Santiago E-Prix: Lopez tops practice for Dragon
Dragon Racing driver Jose Maria Lopez set the fastest time across the two free practice sessions for ABB FIA Formula E’s second visit to Santiago.

At a new 1.45-mile track set entirely within the city’s Park O’Higgins, scorching heat is set to be a key factor in the outcome of the race - as FP1 had got underway at 8am with the temperature already at 24.5 degrees.
Audi’s Lucas di Grassi topped that session - which was disrupted by a big crash for Nissan e.dams driver Sebastien Buemi - with a best time of 1m08.630s.
Virgin Racing pair Sam Bird and Robin Frijns each took a turn at the top spot during the shorter second session – which peaked at 28.4 degrees – with the latter holding the benchmark time for much of FP2.
But during a string of fastest laps set on full power late on during the 30-minute session, Lopez rose to the top of the times with a 1m08.194s.
He looked set to improve again with his final lap of FP2 with fastest sectors in the opening two thirds of the track before fading significantly during the final sector.
Frijns ended up second with his own best full-power effort – a 1m08.260s – coming during the flurry of fast times.
Di Grassi put himself third late on to split the Virgin drivers, with Bird ending up fourth as a result.
Pascal Wehrlein, who looked to be grappling with a sliding car throughout much of the early running, claimed fifth place for Mahindra Racing.
Jaguar’s Mitch Evans twice brushed the barrier at the exit of the Turn 12 left-hander, but did not cause visible damage to his machine and he ended up sixth.
Championship leader Jerome d’Ambrosio was seventh quickest in FP2, ahead of Alexander Sims, Oliver Rowland and Antonio Felix da Costa in the second BMW Andretti car.
Read Also:
Daniel Abt finished 11th ahead of DS Techeetah pair Jean-Eric Vergne, who locked up at the final hairpin mid-way through the second session, and Andre Lotterer.
Lotterer glanced the wall on the exit of the tight Turn 7 right-hander, which feeds onto the long curved section of the track, at the start of the final third of FP2 but he was able to continue.
Buemi hit the track at the beginning of FP2 despite missing much of the first session following his heavy crash at Turn 7 during FP1.
The 2015/16 FE champion locked up heavily on the approach to the corner and struck the inside wall with his right-front, which sent him careering into the barriers on the outside with major damage to the right side of his car and this caused a lengthy red flag delay.
But Buemi’s machine was fixed in time for him to go out and set the 15h best time in FP2.
Venturi’s Felipe Massa was another driver struggling with the handling of his car and he had off-track moments at Turn 12 and the final corner on his way to 16th in FP2, just ahead of Nelson Piquet Jr (Jaguar) and HWA racer Stoffel Vandoorne.
FP1 results
Cla | # | Driver | Team | Laps | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 11 | | | 25 | 1'08.630 | |
2 | 94 | | | 25 | 1'08.776 | 0.146 |
3 | 2 | | | 24 | 1'08.988 | 0.358 |
4 | 4 | | | 26 | 1'09.059 | 0.429 |
5 | 25 | | | 29 | 1'09.135 | 0.505 |
6 | 28 | | | 27 | 1'09.475 | 0.845 |
7 | 16 | | | 30 | 1'09.487 | 0.857 |
8 | 36 | | | 28 | 1'09.528 | 0.898 |
9 | 66 | | | 26 | 1'09.563 | 0.933 |
10 | 64 | | | 28 | 1'09.583 | 0.953 |
11 | 20 | | | 25 | 1'09.597 | 0.967 |
12 | 27 | | | 28 | 1'09.700 | 1.070 |
13 | 48 | | | 24 | 1'09.751 | 1.121 |
14 | 19 | | | 26 | 1'09.780 | 1.150 |
15 | 17 | | HWA Racelab | 27 | 1'09.875 | 1.245 |
16 | 3 | | | 23 | 1'09.991 | 1.361 |
17 | 7 | | | 26 | 1'10.017 | 1.387 |
18 | 22 | | | 18 | 1'10.305 | 1.675 |
19 | 5 | | HWA Racelab | 26 | 1'10.309 | 1.679 |
20 | 6 | | | 20 | 1'10.349 | 1.719 |
21 | 8 | | | 30 | 1'10.350 | 1.720 |
22 | 23 | | | 5 | 1'13.891 | 5.261 |
FP2 results
Cla | # | Driver | Team | Laps | Time | Gap |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 7 | | | 19 | 1'08.194 | |
2 | 4 | | | 16 | 1'08.260 | 0.066 |
3 | 11 | | | 16 | 1'08.299 | 0.105 |
4 | 2 | | | 16 | 1'08.341 | 0.147 |
5 | 94 | | | 15 | 1'08.442 | 0.248 |
6 | 20 | | | 15 | 1'08.456 | 0.262 |
7 | 64 | | | 15 | 1'08.533 | 0.339 |
8 | 27 | | | 15 | 1'08.660 | 0.466 |
9 | 22 | | | 14 | 1'08.684 | 0.490 |
10 | 28 | | | 13 | 1'08.755 | 0.561 |
11 | 66 | | | 16 | 1'08.781 | 0.587 |
12 | 16 | | | 14 | 1'08.823 | 0.629 |
13 | 25 | | | 14 | 1'08.833 | 0.639 |
14 | 36 | | | 18 | 1'08.856 | 0.662 |
15 | 23 | | | 21 | 1'08.892 | 0.698 |
16 | 19 | | | 17 | 1'08.896 | 0.702 |
17 | 3 | | | 16 | 1'08.921 | 0.727 |
18 | 5 | | HWA Racelab | 18 | 1'09.299 | 1.105 |
19 | 6 | | | 19 | 1'09.799 | 1.605 |
20 | 8 | | | 10 | 1'10.441 | 2.247 |
21 | 17 | | HWA Racelab | 17 | 1'10.550 | 2.356 |
22 | 48 | | | 17 | 1'10.558 | 2.364 |

