ePrix de Paris, la Course: Lucas di Grassi’s Brazilian stroll

The project seemed insane, but this Saturday, April 23, may have marked a turning point in the future of Formula E. Indeed, the fully electric discipline was set against a dream backdrop with the very first Paris ePrix, taking place around Les Invalides.

A short, fast, and demanding circuit, just a few cable lengths from the Eiffel Tower, awaited the 18 drivers. To better immerse yourself, Stéphane Sarrazin takes you on board his Venturi for the 1.920 kilometers of this seventh round of the 2015-2016 Formula E season.

On the grid, there were many notable figures. Prince Albert II of Monaco and the French Prime Minister Manuel Valls visited the single-seaters. Formula E attracts both fans and newcomers: more than 15,000 people crowded along the barriers to attend the event!

An absolutely packed grid for the Visa #ParisePrix! Lovely to see. pic.twitter.com/BDXqjs7H82

— FIA Formula E (@FIAformulaE) April 23, 2016

On the grid, Sam Bird had the best position with his Pole Position, brilliantly secured a few hours earlier.

Available, the Briton also told us that he is quite confident about the strategy. “We are starting from the best possible position. There are some good cars behind us, but our plan is in place!”

To counteract this “plan,” his closest pursuers were Lucas di Grassi and Jean-Eric Vergne. Leader of the Drivers’ World Championship, di Grassi was in a good position to consolidate his lead over Buemi, who started only in eighth position. Besides Vergne, two other Frenchmen had a shot with Stéphane Sarrazin and Nico Prost, in fourth and fifth positions, respectively.

A few minutes before the start, the tension rose with the evacuation of the grid. Maximum concentration for the drivers who had to reach their position on the starting line, laid out along Boulevard des Invalides. 43 laps were scheduled, for a total distance of 82.6 kilometers.

At 4 p.m., the drivers were slowly taking their positions on the grid: it was high time to start the Paris ePrix!

At the start, di Grassi made a good move by taking the lead by diving inside:

Sam Bird had to abdicate. In a bad position, the Briton even gave up the second position to Jean-Eric Vergne at the end of a very tough maneuver, just before the sequence of the curve leading to the second turn.

Behind, a lot of commotion but no driver was actually left out.

WATCH the start of the Visa Paris ePrix start Brought to you by [@hpe](https://twitter.com/HPE)
[https://t.co/OScgBRJbmd](https://t.co/OScgBRJbmd) — FIA Formula E (@FIAformulaE) [April 23, 2016](https://twitter.com/FIAformulaE/status/723875596514676737)

As the pack remained tight, Lucas di Grassi took off in the early laps of this ePrix, gaining more than a two-second lead in the first five laps. Frustrated, Bird tried to put pressure on his teammate.

In the sixth lap, Loic Duval was the first driver hit by bad luck. In the wake of a Qualifying session marked by brake issues, the Frenchman had to abandon his Dragon at the roadside. To remove the ailing car, the virtual safety car procedure was applied. The drivers adhered to a very low speed for a few moments before being restarted by the race director.

In seventh position, Buemi was then trying by all means to get ahead of Oliver Turvey. On the ninth lap, the Swiss driver of the Renault e.Dams team found an opening on the start/finish straight.

After 10 laps, the provisional Top 10 of this Paris ePrix was led by Lucas di Grassi, ahead of the two DS cars, Vergne in front of Bird. Behind them, the gap was more significant with Nico Prost in fourth. Sarrazin, Buemi, Frijns, Turvey, Da Costa, and Piquet Junior completed the standings.

Behind the leading trio, the two Renault e.Dams found their pace after a difficult start to the day. Buemi closed the gap on the race leader, trailing by just 7 seconds after 15 laps, having overtaken Stéphane Sarrazin and then teammate Nico Prost. Let’s remember that Buemi was chasing big points to keep up with the metronome Lucas di Grassi.

Four French cars were chasing a German car, that of Lucas di Grassi. Vergne was encountering more and more difficulties, and Sam Bird was honking loudly, even risking damaging one of his pontoons to try to pass.

Watch @sambirdraing and @jeanericvergne fight over second place in the Visa Paris ePrix Brought to you by @hpe https://t.co/R88jUKjWpx

— FIA Formula E (@FIAformulaE) April 23, 2016

On the 23rd lap, Lucas di Grassi darted into the pit lane of this Paris ePrix. The race leaders all entered at the same time for the mandatory car change. After adhering to the allotted time, the beasts were unleashed for the second part of the race.

The Abt Schaeffler team driver seemed unstoppable again, attacking hard in the second stint. Meanwhile, the two DS cars were pulling away from Sébastien Buemi. In the garages, the engineers of the French team were looking for solutions to catch up with Lucas di Grassi.

After 30 laps, the race standings were still dominated by di Grassi. Behind him, Vergne and Bird remained wheel-to-wheel. They were followed by: Buemi, Prost, Sarrazin, Frijns, Da Costa, Senna, Abt.

Jérôme d’Ambrosio was at that moment in eleventh place, struggling with his Dragon Racing.

Still in fourth position, Sébastien Buemi had closed the gap on Sam Bird. The battle for a spot on the podium was taking shape. The threat was all the more significant since the Swiss driver had the Fan-Boost to activate at any moment until the end of the race. But the DS Virgin is formidable on the straightaways: Buemi failed to overtake the Brit when he activated his Fan-Boost. They would have to compete on equal terms until the end of the event.

The competitors entered the final ten laps, and the main focus was on securing the last two podium spots. Then the drama unfolded on the 39th lap: Sam Bird made an error by missing the braking point at the first corner. A hard blow for the Englishman who, until then, had been sandwiched between Vergne and Buemi.

Oh no! @sambirdracing just lost a podium spot in the @FIAFormulaE #ParisePrix race on FS2! https://t.co/v3BOAULOK2

— SPEED (@SPEED) April 23, 2016

End of the race was certainly eventful: the drivers’ nerves gave way and the newcomer Ma Qing Hua also made a mistake. This time, the Chinese driver crashed his Team Aguri into the wall: the Safety Car was deployed until the checkered flag was crossed.

In any case, these few twists did not worry the leader.

Imperturbable, Lucas di Grassi wins this Paris ePrix!

For once, a Brazilian wins in France. Today’s winner enters the record books of Statistics by performing the first “Back-to-Back” after his previous success in Long Beach!

Congratulations to @LucasdiGrassi on his victory at @FIAformulaE! Time to celebrate! 🍾 #DareWinCelebrate #ParisePrix pic.twitter.com/rjBFyFEK2C

— MUMM (@GHMUMM) April 23, 2016

A day full of honors for di Grassi, who also extends his lead in the overall standings over his main rival, Sébastien Buemi. However, the Swiss does very well with this third place.

Between the two drivers on the podium, Jean-Eric Vergne delivers his best performance of the season. Things have finally gone the right way for the DS Virgin Racing driver, who was able to savor the cheers of the French fans!

Amazing crowds for the podium – such a well derived second place for @JeanEricVergne pic.twitter.com/e14ZJOXIqB

— DS Virgin Racing (@DSVirginRacing) April 23, 2016

To conclude, here is the complete ranking of this Paris ePrix: