After more than month off, Marbula E is back. This time, we’re off to the winding streets and broad boulevards of Jakarta.
The qualifying round is a bit of a mess. Only one marble manages to clear the 17-second mark: Porsche, who takes pole with a time of 16.29 s. Techeetah takes second with a much slower time of 17.05 s, and there’s only half a second between them and last place, Mahindra at 17.55 s. Tournament leader Mercedes qualifies all the way back in 11th with 17.44 s.
And then they’re off. Through the first two laps, Techeetah and Porsche trade the lead back and forth, and Mercedes advances a few places. But in the third lap, everything falls apart, Envision Virgin (who is near the top of the pack for a change!) shoves Audi off the track, dooming them to injury and a 12th place finish. In the commotion, Porsche drops all the way back to the middle of the pack.
In the aftermath, Envision Virgin drops all the way back into 10th, BMW takes the lead, Porsche regains a few spots, and Mercedes mounts an incredible challenge, eventually making their way into second place. BMW retains the top spot and finishes atop the podium, Mercedes nabs silver, and Techeetah gets bronze.
Stray thoughts:
- I will never get tired of the way Jack Nicholls says “jag-yoo-ahr.”
- Envision Virgin is finally on the board with… one point.
- No surprise, but Mercedes and BMW are dominating the overall standings.
Complete stats for Marbula E can be found at the Marble League Wiki.