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Tag: Nyck de Vries
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Nyck de Vries begins Season 8 campaign in style: Formula E
Defending ABB FIA Formula E World Champion exploits an error by his Mercedes-EQ team-mate in Saudi Arabia to cement the first victory of Season Eight
Diriyah (Saudi Arabia), 28 Jan 2022: Reigning ABB FIA Formula E World Champion Nyck De Vries got his title defence off to the perfect start in Saudi Arabia this evening (28 January), taking advantage of a missed ATTACK MODE for stablemate Stoffel Vandoorne to seize the initiative and replicate his curtain-raising triumph from last season.
The Mercedes-EQ duo were on imperious form around the Riyadh Street Circuit, as the defending Teams’ title-holder sought to stamp its authority on proceedings right from the outset. From pole position – after prevailing in Formula E’s new Groups and head-to-head ‘knockout’ Duels qualifying format – Vandoorne looked to have matters under control early on as he held sway ahead of De Vries, who had leapfrogged front row sitter Jake Dennis (Avalanche Andretti) away from the lights.
The momentum shifted, however, when Vandoorne initially failed to activate his second ATTACK MODE, meaning he had to try again a lap later – and the loss of time was sufficient to elevate his Dutch team-mate into the lead. Although the Belgian kept the pressure on, it would prove to be the pivotal moment of the race, opening the door for De Vries to seal the third victory of his burgeoning career in the all-electric single-seater series.
The result represented a remarkable turnaround for the 26-year-old, whose weekend had begun with an impact with the wall on only the second lap of free practice, ruling him out of the remainder of the session. Fighting back to the top step of the podium proved that he will once more be a force to be reckoned with over the course of the campaign.
If the Mercedes pair were unquestionably the class of the field in the desert kingdom, Dennis did his best to keep them honest over the first half of the Diriyah ePrix. Having slipped behind TAG Heuer Porsche’s André Lotterer during the second round of ATTACK MODES, last season’s standout rookie thereafter had to dig deep indeed to reclaim the position, finding his efforts repeatedly rebuffed by the experienced German until he finally succeeded in forcing his way past.
The Briton duly secured the last spot on the rostrum, followed home by compatriot Sam Bird, a former winner in Saudi Arabia. The Jaguar TCS Racing driver was embroiled in an entertaining scrap throughout with 2016/17 champion Lucas Di Grassi – the Brazilian on characteristically fast and feisty form on his debut for ROKiT Venturi Racing.
Both men overhauled the fading Lotterer in the closing stages – Di Grassi producing an eye-catching late dive into Turn One – to cement fourth and fifth places at the chequered flag. Behind them, Edoardo Mortara in the second Venturi entry battled up the order from 12th on the grid to snatch sixth on the final tour from series sophomore Nick Cassidy (Envision Racing), who nonetheless tallied an extra point for posting the race’s fastest lap.
Two-time title-winner Jean-Éric Vergne finished eighth on a difficult day for DS Techeetah, as team-mate and 2019/20 champion António Félix da Costa retired on the opening lap due to suspension damage caused by contact.
Avalanche Andretti newcomer Oliver Askew – the first American to compete in Formula E in almost seven years – wound up an excellent ninth on his series bow having started down in 17th, with Mitch Evans rounding out the points-scorers for Jaguar TCS Racing in tenth.
After featuring up at the sharp end for much of the race and looking to be in contention for a podium position, Lotterer ultimately plummeted to 13th as Porsche struggled to maintain its early pace. Oliver Rowland’s first outing with Mahindra Racing, meanwhile, ended in the barriers following contact with Envision Racing rival Robin Frijns ten minutes in, bringing out the safety car and earning the Dutchman a drive-through penalty.
The second Diriyah ePrix will get underway at 20:03 local time (18:03 CET) tomorrow (Saturday, 29 January).
Nyck de Vries, Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team, #17, said: “The result might be the same than last year, but the way we achieved it felt very different – obviously starting with yesterday tapping the wall in lap one didn’t help. It put myself and the team on the backfoot, then you have to rebuild your confidence and the conditions were very slippery, very different to last year. There is always a lot of track evolution, so you have to build it up in FP2 and then straight into qualifying. So I was actually very happy with what we achieved in qualifying, and then I knew we had a strong race car to capitalise on our qualifying position. We had great pace, the team did a great job and I was a bit fortunate with Stoff missing his ATTACK MODE, but at the end of the day it was faultless from our garage and we managed to win the first race. I am very pleased with the way we managed to win this race and start the season strong.”
Stoffel Vandoorne, Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team, #5, said: “I’m a little bit disappointed, I think it’s not bad to be disappointed with the second place today. I was leading the race, everything was under control, we had really strong pace in the car today – but then I missed the loop on the second attack activation which handed the position to Nyck. We were pushing each other, cruising away from the others and had a one-two finish for the team. It’s been a great team result. I can’t be disappointed, qualifying on pole in the first new qualifying format – to finish second today is a good one and we have another opportunity tomorrow. You can never have relief in Formula E. The nature of the Championship is so close that the moment you give up a bit of performance, someone else is going to be there. It is not a guarantee that we win today we win tomorrow, but we are going to try and do everything to repeat the performance in qualifying, and from my side do a bit better in the race.”
Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti, #27, said: “I felt quite comfortable behind the Mercedes, I think we were on the same strategy, things were looking quite good, but when the top four breakaway it isn’t the best being in third as it allows the car behind to have free attack zones. Andre (Lotterer) undercutting us ruined our race a bit, but I wanted a podium so bad today – we deserved it as a team. We tried it the first time, completely got it wrong, but the second time I learned from my mistakes and put it right, got the overtake done and then we pulled clear and tried to close down the Mercedes, but they were a little too quick in the end. We had a great race.”
Round 1 results Final Classification
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Nyck de Vries clinches his 2nd victory: Formula E
Valencia, 25 April 2021: Nyck de Vries (Mercedes-EQ) survived a tough Valencia E-Prix on Saturday (24 April) to clinch the second victory of his ABB FIA Formula E World Championship career, with the result vaulting him back to the top of the title chase – as many drivers ran out of energy in the final minutes.
De Vries started the race down in seventh position due to a five-place grid drop following an accident in Rome, but the Dutchman benefitted from an early contretemps between André Lotterer (TAG Heuer Porsche), Norman Nato (ROKiT Venturi Racing) and Sébastien Buemi (Nissan e.dams) that removed the Swiss driver from contention and earned the German a drive-through penalty.
That elevated de Vries to fourth and prompted the safety car intervention. At the re-start, the 26-year-old wasted no time at all in scything his way artfully past Alex Lynn (Mahindra Racing) and Maximilian Günther (BMW i Andretti Motorsport) to move into second behind leader António Félix da Costa (DS TECHEETAH).
The Mercedes man continued to shadow the defending champion from that point on, but whilst further neutralisations would repeatedly cancel out da Costa’s advantage, still the Portuguese ace appeared to have proceedings under control as he zeroed in on his first win of the 2020/21 campaign.
Unfortunately, da Costa and many others ran out of energy in the final minutes. Having carefully conserved his own energy, de Vries had no such concerns, and he gratefully inherited the lead to cement his second success of the season.
Dragon/Penske Autosport’s Nico Müller started the E-Prix all the way back in 22nd position, then had an eventful race but by dint of saving sufficient energy, he held on to the chequered flag in second place – the first podium finish of his Formula E career.
Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-EQ) was the man to beat in qualifying, but a tyre rule infringement subsequently saw him demoted from the front to the rear of the grid. He had risen as high as 12th prior to incurring a five-second penalty for causing a collision with Müller, but like his Dragon rival, he benefitted from a strong energy management to pick up a podium.
Nick Cassidy wound up fourth in the final reckoning to secure the strongest result of his Formula E career. Both Envision Virgin Racing cars looked particularly racy in the closing stages as they battled forward in tandem, with stablemate Robin Frijns being classified sixth from a lowly 15th on the grid, keeping the Dutchman’s championship challenge very much alive.
René Rast (Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler) split the two Virgin drivers in fifth, with former champion Lucas Di Grassi (Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler), Jake Dennis (BMW i Andretti Motorsport) and Jean-Eric Vergne (DS TECHEETAH) completing the points-scorers.
With five rounds of the campaign now in the books, a Jaguar one-two has been replaced by a Mercedes one-two at the summit of the standings, with de Vries leading Vandoorne by nine points. The second leg of the Valencia E-Prix will get underway at 14:00 CET tomorrow (Sunday, 25 April).
Nyck de Vries, Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team
“What a race! To be honest, I’m even happier today than when I won my first race in Diriyah, especially with this victory coming as such a surprise. After the really tough race weekend in Rome and the five-place grid penalty for this race, I definitely wasn’t expecting it. But it’s a fantastic way for me to bounce back. Many thanks to the whole team, who executed the strategy perfectly today, and of course to Stoffel, who fought his way from the back of the field to the front. Today has turned to be a simply fabulous day for our team.”
Nico Müller, DRAGON / PENSKE AUTOSPORT
“‘I was at the back of the grid when the restart began and I couldn’t believe the numbers. I tried to reassure myself and checked all data with my engineers. I was happier and happier as I kept climbing one position after the other. I couldn’t think of a better way to reward the team from their hard work. The result is definitely a positive surprise. Qualifying wasn’t great for us, but we managed to turn it around during the race. This is what makes Formula E so unique, its unpredictability!”
Stoffel Vandoorne, Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team
“I’m really surprised to have finished the race on the podium. The race was incredibly intense, and so much happened today. First, I was on pole, then all my qualifying times were cancelled and I had to start from last on the grid. In the race itself, I had contact, went through the gravel and had to conserve energy towards the end. Our pace was good, and our strategy proved to be the right one. The laps after the final safety car restart were crazy. I was overtaking cars left and right that had run out of energy. But that’s what is so special about Formula E – one moment you’re down, the next you’re on the podium. You should never give up. Congratulations to Nyck on his win and the whole team on this double podium. We have been strong in the last few races, and that’s the way we have to carry on.”
