Description
Added on the 16/04/2019 10:59:14 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
Interview with Mitch Evans after the race at Formula E - 2020 Mexico City E-Prix.
For the first time in Formula E’s history, a complete grid of 24 cars will go head-to-head around the 21 turn, 2.494km circuit - with German giants Mercedes-Benz and Porsche going head-to-head with rivals Audi and BMW for the first time in any international series - solidifying the most competitive line-up in motorsport. The suspense of pre-season testing didn’t disappoint, with 22 cars setting times within a single second of each other. BMW i Andretti Motorsport debutant Maximilian Guenther topped the timesheets in his first public outing for the German-marque, with MAHINDRA RACING’s Pascal Wehrlein in second and GEOX DRAGON’s newest recruit, Nico Mueller in third.In Formula E, experience is everything, and that was demonstrated with both Mercedes-Benz and Porsche doing limited running compared to the rest of the pack, with the Porsche pairing and Andre Lotterer and Neel Jani - and Mercedes-Benz EQ duo Stoffel Vandoorne and Nyck de Vries getting to grips with new machinery.Last year in Diriyah, a wet morning scuppered chances of a full qualifying session but Antonio Felix da Costa managed to put it on Julius Baer pole position for the first time in the Gen2 era. An exhilarating track with a lot of camber created an electrifying spectacle with the Portuguese driver bringing it home for BMW’s first win as a manufacturer in the sport.Following a drive-through penalty for a technical infringement, reigning champion Jean-Eric Vergne (DS TECHEETAH) had to settle for second place with Jerome D’Ambrosio rounding out the podium places in his first race with MAHINDRA RACING.
The Frenchman produced a textbook drive from pole position to hold off an aggressive challenge from Panasonic Jaguar Racing’s Mitch Evans to open up a massive 32 point gap with closest challenger Lucas Di Grassi suffering a nightmare day to leave with one point.Home favourite Sebastien Buemi gave Swiss fans something to smile about, taking third place to round off a brilliant week in which he won 24 Hours of Le Mans with Fernando Alonso the weekend before.The first corner of the race brought out a red flag after Mahindra Racing's Pascal Werhlein was squeezed into the chicane wall to cause a 10-car pile-up as Robin Frijns saw his Championship hopes fade by having his race ended by a shunt from Jerome D’Ambrosio during the commotion. Di Grassi looked to have made up 11 places after using the escape road to avoid the carnage but FIA stewards decided to restart the race in grid order due to the overtake being under a yellow flag which resulted in a confrontation between drivers and marshals during the delay led by the Brazilian.Once the race restarted Evans was pushing Vergne hard as he activated Attack Mode but a well-timed full-course yellow helped the Frenchman out as Pascal Wehrlein ground to a halt.
The second race of the 2018/19 ABB FIA Formula E season showed pace, performance but only delivered a couple of points for Panasonic Jaguar Racing in Marrakesh.Mitch Evans started the day well with a fantastic drive in FP2, to set the fastest time. The Kiwi driver qualified into Super Pole with a P6 time and started the race in P5 due to a penalty for Antonio Felix Da Costa. His team-mate Nelson Piquet Jr. also qualified in the top ten in P9.
The second ever Rome E-Prix takes place on Saturday, as Season 5 of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship surges past the halfway stage. Sam Bird won on the ancient streets of Italy’s capital last year, but will the British driver be able to emulate his previous success on the circuit, or could we see a remarkable seventh different race winner in a row?
|
Support : Technical 
- Content 
- Editors 
