Sébastien Buemi masters the rain in Monaco to win from eighth on the grid.
In what was a thrilling race, which saw the drivers tackle the winding streets of Monte Carlo in the wet, it was Envision Racing’s Sébastien Buemi who came out on top to take his first victory in six years and claim the most wins of any Formula E driver.
Following a disappointing first race day in the Principality for the Swiss, who suffered a puncture during the race, it was all eyes on redemption, and he certainly delivered.
Robin Frijns battled hard from P19 on the grid, but a Full Course Yellow coming out during his final Attack Mode hampered his chances of scoring points, and he crossed the line P11.
QUALIFYING
A first-ever wet qualifying in Monaco for Formula E brought lots of excitement. Despite Robin Frijns missing out on a space in the duels during the group stages, team-mate Sebastien Buemi lit up the timing board during the 12-minute session.
Disaster almost struck when a Red Flag – caused by the McLaren of Sam Bird crashing at turn one – was brought out just as the #16 car was about to cross the line and set the fastest lap time thus far. With two minutes left of the session, Buemi had one shot to put the lap together, which he did in stunning fashion – setting the fastest lap by six tenths of a second.
He wasn’t quite able to convert that pace into the duel against Max Gunther, but classified P8 overall. Frijns was left with it all to do, starting down in P19 after a challenging session.
THE RACE
A sensible start for both drivers saw them move up one spot each from their starting positions as they figured out where the grip was on the winding street circuit.
Early Attack Modes were opted for by both sides of the garage, and they used the extra power to their advantage, with Buemi working his way up to P3 and Frijns to P14. Following the rest of the front pack taking their extra boosts, Buemi slotted into P5.
Lap 13 brought disaster for the Dutchman of Frijns, as the Full Course Yellow was activated during his final Attack Mode. Despite working his way up to P9, he was not able to maximise the benefits of the extra power.
Meanwhile, at the front, Buemi worked hard to make strong overtakes on Max Gunther, before taking his final Attack Mode and making his way past Rowland and De Vries to lead the race. From here he pulled a considerable gap of 4.3 seconds over the rest of the field.
The final laps were tense, but Buemi kept his cool and set personal best lap times which prevented any of his rivals having any chance of catching him.
After what has been a challenging start to the season for the Envision Racing squad, this win in one of the most historic circuits in motorsport is a huge boost – not just in points but morale too.
Driver Standings (after Rd7)
- Oliver Rowland, 115pts
- Antonio Felix Da Costa, 67pts
- Pascal Wehrlein, 66pts
- Taylor Barnard, 54pts
- Nyck De Vries, 52pts
- Jake Dennis, 44pts
—–
10. Sebastien Buemi, 31pts
20. Robin Frijns, 8pts
Team Standings (after Rd7)
1.,TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, 133pts
2. Nissan Formula E Team, 126pts
3. Mahindra Racing, 91pts
4. DS PENSKE, 76pts
5. NEOM McLaren Formula E Team, 70pts
6. Andretti Formula E Team, 68pts
—–
9. Envision Racing, 39pts
