Paris ePrix News Letter
The Andretti Formula E Team continued to show progress at the Paris ePrix April 23. The Parisian course took place around the Tomb of Napoleon, a former military hospital, in the heart of Paris. The circuit was 1.93 kilometers making it the shortest track in Season 2 but none less exciting.
The team showed the strides it has made over the season with Robin Frijns again encroaching on Super Pole by nearly missing by the top five by 65 one-hundredths of a second. Frijns began the race from the sixth position and dropped back to ninth on the start. However, through the course of the race Frijns regained positions.
The Dutch driver worked his way back to and competitor Antonio Felix da Costa ensured Frijns would have to work to keep it. Frijns and da Costa battled throughout a majority of the race, the friendly rivalry seemingly coming to a crescendo near the last few laps of the race. da Costa was driving in Frijns’ mirrors, surely hoping for Frijns to make a mistake. But no mistake came from Frijns, he remained cool and steady as he completed lap after lap.
Their battle came to an early halt when da Costa’s teammate Ma Qing Hua hit the wall with five laps remaining. The race was completed under caution. Frijns crossed the start/finish line seventh overall in his No. 27 Amlin Andretti car.
Simona de Silvestro had a different battle of her own over the weekend in Paris. de Silvestro spent Saturday fighting a stomach illness, resting in between each on-track session. The Iron Maiden never made excuses; she kept her head down and focused on the challenges ahead.
De Silvestro took the track for qualifying in Group 3 and delivered one of her most promising performances to date. At the end of her session she was sitting 10th overall. However, the competitors remaining in Group 4 bested de Silvestro and she started the race from the 12th position.
Similar to her teammate de Silvestro struggled at the start, falling back in the field behind rookie Hua. The Paris circuit provided limited areas for passing that wouldn’t cause a driver to over shoot their energy target. de Silvestro continued her fight, looking for opportunities while Hua made his car as wide as possible on the circuit. Luckily, de Silvestro stayed out of harms way when Hua hit the wall. She brought her No. 28 Amlin Andretti car back home and finished the Paris ePrix 15th.
The Andretti Formula E Team next heads to Berlin, Germany for Round 8 of competition on Saturday, May 21. The Berlin ePrix will take place in Mitte district of the capital near the Alexanderplatz. The course features 11 turns stretching over 2.03 kilometers.
