Mahindra Racing finished in the points, but CEO Bertrand admits the team is still struggling with efficiency.
Jaguar’s Mitch Evans and Envision Racing’s Nick Cassidy won a race each at the Berlin E-Prix double-header. The unique nature of the Tempelhof Circuit saw the lead change hands several times, in fact, the track saw 362 overtaking moves over the weekend.
After an underwhelming performance in qualifying, Mahindra Racing did salvage a points finish. But CEO Frederic Bertrand, maintains the team would have liked to “extract more.”
- Evans win Round 7, ahead of Bird and Guenther
- Cassidy wins Round 8, ahead of Dennis and Vergne
- Maserati score first single-seater podium in 66 years
Jaguar score first 1-2 finish
The first race of the weekend saw eight different race leaders. Charging from ninth on the grid, Evans squeezed past Sebastien Buemi into Turn 1 to take the lead with just three laps to go. He was able to then pull away to take his second-straight win. “It’s an incredible feeling to get back-to-back wins, particularly in Formula E where it’s so challenging. I needed a couple of good races and this is exactly what the team delivered today in Berlin. There is still a long way to go this season but the main thing is we’re back in the hunt,” said Evans, who is enjoying a resurgence in form after a string of bad luck.
Sam Bird braked late in the approach to the Airplane turn to move fast Buemi on the very last lap, sealing second place and handing Jaguar their first-ever 1-2 finish in Formula E. Buemi missed out on the podium, with Max Guenther finishing third to clinch Maserati’s first single-seater podium in 66 years.
Cassidy closes in on Wehrlein
The second race also ended up being pretty tactical affair, and Cassidy pulled off another strategic masterclass to score his first win of 2023. After moving into the lead at the turn 6 hairpin, Cassidy had to protect his position for 16 laps – a tough task given he didn’t had the slipstream advantage.
Andretti’s Jake Dennis tailed him in the final few laps, but Cassidy held on to take victory. This places him just four points behind championship leader Pascal Wehrlein in the standings. DS Penske’s Jean-Eric Vergne completed the podium.
“I knew I was in the fight. I’ve been in the fight the last five races. Yesterday, we had a great opportunity as well and I made a mistake and I really put my hand up for that. But today we made it count. So, thanks so much to my guys. I’ve had an opportunity to win nearly every weekend and as a driver that’s a dream,” said Cassidy.
Mahindra scores a point, but continues to struggle with efficiency
After a difficult qualifying session, Mahindra’s Lucas di Grassi and Oliver Rowland had to start the first race from 20th and 21st on the grid. They made some good progress in the race and salvaged a single point – Rowland finishing 10th and di Grassi just behind him in 11th.
The duo qualified 12th and 13th for the second race. Despite trying an alternative strategy, they were unable to score any points this time around, with di Grassi 12th and Rowland 14th.
Mahindra Racing CEO Frederic Bertrand admitted “the race confirmed that we still struggle with the efficiency of the car as we are still struggling to make our way up into the points, so we still need to work hard on improving this deficit.”
“A points finish was our aim coming to Berlin. The minimum has been done with scoring one point, but it clearly doesn’t feel satisfactory or reflect where we want to be. We need to keep working and improving. Monaco will be our next challenge and we will work hard to perform at our best at this iconic venue,” he added.
Formula E will now head to Monaco for the next round on May 6.
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