Jean-Eric
Vergne wins fourth race of season in New York as double podium for
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler seals team title
Jean-Eric
Vergne picked up his fourth win of the season at the final race of
the 2017/18 ABB FIA Formula E Championship in New York to round-off a
sensational day of sport for the French nation.
The
TECHEETAH driver - and newly-crowned Formula E champion - fended off
pressure from the outgoing title-winner Lucas di Grassi in a fight to
the flag reminiscent of the nail-biting finish from earlier this
season in Punta del Este.
The
pair were nose-to-tail for the majority of the second phase of the
race, with di Grassi eventually weighing-up the risk and settling for
second place alongside his team-mate Daniel Abt who finished third.
The double podium finish and di Grassi’s seventh in as many races
sealed the teams’ title for Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler.
After
thunderstorms and overcast conditions throughout the morning’s
running, Vergne made a lightning start from third place on a drying
track - moving into the lead by the first corner and jumping both
Julius Baer pole-sitter Sebastien Buemi and TECHEETAH team-mate Andre
Lotterer.
The
Frenchman first looked to the outside of Buemi and then the inside
with a late-braking move to take the lead and keeping TECHEETAH on
the front-foot and in control of their own destiny in the teams’
title.
Lotterer,
however, jumped the start and was handed a 10-place stop and go
penalty - dropping him down the order and jeopardising the chances of
the team to clinch both championships.
Fortunately,
Vergne didn’t suffer the same fate and kept his rivals at bay. Both
Vergne and di Grassi pitted on lap 23 and couldn’t be separated
after exiting their respective garages, marking the last time for a
mandatory mid-race car swap - something teams, drivers and fans have
grown accustomed to in the first years of Formula E.
Vergne
defended stoutly and ended his championship-winning season in style
on the top step of the podium.
The
battle between the leading teams wasn’t over as Buemi threatened to
spoil Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler’s party. The Renault e.dams driver
was looking to repeat his performance from yesterday, but Abt managed
to conserve his energy after pitting a lap earlier and securing the
final podium spot and Visa fastest lap.
Lotterer
made progress through the field to finish ninth, but it wasn’t
enough as TECHEETAH narrowly missed out by only two points at the
chequered flag - the smallest-ever winning margin in the teams’
championship.
Mahindra
Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist took fifth ahead of Mitch Evans and
Nelson Piquet Jr. for Panasonic Jaguar Racing. Nick Heidfeld brought
an end to his campaign with a fourth points-scoring finish in a row
in eighth, ahead of Lotterer and DS Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird in
10th.
Now
the dust has settled on yet another intense and unpredictable season
of electric street racing - Formula E now embarks on a summer break,
before entering a new era in Ad Diriyah on December 15.
With
four different champions - as well as new names, new faces and new
cars for next season - the countdown is already on for season five of
the ABB FIA Formula E Championship and the competitive debut of the
futuristic new-look FIA Formula E Gen2 car.
Jean-Eric
Vergne, TECHEETAH, said: “Firstly I want to congratulate Audi
for winning the teams' championship. I want to congratulate my team
for the job they’ve done this year because honestly, it’s really
amazing. This weekend started out with a mistake in qualifying that
got me disqualified. I came back through the field - attacking very
hard and overtaking many cars. Today qualifying went pretty well in
the wet. Then I had a strong, aggressive, start and then I was able
to manage the race, which was very tough as we all know Audi is
really, really quick in the race. No mistakes were allowed on my side
and I think I’ve achieved that.”
Daniel
Abt, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, said: “What an incredible
finish to the season with four podiums this weekend. We’re the
teams' champions and we managed to achieve what we hadn’t
before
- everyone can be super proud of the job they’ve been doing
all season long. I’m just thankful and very, very happy. Now it’s
time to get a break and we’ll bounce back in season five - what a
big task ahead!”
Lucas
di Grassi, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, said: “I think Vergne
deserved the championship this year. He made no mistakes, he was very
consistent, so congratulations to him and TECHEETAH. It shows that in
Formula E, you need to do the job all around to make it happen. On my
side, that's exactly what we did. We were nowhere in the first races,
we made mistakes but the car was already fast. It's nothing short of
a miracle to get to second in the drivers’ standings - I'm very,
very happy - but I'm more happy that Audi has won the teams'
championship. Those guys back in the garage, everyone works really
hard. Every time we say the same but I'm very proud that Audi
committed to Formula E, suffering a lot, keeping their head high,
recovering and in the last race winning by two points is just
unbelievable.”
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