Envision Racing bring home solid points during a wet Miami E-Prix, with Joel Eriksson finishing a career best in P4 and Sebastien Buemi charging through from last on the grid to P7.
A dramatic day of highs and lows for the team, after penalties in qualifying forced Buemi to start from the back of the grid, before storming through in the wet race from P20 to P7 at the line. Teammate Eriksson had his best ever weekend in Formula E, qualifying P6 and finishing P4.
The rain ascended on the Miami International Autodrome shortly before the race, giving the engineers and mechanics plenty of work to do to decide on set ups and strategy. Ultimately, the decisions made paid off with both drivers and cars performing very well to add eighteen points to the board.
This strong performance adds to the confidence that the package has improved and backing up the great pace shown in Mexico. With just a short two-week gap until the Jeddah E-Prix, the team will continue to work hard and ensure that the results are here to stay.
QUALIFYING
A mixed session for the Envision Racing squad. First up on track was Buemi in Group A, who suffered a messy 10-minute session. Traffic throughout the preparation laps led to two penalties applied to the #16 car for impeding competitors.
The team were able to demonstrate the pace in the car throughout Group B, with a smoother session for Erkisson. With such a short lap-time, the margins to progress through to the duels were incredibly tight, however Eriksson managed to put in a strong lap to finish P3 in group and into the quarter finals.
He faced Jaguar TCS Racing’s #13 of Antonio Felix Da Costa, and despite his best efforts, missed out by 2 tenths of a second – but solidifying his best qualifying result in Formula E with a P6 finish overall and a third row start on the grid.
THE RACE
As the rain continued to fall on the grid moments before the race, the race director instructed five laps under the Safety Car to inspect the track conditions. Ultimately a standing start was ruled and the race was away.
Eriksson got his elbows out at the start to get himself into P5 and maintain his position amongst experienced drivers. Meanwhile, Buemi demonstrated his intentions from the start and instantly made up several places.
The race at the front remained relatively calm for the first half, before a collision on Lap 27 between Drugovich and Da Costa momentarily unsettled things, but both cars carried on. This enabled Eriksson to gain a position and slot into P4 and remain there for the rest of the race – marking his best ever finish in Formula E.
Buemi continued to work up the order, saving his Attack Mode activations until the end to claim P7 at the line and bringing home a double points finish.
Overall, a strong race for the entire team – not just in the race but earlier in the week during the rookie session, with Zak O’Sullivan topping the timesheets in the FP0 session. The team leaves Miami with plenty of learnings to take forward to Jeddah as the all-electric world championship heads for the first double-header weekend of Season 12 with two-night races on 13 and 14 February.
Driver Standings (after Rd3)
- Nick Cassidy, 40pts
- Pascal Wehrlein, 38pts
- Jake Dennis, 37pts
- Oliver Rowland, 34pts
- Mitch Evans, 26pts
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8. Joel Eriksson, 18pts
9. Sebastien Buemi, 13pts
Team Standings (after Rd3)
1. Porsche Formula E Team, 71pts
2. Citroen Racing, 44pts
3. Mahindra Racing, 38pts
4. Andretti Formula E, 37pts
6. Envision Racing, 31pts
