Rowland triumphs as British trio dominate second Jeddah E-Prix podium

JEDDAH: Oliver Rowland stormed to victory in the second race of the inaugural Jeddah E-Prix on Saturday, leading an all-British podium and securing Nissan’s place at the top of the Teams’ and Manufacturers’ World Championship standings.

Rowland’s expertly managed race saw him capitalize on a dramatic early collision between title contenders Antonio Felix da Costa and Maximilian Guenther. The incident cleared the way for the Briton to seize control, executing flawless energy management and Attack Mode activations to maintain his lead to the checkered flag.

“It was great — the key was at the beginning obviously. It was pretty much the perfect scenario. I had a little bit of contact with Guenther at the chicane; he got really aggressive on the inside and I got stuck on him,” Rowland said.

“That’s the point when I went to the front — being third or fourth, people start to get aggressive, so I got out of trouble and went to the front and led from there. I’m just trying to focus race by race, try and do the best job we can and score points,” he added.

The 21-year-old Taylor Barnard, who made history as the youngest polesitter in Formula E, took an impressive second place, fending off a late charge from Jake Hughes. Despite immense pressure, Barnard held firm to secure his second podium of the weekend for NEOM McLaren.

“Coming into this weekend I didn’t expect a podium, so to leave here with massive points for the team, I couldn’t be happier,” Barnard said. “I think I struggled a little bit for the first five laps — but two podiums, I’m so happy. Sometimes you have to be extra aggressive, but we also had to keep the podium and secure P2, and we did that.”

Hughes rounded out the podium in third, marking his first rostrum