Talent

Pole position and strong points for Hughes in Diriyah

Date:
November 13, 2023
  • The second race weekend of the 2023 season took place at the 2.495km Diriyah Circuit, Saudi Arabia
  • A double-header weekend saw race action across both Friday and Saturday in Diriyah
  • Displaying fantastic pace again in qualifying, Jake secured his first-ever front-row start in the ABB FIA Formula E as he qualified in second place
  • Scoring more championship points, Jake collected a P8 finish in the first race of the weekend
  • In Saturday's qualifying, Jake stunned everyone as he secured his maiden pole position in Formula E in only his third qualifying session
  • In race two in Diriyah, Jake brought his #5 NEOM McLaren machine home in P5 to collect strong points on his trip to Diriyah
  • Jake departs Saudi Arabia 5th in the Drivers' Championship with 27 points, and the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team holding 3rd place in the Teams' Championship with 53 points
  • ABB FIA Formula E returns in two weeks' time for the Hyderabad E-Prix, India (10 - 11 February)

JAKE'S RACE REVIEW:

“Friday was a bit of a difficult race, but overall, we can draw a positive from Friday We clearly have a good one-lap car in Qualifying. In the race, there’s quite a lot to improve, but I don’t think we’re very far away. In terms of strategy, the race was challenging and we were stuck in a corner in terms of what we could do, especially with the Attack Mode activations. However, we scored points again this weekend. Both cars were in the points this time around, which is a big positive.”

“Saturday was a really good day, securing pole position in my third race with the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team! On Friday, I didn’t think we quite had what it took in the Qualifying Duels and we managed to get P2, and then pole on Saturday. Super happy. Going into the race, we had the expectation that we wouldn’t be racing the Porsche cars, and our goal was, on a good day, to be fighting the Jaguars. In the end, both NEOM McLaren cars finished in front of a Jaguar car. I can’t wait to head to Hyderabad in a few weeks!”

- Jake Hughes