Method E adjustments Shanghai E-Prix schedule resulting from heavy rain forecast

Method E will see a change to its deliberate Shanghai E-Prix schedule on Sunday, as heavy rain poses a menace to the operating of the second race of the weekend.

In Saturday’s race, the primary spherical of its double-header weekend in China, Maximilian Guenther secured his second victory for DS Penske in an action-packed race on the Shanghai Worldwide Circuit, together with his team-mate Jean-Eric Vergne making it a maiden 1-2 for the American staff.

Tomorrow will possible be a really totally different day, with heavy rain forecast throughout the municipality for almost all of Sunday.

The amended schedule will now see Free Apply 3 moved an hour earlier to 07:00 native time, with the identical for qualifying which is now at 09:00 native time in Shanghai. The race has additionally been reshuffled and lights out will start at 13:00 native time.

It’s understood that if rain prevents any instances being set in FP3 or qualifying, the outcomes from the second free follow on Saturday will likely be used to kind the beginning grid, which means Porsche’s Antonio Felix da Costa will likely be on pole and McLaren’s Taylor Barnard will begin alongside him on the entrance row.

A spokesperson for Method E confirmed: “Because the inclement climate forecast for Sunday’s race is anticipated to affect the present sporting schedule for Spherical 11, the 2025 Hankook Shanghai E-Prix, along with the FIA, Groups and Producers have taken the choice to amend the occasion timings with a purpose to permit most monitor classes to go forward, taking into account rain and light-weight circumstances.

“The security and expertise of our followers, company and personnel are our highest precedence as we intention to placed on the very best racing spectacle attainable right here in China. We thank the organisers and native authorities for his or her immediate and unified response and we stay up for one other profitable Hankook Shanghai E-Prix on the Shanghai Worldwide Circuit tomorrow.”

That is the second Method E race weekend in succession that has been closely impacted by the weather, after qualifying was cancelled completely in Tokyo earlier this month.

As moist races affect the championship extra commonly, with the previous three occasions all affected by rain, nearly all of drivers are discontent with the all-weather Hankook compound accessible to the grid.

“It isn’t a moist tyre, it would not work within the moist at any level,” McLaren’s Sam Fowl instructed Motorsport.com after Monaco. “Even the blokes that got here on the entrance can say it doesn’t even work within the moist. All of the drivers have stated comparable issues [about introducing a full wet tyre] for fairly some time, not simply with the present provider.

“It has been a little bit of, not a difficulty, however if you find yourself racing and also you’re pushing the rubber, the rubber goes to maneuver and manipulate itself and anytime you have got a tread block of any kind that then can push water away, it’s not going to be good within the dry.

“Equally you probably have a block that’s good with dry operating, it’s by no means going to have the ability to dissipate water. It is rather difficult.

“The automobiles are getting so fast now, I feel Method E ought to think about bringing a type of moist tyre to the races.”

Bridgestone has already been confirmed because the championship’s sole tyre provider from the 2026/2027 season onwards by to 2029/30 – the Gen4 period.

It’ll grow to be the third totally different tyre provider the championship has seen since debuting in 2014, after Michelin starred issues off as a founding companion till Hankook took over from the 2022/23 season.