MIM driver scores one win, one pole position and one fastest lap in 2022 despite reliability issues

Monaco Increase driver Pascal Wehrlein had hoped to wrap up his fourth season in the ABB FIA Formula E series, but his excellent comeback from P15 on the grid into the top 10 contenders in Seoul was frustrated by a collision with Nick De Vries which resulted in a bent steering arm on his #94 TAG Heuer Porsche. Nevertheless, a top 10 finish was still at hand as his total season tally of 71 points was not to be beaten by the drivers behind him in the points standings, as Nick Cassidy finished eigth with 5 points and Porsche team-mate Andre Lotterer was also sidelined by an accident at the start and failed to score points.
Thus Wehrlein improved one position over his previous season at Porsche, and 2022 also marked his maiden win in Mexico, which was also the first one for the Team since it returned to single-seater racing. Wehrlein’s dominant weekend in Mexico city was also topped up by a pole position start, while the Monaco Increase managed 27-years-old also managed a fastest lap in Berlin’s first race last May. Overall, the pace Wehrlein was able to produce on track is hardly reflected by the overall standings. In more than one occasion, notably in Monaco, lack of reliability played a decisive role in depriving him of a well-deserved result. It was noted that his car was often prone to battery and software issues which prevented him from achieving better positions, especially in qualifying and on race starts.
Seoul’s Race 16, the championship finale, was a good example of all that: Wehrlein did not have a real chance at a second qualifying run in his Group B on Sunday, thus having to start from fifteenth on the grid. He kept his position at the start and was the first driver to make use of the Attack Mode early in the race, quickly gaining positions over Sette Camara, Cassidy, De Vries and Günther before De Vries tangled with his car while trying to recover his position under attack power. With the front right corner of his Porsche damaged beyon repair, Wehrlein had to park along the 2.6 Km track after Turn 4.
Overall, the Sigmaringen-born driver performed better than his team-mate at Posche, giving the Team its only win so far, but clearly Wehrlein hoped for more and is determined to take any chance in the future as Formula E prepares to switch to more powerful, wedge-shaped Generation 3 cars for Season Nine.