Berlin ePrix: Presentation and Stakes

The path to the title is shaping up for Jean-Éric Vergne.

The home victory of Jean-Éric Vergne allowed him to take more than a win’s lead over his closest pursuer, Sam Bird. Additionally, the retirements and various underperformances of Félix Rosenqvist have almost eliminated him from the title race. The Briton from DS Virgin, who is currently the man in form, will have to surpass the championship leader to hope to maintain all his title chances with four races to go.

In the overall standings, Sébastien Buemi and Lucas Di Grassi will be motivated to continue their improvement after a disastrous start to the season. The Brazilian from Audi, who has secured three second-place finishes since Punta del Este, is rediscovering his steady form. His goal for the rest of the season will be to clinch fourth place in the championship, right under the nose of his major rival Sébastien Buemi. As for the Swiss driver from Renault, who has three podium finishes this season, the aim for these last four races will be to make it onto the championship podium. Buemi is only sixteen points behind Félix Rosenqvist.

Behind, the fight is very tight between the seventh and ninth place in the championship, contested among Nelson Piquet, Mitch Evans, and André Lotterer. The margin is only four points between these three places. The rest of the standings will certainly evolve significantly until the end of the season since the gaps are not very large. The only driver who can no longer score points in the championship is Tom Blomqvist, as he will be replaced by Stéphane Sarrazin at Andretti until the end of the season.

Formula E lands again on Tempelhof tarmac

This year’s race will be the third to take place at the former Berlin airport after a one-season interlude on the streets of the city center. The track was significantly redesigned last year to allow for a more spectacular race.

The track measures 2.27 kilometers and features a total of 10 turns. The first three turns are snail-shaped, similar to the Shanghai circuit. Subsequently, the cars will pass through a tunnel set up for the occasion. The next section of the track consists of a fast segment before reaching the ninth U-shaped turn, which serves as a key overtaking spot. Once the final turn is negotiated, a lap of the circuit will be completed. Since the track surface is made of tarmac, grip is expected to increase as the day progresses.

Here is what a lap of the track looks like in a video:

Who wants to discover the #BerlinEprix track ? 😇 See you there next Saturday ! 🇩🇪👌#ABBFormulaE #VENTURI #MadeInMonaco pic.twitter.com/E9T3Hs8Ovo

— Venturi Formula E (@VenturiGP) 14 mai 2018

The latest information to remember

HWA formalizes its arrival as the eleventh team next season:

The information has been in the pipeline since last October, and now it’s official: Mercedes’ sports and technical subsidiary HWA will join the championship as the eleventh team for next season. The structure is mainly known for fielding Mercedes cars in the German DTM championship with considerable success. HWA, which already provides technical support to the Venturi team, will also become its engine supplier starting next year. The arrival of the subsidiary marks the beginnings of Mercedes’ official entry into the championship for the 2019-2020 season.

Felipe Massa signs a three-year deal with Venturi:

The former Formula 1 driver and 2007 world vice-champion will join Venturi next season as a driver. The retiree from the top discipline since last year did not take long to bounce back, in a category he has been interested in for some time. The Brazilian has signed a contract for the next three seasons with the Monegasque team. Massa will participate in several tests by next December. This will not be the South American’s first contact with the discipline, as he already attended the London races at Battersea Park in 2015. Furthermore, the former Williams and Ferrari driver already conducted tests with Jaguar at Racalmuto in Sicily at the beginning of 2017.

A trophy for the best driver of the European tour starting next season:

Starting next year, the most successful driver at European events will be awarded an honorary trophy. It will bear the name of the Austrian company Voestalpine, which will sponsor all the races on the old continent. This company specializes in the production of electro-galvanized steel strips, which make up the electric engines of the championship. Be aware that if this award had been given in previous seasons, Sébastien Buemi would have won it in season one, as well as Nicolas Prost in season two, and finally again Sébastien Buemi last year.

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