RACE RECAP: MONACO E-PRIX

Monaco E-Prix Update

Monaco. António Félix da Costa (POR) has been stripped of his sixth place at the Monaco E-Prix (MON), the ninth race in the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. He was excluded from the standings after the race because of a rule infringement.

Roger Griffiths (BMW i Andretti Motorsport team principal):
“This was caused by contact during the race between António and Mitch Evans. He then grabbed the steering wheel and accidentally switched to the higher power mode. He was unaware that he had done so and, as a team, we don’t receive the telemetry, so it took a little while for us to realise what had happened. That meant that he drove using too much energy for a period of time and he has been punished for this rule infringement. This was an accidental infringement but the penalty was the logical decision. As a team, we’re very disappointed with this outcome but we respect the decision made by race control.”

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Monaco. António Félix da Costa (POR) gathers more important points in the battle for the ABB FIA Formula E Championship drivers’ title. He crossed the line in sixth place in his #28 BMW iFE.18 at the Monaco E-Prix (MON), scoring eight points. This marked the sixth race in succession in which the BMW i Andretti driver has reached the top ten. His consistent performances mean that he is now fourth in the drivers’ standings, with 78 points, nine fewer than Jean-Eric Vergne (FRA, DS Techeetah), who moved to the top of the list with his Monaco win. Alexander Sims (GBR) performed well for an extensive duration in Monaco and looked to have secured a top ten place, before falling back to 15th position due to an incident shortly before the end of the race.
 
Sims and Félix da Costa started the race from sixth and eighth positions and steered clear of all the early stage battles. Some tough duels took place on the track as the race progressed. Sensible energy management helped Félix da Costa to cross the line in sixth place. A few laps before the end, Sims had a spin after a collision with Robin Frijns (NED, Envision Virgin Racing) which knocked him out of the top ten and he finished the race in 15th place.
 
Reactions to the Monaco E-Prix:
 
Roger Griffiths (BMW i Andretti Motorsport team principal):
“We had a good qualifying session with both drivers and were rewarded with good starting positions. We already knew how important that would be here. Unfortunately, António could not get past Buemi in the race and got stuck behind him. Despite his best attempts, it was impossible to overtake. However, our good energy management helped us to scored more important points. Before the incident with Robin Frijns, Alex had done a good job that did not get the points he deserved. Now we are concentrating on the BMW home event in Berlin.”
 
António Félix da Costa (#28 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result: 9th place, race result: 6th place, FANBOOST voting: 2nd place, points: 78):
“Taking the circumstances into account, sixth place is a pretty good result. I was the fastest in my qualifying group but the format meant that was only enough for eighth place on the grid. There were some tough battles in the race, and some of them were perhaps a bit too tough. In general, it was almost impossible to overtake on this track. Nonetheless, we are still in the running in the championship. That is the most important message of the day.”
 
Alexander Sims (#27 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result: 7th place, race result: 15thplace, FANBOOST voting: 17th place, points: 18):
“I was actually doing well today and I wasn’t far off recording a good result. I found a good rhythm in the first half of the race and was able to defend my top ten position well. Then the battles started to get tougher. It was a pity that the incident with Robin occurred. I defended myself while braking into turn one and I think that Robin saw a gap that wasn’t there, in my opinion.”
 
The BMW i Fleet
BMW i is “Official Vehicle Partner” of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship in Season 5. Spearheading the fleet are two Safety Cars: The BMW i8 Roadster Safety Car (combined fuel consumption: 2.0 l/100 km; combined power consumption: 14.5 kWh/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 46 g/km)*, which has been specially modified for use at the racetrack, and the BMW i8 Coupé Safety Car (combined fuel consumption: 1.8 l/100 km; combined power consumption: 14.0 kWh/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 42 g/km)*. The BMW i fleet also includes the BMW i3s (combined fuel consumption: 0.0 l/100 km; combined energy consumption: 14.3 kWh; combined CO2 emissions: 0 g/km)* as “Race Director Car” and the BMW 530e (combined fuel consumption: 2.2-2.1 l/100 km; combined energy consumption: 13.6-13.3 kWh/100 km; combined CO2 emissions: 49-47 g/km)* in its role as “Medical Car”.