Previous article
BMW duo free to race despite Marrakesh clash
Next article
Why Santiago will be toughest test for Gen2 cars

About this article
Series | Formula E |
Event | Santiago E-prix |
Drivers | Jose Maria Lopez , Robin Frijns , Lucas di Grassi |
Teams | Dragon Racing |
Author | Alex Kalinauckas |
Santiago E-Prix: Lopez tops practice for Dragon
How Vergne and Vandoorne found redemption in Rome
Another Formula E double-header, another double dose of frantic action. While the form guide remains unpredictable following fightback wins for Jean-Eric Vergne and Stoffel Vandoorne in Rome, the speed and consistency of Mercedes – both on and off the track – could have its rivals worried for what is to follow
What Nissan's commitment to Gen3 reveals about Formula E's future
Formula E's Gen3 era grid continues to take shape, after Nissan opted to commit to the series for another four years. Nissan's global chief operating officer explains why it has thrown its lot in with FE while other high-profile marques have decided to call it quits.
Why the new Formula E season got off to such a controversial start
With the new Formula E season belatedly getting underway in Saudi Arabia, the championship appeared to try to make up for lost time with an overspill of action and controversy on and off the track. While some talking points could have serious repercussions, it was an explosive opener for many reasons.
The eight major plotlines to watch in Formula E 2021
The delayed 2020-21 Formula E season gets underway this week with a double-header in Saudi Arabia. The testing times were too close to call a favourite, but that's not the only area of interest to follow as the championship enters a crucial year
Why Formula E's 2021 season will be a crucial litmus test
As off-track politics threatens to overshadow events on it, the upcoming Formula E season is perhaps its most important since the championship's inception. And that's a shame, given that the focus should be on what promises to be its closest title fight yet.
How Mercedes and Porsche can avoid a difficult second FE album
Mercedes and Porsche compete to win and have done so across the board: in Formula 1, sportscars, the Dakar Rally and endurance road races - even working together to break land speed records. Next in the crosshairs is the Formula E teams' championship crown.
What Formula E must do for McLaren to act on its attraction
News that McLaren is formally considering a Formula E move is a much-needed boost for a series that took some punches at the end of 2020. But to allay any doubts that Zak Brown may have, FE must take action on its biggest potential stumbling block
Why BMW and Audi have pulled the plug on Formula E
BMW and Audi shocked the Formula E fraternity by announcing their departures at the end of the 2020-21 season. Overnight, the championship has been dealt something of a "wake-up call" - including questions about its relevance to manufacturers.