ALULA — Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (SAMF), crowned the Rosberg X Racing team as champions of AlUla Extreme E race on Sunday. Rosberg X Racing makes history as first Extreme E winner following dramatic desert dust-up. Rosberg X Racing duo Johan Kristoffersson and Molly Taylor were the pace-setters from the outset in Extreme E’s inaugural race weekend in AlUla, but the pair still had to dig deep in the desert to battle their way to victory and carve themselves out a piece of motorsport history. The two-day race, organized by the Ministry of Sports in cooperation with SAMF, witnessed intense competition among 18 drivers representing 9 multinational teams specializing in electric SUVs races, where four qualifying races were held among the participating teams, followed by the semifinal rounds of six qualifiers There has been feverish anticipation in the build-up to this weekend’s Desert X Prix, and the event delivered in every aspect. Following Saturday’s qualifying time trials, Sunday, the drivers went wheel-to-wheel for the first time, generating some of the most spectacular images ever seen in the sport and drawing widespread acclaim from competitors and fans alike. Alejandro Agag, founder and CEO of Extreme E, said: “We’ve worked so hard on this for many years, and finally everything has come together this weekend. It really has been beyond my wildest expectations. If I had written a script for the perfect weekend, I could not have come up with anything better than what we have witnessed these past two days — I’ve never seen such extreme racing in my life. “This first race weekend will have a huge influence on how Extreme E evolves, and one of the reasons I feel so proud is that we have built this platform where female drivers can shine like they deserve. What we have seen from them here is extraordinary — some incredible talent and courage — and overall, I think it’s fair to say we have really made our mark. I’m over the moon.” Ultimately, nothing could stop Kristoffersson and Taylor from storming to the top step of the podium — not a 60-second penalty for exceeding the 30km/h limit in the driver switch zone yesterday, nor less favorable grid slots in both the semifinal and final Sunday. It was a virtuoso display of speed, skill and superhuman car control in the most challenging of conditions. Nico Rosberg, Rosberg X Racing founder and CEO, said: “This is insane. I’m so thankful to the whole team for the effort put in this weekend, which has been intense and really on-the-edge. Everything has come together so well and everybody has worked together so well. “We have a fantastic team of engineers and mechanics, who prepared perfectly for this first weekend with so many unknowns, and Molly and Johan produced some phenomenal driving. Neither of them put a foot wrong in really tough conditions, and they both showed unbelievable speed out there — their performance was really inspiring and I felt really proud watching them. “To come back to claim victory after a 60-second penalty caused by a technical problem is just awesome, and they are definitely deserving winners. For the championship as a whole, it’s really been a good start.” With just one spot up for grabs in the final, the stakes were high for the three Crazy Race competitors — Andretti United’s Timmy Hansen / Catie Munnings, Hispano Suiza XITE Energy Team pairing Oliver Bennett / Christine Giampaoli Zonca and JBXE duo Jenson Button / Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky. A demon start by 2019 FIA World Rallycross Champion Hansen saw the Swede already clear of his adversaries before the trio arrived at the first gate, with Bennett narrowly sneaking in front of former Formula 1 World Champion Button to snatch second. Hansen opened up a 30-second margin before Munnings took over, after which, the 2016 European Rally Championship Ladies’ Trophy winner artfully managed the gap to safely bring the Andretti United car home. Giampaoli Zonca did a good job to peg her British rival throughout, with Åhlin-Kottulinsky similarly showing a strong turn-of-speed on her way to the finish line in third. As top qualifiers Saturday, the X44 crew of Sébastien Loeb and Cristina Gutiérrez opted to start from the right-hand side of the grid for the semifinal — giving them the theoretical inside line for ‘Turn One’. ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team duo Carlos Sainz and Laia Sanz chose the middle slot, with Rosberg X Racing (Kristoffersson / Taylor) taking up position on the left. When the action got under way, Sainz got the best launch to edge fellow multiple FIA World Rally Champion Loeb away from the line, with the pole-sitter briefly slipping back to third. Loeb then regained the advantage as the battling Sainz and Kristoffersson both drifted wide, but the Swede was not done yet and neatly undercut both of his adversaries on the exit of the first gate to seize the initiative. Kicking up a sandstorm in his wake, Kristoffersson rapidly made his escape as his pursuers found themselves driving blindly through the dust — and by the time he arrived at the switch zone to hand over to teammate Taylor, the Rosberg X Racing car was almost 13 seconds to the good. Thereafter, the former Australian Rally Champion continued to eke out the gap, crossing the finish line just under half-a-minute ahead of Gutiérrez, as both teams successfully booked their places in the all-important Final. Another 38 seconds in arrears, ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team wound up third to slip out of contention. As winners of the fan-led GridPlay vote, Andretti United had the luxury of choosing their starting spot for the final. Hansen duly plumped for pole position on the right, with Kristoffersson lining up in the middle for Rosberg X Racing and X44’s Loeb taking up the third grid slot on the left. Hansen replicated his lightning launch from the Crazy Race as Kristoffersson focused his efforts on fending off Loeb for second, before employing the same tactic that had served him so well in the semifinal to sweep wide going into Turn One and undercut compatriot Hansen on the exit in a sensational switchback move. The three-time FIA World Rallycross Champion then wasted no time at all in stretching his legs, as Hansen settled into second and Loeb — grappling with power steering problems – trailed behind the pair in third. Kristoffersson handed the car over to Taylor with a half-minute advantage, and whilst Munnings would go on to narrow the deficit slightly over the course of the second lap, the Australian always had the situation under control and wound up just over 23 seconds clear at the finish. Taylor said: “What an amazing start to the season! It feels a bit surreal, with so much anticipation and preparation leading into the weekend and we all came here not really knowing what to expect. It was definitely extreme. It was the first time we had experienced terrain like that, and on every lap, the course was changing — there were so many different variables to deal with. We just wanted to make the most of the little time we had in the car — every single kilometer. “We had a small issue in the pit-lane during qualifying, but aside from that we were the quickest in every session. You have to be fast when it counts, be smart when it counts and take the big moves when it counts, and for it to all come together when it mattered was really special. Huge thanks to Johan — his opening laps were just insane – and the team has done such an incredible amount of work behind-the-scenes. “It’s pretty cool to be part of this journey at the start of something that I think has an amazing future. This series is really throwing the traditional rulebook out of the window and starting afresh, and I think everyone will agree it was spectacular to watch. The male drivers we have here are the best in any motorsport category in the world, so it’s an awesome opportunity for us female drivers and a real investment in the development of female racing talent. This is just a dream come true all-round.” Kristoffersson said: “First of all, huge congratulations to the team. We had some minor issues but we came here very well-prepared, which made our life so much easier out on-track. This sport isn’t only about the drivers; it’s about the team giving us the tools to do the job. With such a limited amount of track time, you need to have confidence that the car will do what you ask of it — and the Rosberg X Racing guys did an amazing job to give Molly and myself such a great car. “Molly performed fantastically; it was her that made the difference in the first Qualifying session. When you’re in the lead, you need to strike the right balance between backing off too much and risking too much, which is a new learning experience in this situation.” — SG