Four weekend winners in the wide world of motorsport

1. Mortara inherits first Formula E win

Swiss racer Edoardo Mortara was more than happy with second place in Hong Kong and a second consecutive podium finish for the Venturi team on Sunday. But later that the day he found himself bumped up to his first Formula E win – to the surprise of exactly no one.

The 50^th race for the all-electric single-seater series turned out to be a controversial, rain-affected contest, dominated by a long and tense duel for the lead between André Lotterer and Sam Bird. The series’ city street circuits tend to be on the narrow side and Hong Kong’s is among the most tight – and on a greasy surface, the clashes that colour Formula E action all too often were more inevitable than ever.

Virgin’s Bird lost the lead to DS Techeetah’s Lotterer when he ran wide at a right-hander, then hounded the three-time Le Mans winner for the next 28 laps.

It had been a great chase to watch, but on what turned out to be the penultimate tour, Bird’s car nudged the rear of Lotterer’s – not for the first time, Techeetah later argued – and the contact led to a right-rear puncture for the German. A first victory for the experienced racer had been snatched away in the most unfair way possible.

Bird’s post-race sombre countenance suggested he knew the win would not be his for keeps, and sure enough a five-second penalty demoted him to sixth. That wasn’t enough for an outraged Teechetah, but the penalty stood – which meant Bird left Hong Kong with a points haul big enough to give him a slight championship lead.

So perhaps he hadn’t lost after all.

2. Dovizioso’s MotoGP glory – for now

The Losail season opener delivered another Moto GP thriller with a train of motorcycles fighting it out for first blood – but like Formula E the result might still be decided by officials.

Ducati’s Andrea Dovizioso had the edge and fought off a final corner challenge from Marc Marquez to secure victory by just 0.023sec. 

But the fight was not over. Honda, Suzuki, Aprilia and KTM lodged a protest against Ducati over a rear tyre winglet fitted to the Italian bike. The device is believed to be designed to help cool the rear tyre, but with aerodynamics a hot potato in motorcycling’s premier division these days, such an explanation clearly doesn’t wash with Ducati’s rivals.

Dovizioso’s victory remains provisional – although no one can take away the great ride he put in to earn it.

3. Ogier claims second triumph of Citroën return

Sébastien Ogier is doing a pretty good job of banishing doubts about Citroën’s credentials to help him keep up his consecutive run of World Rally Championships.

The Frenchman is bidding for his seventh title on the bounce, and with a third different manufacturer too after his successes with Volkswagen and M-Sport’s Ford Fiestas. A resounding win on Rally Mexico at the weekend suggests it will take a monumental effort to stop him.

Ogier had been made to work hard for the lead until Saturday morning, but finished Sunday with a 30-second advantage over series points leader Ott Tänak. As some had predicted, the Toyota driver appears to be the man most likely to end Ogier’s incredible run. Tänak dropped as low as eighth on Friday before putting in a compelling comeback and leaves Mexico with a four-point advantage over Monte Carlo Rally winner Ogier at the head of the table.

This is one 2019 title scrap that is already brewing nicely.

4. Newgarden adds to Penske’s IndyCar tally

It’s not just Formula 1 where pit strategy can decide race outcomes. In the American IndyCar series quick thinking on the pit wall often wins the day, and that was the case at the St. Petersburg street race on Sunday as Penske once again prevailed for its driver Josef Newgarden.

The American, who won his first IndyCar title in his maiden season for Penske in 2017, qualified on the front row beside team-mate and polesitter Will Power, but dropped to third behind impressive rookie and ex-Formula E racer Felix Rosenqvist.

But sharp tactics mid-race jumped him to the head of the field, where he fended off a concerted challenge from reigning champ Scott Dixon to start his season in the best possible fashion.

The rest of the season – and that blue riband Indianapolis 500 in May – stretches into the months ahead for Newgarden and his rivals. But one way or another, we can safely predict at least one of the Penske aces is likely to be contending for the crown. 

Next weekend, F1 bursts back into life as Lewis Hamilton begins his latest title defence at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne. Safe to say, the 2019 global motorsport season is now in full swing.

Photography by Motorsport Images.