Maximilian Gunther, driving for Maserati MSG Racing, finished third in the 2023 Rome E-Prix. It marks Maserati's first podium finish on home soil since 1957. Max and his teammate Edoardo Mortara had great form leading up to the race, and they quickly established themselves as serious contenders throughout practice. Together with Edo, he qualified for the final round of the classification session by finishing in the top four in their respective Group A and Group B. Late in the race, the German driver passed Jake Dennis for third and went on to the podium, giving him his fourth podium of the 2023 season. This is the first time a Maserati has finished in the top two in the Italian Grand Prix since Juan Manuel Fangio's second-place performance in the 1957 Formula One season.
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Formula E: Maserati‘s Emotional 2023 Season
After joining the FIA ABB Formula E World Championship in December 2013, Maserati is one of the founding teams alongside Mahindra Racing and others. Maserati's breakthrough in Formula E came at the 2023 Jakarta E-Prix when Guenther overtook Andretti's Dennis to bring the Italian team's first Formula E victory. With the latest finish in their home race, Maserati is having one of the best seasons in the Formula E series.
Maserati Team Principal James Rossiter said, "Today’s race was an emotional rollercoaster. Firstly, we’re incredibly thankful that Edo is ok after the incident in the race. The accident took place on one of the fastest parts of the circuit, and the fact that every driver involved emerged unscathed is a testament to the safety systems and procedures that Formula E and the FIA have in place. After some consistent and competitive running practice, we knew that we were in a good position for this weekend, and Max and the team did an excellent job to execute a brilliant strategy to take home our fourth podium of the season. The result is massive for the team, and huge for the Maserati brand."
Maserati's Maximilian Gunther, said "It’s an amazing feeling to put the Maserati brand on the podium in their first home race in Formula E. There’s a lot of emotion and happiness. It’s been a tough weekend so far, and we had a few issues which we can hopefully sort out for tomorrow. We qualified well, and we executed the race well and I’m very happy about the podium. Coming into the weekend, it was clear that it would be more difficult to overtake here, and that energy management was going to be crucial."
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Formula E: High-Speed Pileup During Rome E-Prix
During the opening race of Formula E's Rome doubleheader, a horrifying high-speed crash happened, bringing out the red flag and forcing the withdrawal of several cars. Jaguar driver Sam Bird, who was leading the race at the time, lost control of his vehicle and slammed into the wall at turn six on lap nine. Bird's situation was made worse by the fact that his damaged car was squarely in the path of cars entering a blind curve at high speeds.
The Rome rebuild wins your Moment of the Weekend vote!
An INCREDIBLE effort from the paddock to rebuild the cars ready to race again after the Round 13 incident @Hankook_Sport #RomeEPrix
— ABB FIA Formula E World Championship (@FIAFormulaE) July 21, 2023
According to Lucas di Grassi, a former Formula E world champion, this is one of the most dangerous corners on the whole track. After the first incident, Sebastien Buemi of Envision Racing collided with Bird's car, driving him into the wall. Meanwhile, Maserati MSG Racing's Edoardo Mortara crashed with Bird's vehicle, waving the red flag and delayed the race for 45 minutes.
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