London ePrix – Race 2 Qualifying: Rain Joins the Party: Stéphane Sarrazin on Pole, Buemi in a Favorable Position for the Drivers’ Title?

For once, the rain changed the game during the final Qualifying session of the 2014/2015 Formula E season, the second of the weekend in the heart of Battersea Park in London.

This rain began to fall in the final moments of the first group’s run. As a result, the drivers of Group 1 were advantaged by a track that was still relatively dry. Among the five drivers, it was the experienced Stéphane Sarrazin who hit the jackpot with a time of 1:23.901.

Very surprised at the end of the session, the French driver initially thought that going out among the first drivers would not be to his advantage: “I wasn’t happy about being placed in the first qualifying group, but it worked out for me before the rain came. I pushed hard from the start of the session, and it paid off.”

This Pole Position somewhat salvages a difficult season for the Monaco-based Venturi team. Sarrazin now hopes to make the most of this somewhat unexpected Pole in the race. “I hope we can improve our weekend with a good result today. We made some changes in settings, which clearly paid off for these Qualifications.”

Behind him, Jérôme d’Ambrosio is once again in the leading positions. After a strong performance in race 1, secured by a solid second place, the Belgian also had success by driving in the first group. He was not far from pole position before Sarrazin improved his performance. His teammate can also be pleased: Loic Duval has never started this high on the grid in Formula E this season. Local hero Sam Bird (Virgin Racing) and Bruno Senna (Mahindra) can also aim high with a fourth and fifth position on the grid.

Sébastien Buemi limits the damage

In the second qualifying group was Sébastien Buemi, winner of race 1 yesterday afternoon. The e.Dams-Renault driver was able to benefit from a predominantly dry track similar to Group 1. On pole after two sectors, the Swiss driver couldn’t capitalize this time, due to a mistake made in the last sector of his lap. As a result, Buemi will only start sixth on the grid. However, this position is much more advantageous than for his two other competitors in the title race.

Nelson Piquet Junior gets into trouble

The rain intensified at the time of the passage of the last two groups, which included notably Nelson Piquet Junior and Lucas di Grassi.

In a struggle with his machine in a very characteristic style, Piquet Junior this time made a mistake that could prove costly. The NEXTEV TCR driver lost control of the rear of his car in the ninth turn during his flying lap. No damage but a considerable loss of time and a sixteenth place on the starting grid as a result. At the start of the race, the Brazilian no longer has his fate in his own hands. He will have to rely on a failure by Buemi, or even Di Grassi.

Lucas di Grassi, on the other hand, couldn’t do better than the 11th fastest time. However, his position is more advantageous than his counterpart and rival.

Here is the complete ranking of these qualifications:

1. S.Sarrazin (Venturi) 1:23:901

2. J. d’Ambrosio (Dragon Racing) 1:23.965

3. L.Duval (Dragon Racing) 1:24.107

4. S.Bird (Virgin Racing) 1:24.241

5. B.Senna (Mahindra Racing) 1:24.318

6. S. Buemi (e.Dams-Renault) 1:24.385

7. N.Heidfeld (Venturi) 1:25.494

8. S.Duran (Amlin Aguri) 1:25.649

9. A.Fontana (Trulli) 1:25.689

10.J.Trulli (Trulli) 1:27:093

11. L.di Grassi (Audi Sport ABT) 1:32:570

12. O Turvey (NEXTEV TCR) 1:33.526

13. S.de Silvestro (Andretti) 1:34:167

14. J-E Vergne (Andretti) 1:35.062

15. N.Prost (e.Dams-Renault) 1:35:111

16. N.Piquet (NEXTEV TCR) 1:35.284

17. F.Leimer (Virgin Racing) 1:35.543

18. D Abt (Audi Sport ABT) 1:38.473

19. K.Chandhok (Mahindra Racing) 1:41.232

20. S.Yamamoto (Amlin Aguri) No time

Thus, Sébastien Buemi (133 pts) will be the best placed of the three contenders for the Drivers’ crown. The maximum possible points are 27 pts. Buemi now has a slight advantage: any result in the top 8 would secure him the Title if di Grassi and Piquet do not score points.

If Piquet (138 pts) finishes in the points, the Swiss driver should then score at least five more points. In any case, a victory will automatically mean the title for one or the other. Let’s not forget Lucas di Grassi (125 pts) who is still in the running and could very well take advantage of the race circumstances to seize the win.

The stage is now set for this final round of the first Formula E season in the heart of London’s Battersea Park…