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- Jean-Eric Vergne and Antonio Felix Da Costa were respectively 6th and 9th in the Seoul E-prix’ first race
- South Korea welcomed the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship for the first time
- The last race of the season will take place tomorrow
The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship raced today for the first time in Seoul, South Korea, racing through the historic Olympic Stadium.
The day started on a dry track for the first two practice sessions where Jean-Eric Vergne finished ahead of the 22 drivers in FP2. Unfortunately, during qualifying the rain began to fall and upset the running order on track. Antonio Felix Da Costa, at the wheel of its DS E-TENSE FE21 was first on track in group A followed by Jean-Éric Vergne in group B. The DS TEECHETAH drivers qualified respectively 12th and 9th with changing conditions on track.
After the heavy rain in the morning, the race began on a wet track. Jean-Eric Vergne stormed out and managed to gain several positions in his the first lap. Unfortunately, due to an accident involving 8 other competitors, the race was interrupted for 45 minutes. The race restarted with Jean-Éric Vergne in 6th and Antonio Felix Da Costa in 10th.
The race had no further incidents until 1minute 45s before the end when a competitor went into the wall and the safety car was deployed. Under the safety car the race ended with Jean-Éric Vergne crossing the line in 6th position and Antonio Felix Da Costa in 9th.
Thanks to these results DS TECHEETAH scored 10 points in the Teams’ Championship and remains third in the championship.
The second race of the Seoul E-Prix will take place tomorrow, which will mark the final race of Season 8, starting at 16:04 local time.
Thomas Chevaucher, DS Performance Director and DS TECHEETAH Team Principal:
“We had big ambitions for this first race in South Korea, especially after the two good free practice sessions. We had to deal with a changing forecast during qualifying and our DS E-TENSE FE21 were in the middle of the grid. Despite an eventful race, JEV and Antonio managed to overtake in a really tight pack. We still have one last race with our successful Gen2 car and we will give everything tomorrow to end the season on a high note!”
Mark Preston, TECHEETAH CEO:
“The 99th race day in Formula E started with JEV quickest in free practice 2 in preparation for qualifying. Unfortunately, a rain affected qualifying put paid to our chances of progressing through to the duels and the Top 8. However, with JEV starting 9th and Antonio Felix Da Costa 12th the race would start in drying conditions with the first few laps deteriorating quickly to a Red Flag. The drivers raced well in the second start finishing a solid 6th and 9th bringing home the points in the penultimate race.”
Jean-Éric Vergne, Formula E champion in 2018 and 2019:
“I had a really good start, starting in 9th and ending in 6th after a very good first lap. Obviously, we had this big incident and a red flag. Then when we started again the track was still wet and I was running 5th for most of the race until I blocked a little bit, lost some time and the position to Stoffel (Vandoorne) and finished 6th. I think the pace was ok today, but we did not have the pace to win. We still scored some good points and after 4 races not being in the points it’s good to be back there.”
António Félix da Costa, Formula E champion in 2020:
"That was a wild day! The conditions were changing consistently! We were pretty quick during the free practice sessions which gave me some confidence going into qualifying. Unfortunately, I didn’t do a very good job there so it compromised my starting position. In the race I was not so quick, struggling a little bit when the track was wet. I still managed to overtake a few cars and finished P9 to score a couple of points. One more day in this season tomorrow, final day and I look forward to finishing on a high.”
DS Automobiles record in Formula E since season 2:
- 88 races
- 4 Championship titles
- 15 victories
- 44 podiums
- 21 pole positions
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