Gilmour impresses on series debut
Emma Gilmour says there were “lots of positives” despite her and Frenchman Stephane Sarrazin narrowly missing out on a spot in the Arctic X Prix final.
The Kiwi made her debut in the Extreme E championship after stepping up from her role as Veloce Racing’s female reserve driver for the event in Greenland on August 28 and 29.
Gilmour and Sarrazin qualified fifth to make the semi-finals but the French driver’s s last-gasp attempt to make progress through the course’s “Rock Garden” ended in a broken steering arm and heartbreak for the team.
The dealer principal of Gilmour Motors in Dunedin says it was an “amazing race” to be involved in.
“It was so exciting to watch in the command centre and I thought ‘he [Sarrazin] has done it, we’re going to be first’ and then ‘oh no we’re not’ so it was crazy, really crazy,” she explains.
“I was happy with my run though, obviously I still have room for improvement but for the task that I had, it was always going to be a big ask with so little time in the car. Even just little things like the driver switch take a lot of getting used to but I think Stephane and I worked really well together.
“It’s just a shame we didn’t get a chance to race in the final. We were a bit unlucky but I think there’s lots of positives to take away from the weekend.”
The Arctic X prix was the third round of the series and Gilmour produced an encouraging opening lap in the first qualifying sessions that was only hampered by a track marker infringement. Sarrazin followed up with another competitive effort as the pair delivered the fourth-fastest time.
The second session was more challenging after a power steering issue early in Sarrazin’s lap meant both drivers had to battle for control of the car throughout the run but they still managed to finish sixth.
It left them in fifth overall and put them into the weekend’s first semi-final. Gilmour lined up on the grid for that race and had the team in second place as she handed over to Sarrazin.
However, the Frenchman slipped to third and his last-ditch effort to move up a spot and book a place in the final failed and the car limped across the finish line.
Despite the disappointment of not making the final, Sarrazin was impressed with the car and full of praise for Gilmour
“The semi-final was obviously an amazing race, Emma did a very strong job at the beginning and gave me the car in second,” he says.
“It was a great weekend overall and the team did an amazing job and Emma was brilliant in her first weekend in Extreme E.”
Extreme E is a new motorsport championship that sees electric SUVs going head-to-head in areas of the world that have been damaged by climate change or environmental issues.
The next round of the series is due to be held in Sardinia, Italy, on October 23-24.
