty for impeding Sette Câmara.
8. Rowland received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
9. Dennis received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
10. Günther received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
11. di Grassi received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.
12. Buemi received a drive-through penalty, later converted into a 17-second penalty, for overpower.
13. Dennis received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.