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Ticktum tops times in first Miami E-Prix practice
Dan Ticktum began the Miami E-Prix as the pacesetter, topping the times in a cloudy first free practice session at the Miami International Autodrome.
The Cupra Kiro driver usurped DS Penske’s Taylor Barnard in the final minutes of the 40 minute session, setting a 55.503s time. Barnard improved with his final lap but was ultimately 0.093s behind his compatriot.
Nyck de Vries set the fastest first sector time and was third for Mahindra, 0.135s off Ticktum, with Nico Müller the fastest of the current-gen Porsche powertrains – Kiro using an older variant – and quickest in the final sector in fourth.
Nick Cassidy completed the top five for Citroen, leaving it relatively late to get his fast times in and having a moment with Antonio Felix da Costa at the Turn 6, 7, 8 complex, with neither willing to give up track position after initially making room for traffic.
Edoardo Mortara made it two Mahindras in the top six, ahead of the Envisions of Sebatien Buemi and Joel Eriksson – a competitive showing after Zak O’Sullivan’s table-topping time from the rookie session earlier in the day.
Pepe Marti was next up for Kiro, ahead of Maximilian Guenther in the other DS Penske and the championship-winning quartet of Oliver Rowland – an early pacesetter as the first 350kW laps were laid down – Jean-Eric Vergne, Jake Dennis, and da Costa, who ended up with a puncture following his scuffle with Cassidy.
Zane Maloney was 15th for Lola Yamaha Abt ahead of Pascal Wehrlein, who won last year’s Miami E-Prix at Homestead-Miami Speedway. Lucas di Grassi, Felipe Drugovich, Mitch Evans, and Norman Nato rounded out the runners, with the whole field covered by just 0.755s.
Ticktum and Mueller had the highest lap counts of the session with 27, while Marti completed the fewest tours with 20.
Free Practice 2 takes place at 7:30AM ET on Saturday.
Dominik Wilde
Dominik often jokes that he was born in the wrong country – a lover of NASCAR and IndyCar, he covered both in a past life as a junior at Autosport in the UK, but he’s spent most of his career to date covering the sliding and flying antics of the U.S.’ interpretation of rallycross. Rather fitting for a man that says he likes “seeing cars do what they’re not supposed to do”, previously worked for a car stunt show, and once even rolled a rally car with Travis Pastrana. He was also comprehensively beaten in a kart race by Sebastien Loeb once, but who hasn’t been?
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