The air was already 30C when the electric single-seaters took to the track at precisely 8.10am on Saturday.
The first practice session, which took place the day before, saw six drivers from six teams occupy the top six places, with no clear pace leader emerging.
Jean-Éric Vergne, sixth and seven-tenths from the front, had, as usual, taken the time to rediscover the track. He knows the 3.385km, 19-turn circuit well, having taken pole position and second place in the second race of the weekend last season. But in 2022, the Rome E-Prix was held in April, and in weather that was easier to bear.
With over 40C on the ground, the second free practice session with the new Gen 3 electric single-seaters presented challenges that required a cautious approach.
In qualifying, cars powered by Jaguar and Nissan dominated, with Jaguar’s Mitch Evans and Sam Bird locking out the front row ahead of Nissan driver Sacha Fenestraz and Jaguar-powered Envision Racing’s Sebastien Buemi.
The first Porsche representative was Jake Dennis (Avalanche Andretti) in seventh, with the first works driver, Pascal Wehrlein, in 10th.
DS Penske driver Stoffel Vandoorne hit the wall on his fat lap and missed out on the quarter finals while Vergne, who was also unfortunate in qualifying and started from 16th.
Source: Autosport