Dunedin driver Emma Gilmour has made history in the desert.
Gilmour, the first female to drive for McLaren since the motorsport team named after a fellow Kiwi was established in 1963, made her debut in the Desert X Prix in Saudi Arabia at the weekend.
The event is the first of five in the second year of the FIA-sanctioned Extreme E off-road series that uses spec electric SUVs and has 10 international teams.
She and McLaren co-driver, American extreme star Tanner Foust, made the final in Neom, in northwestern Saudi Arabia, but Foust had a dramatic crash early in the race.
"Tanner has been an awesome support and I couldn’t wish for a better team-mate," Gilmour said.
"The experience of being in Saudi Arabia and racing in such spectacular terrain has been incredible.
"You feel really small when you stand outside, right in the middle of the desert, surrounded by mountains, but you also remember what the sport brings in terms of its legacy programme to raise climate awareness.”
Gilmour had the wheel for the first qualifying round and was also in the seat of the McLaren for the start of the "Crazy Race", which offers a place in the final for the winner.
Gilmour takes part in the ‘‘gridplay’’ promotion, where public vote determines the starting order for the final. PHOTOS: MCLAREN
She produced a stunning move to leap from fourth to second in that race, before handing off to Foust, who took the lead with a couple of corners to go.
In the final, Foust was pushing hard when he clipped the back of another car and rolled the McLaren Odyssey 21, forcing a red flag before the first lap was finished.
“We knew it was going to be a tough first event, especially when we are all still learning, but to bring home the bacon for the Crazy Race dispelled the frustrations left from Saturday during qualifying," Gilmour said.
"What happened to Tanner in the final is one of the many challenges and risks which
we knew we had to navigate, and reminds you of complete visual oblivion from sand and dust.
"However, this was also our first event as a team and we have gained a lot from being at track together which will bring us back stronger."
Rosberg X Racing, led by 2016 Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg, won the Desert X Prix final when it resumed with a one-lap shootout.
The next race in the series is the Island X Prix in Sardinia on March 7-8.
- Hayden Miekle
