Two thrilling races at the Berlin E-Prix were the best possible advertisement for Formula E in the German capital, where all the drivers in the fully-electric racing series again lined up on Hankook’s premium product, the iON Race tyre, as they have done since the start of this season. In front of sold out grandstands at the decommissioned Tempelhof Airport, New Zealand’s Mitch Evans from the Jaguar TCS Racing team took victory on Saturday to claim his eighth win in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. His team-mate Sam Bird finished runner-up under a bright blue sky and in temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius. Maximilian Günther (Maserati MSG Racing) pulled off a very strong manoeuvre in the final corner before the chequered flag to pass Sébastien Buemi (Envision Racing) and secure third place on the Hankook tyre in front of his jubilant home fans. After 66 years, this was Maserati’s first podium with a Formula race car. “As the track is very aggressive, I expected that the race could be tough on the tyres. However, I have to say that tyre management was far better than in previous years. The tyre was very consistent. The different surfaces meant the grip level also varied. That was a real challenge, but I really enjoyed it,” said Günther, whose podium result made him the best-placed German in Berlin.
The rain departed Tempelhof Airport just in time for Sunday’s race action, and the second race of this double-header took place on a dry track. The 22 drivers once again treated fans to a feast of overtaking manoeuvre and changes of position, with the lead and podium positions regularly changing hands. As on Saturday, it was again a Jaguar that took the chequered flag after 40 laps of racing. Nick Cassidy (Envision Racing) from New Zealand took victory ahead of Britain’s Jake Dennis (Avalanche Andretti Formula E) and Frenchman Jean Éric Vergne (DS Penske). “The tyre was really very consistent and I was able to push the whole time,” said the happy winner. Cassidy’s victory sees him close to within four points of championship leader Pascal Wehrlein from Germany (TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team), who finished sixth on Saturday and seventh on Sunday.
A big surprise was the performance of the two ABT Cupra Formula E Team drivers in the wet qualifying session on Sunday. Pole position for Dutchman Robin Frijns and second place on the grid for team-mate Nico Müller from Switzerland represented the team’s best result in qualifying so far. Unfortunately, they were unable to repeat that strong performance in the race, with Müller finishing ninth and Frijns down in 17th. “We understood the Hankook tyre very well today. It is particularly important in the rain to get the tyre into the working window and tease every little bit of grip out of it. Robin and I did that well and we felt very comfortable on the tyre on the wet track,” Müller explained.
