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Stoffel Vandoorne
Free Practice Three // P10
Qualifying // P6 [59.270, Quarter Final Duels]
Race // P13*
Positions Gained // -7
Fastest Lap // 59.595
Championship Position // P15 [50 points]
Jake Hughes
Free Practice Three // P9
Qualifying // P11 [1:02.645, Group A]
Race // P10*
Positions Gained // 1
Fastest Lap // 59.680
Championship Position // P16 [40 points]
*pending final classification
Maserati MSG Racing
Championship Position // P8 [90 points]
It was a tough second race in Berlin for Maserati MSG Racing, leaving points on the track after a race that was focused on energy management didn’t play out the way the team was hoping for. Even though it was a strong strategy with the most likely chance of success, Jake Hughes and Stoffel Vandoorne struggled with pace and were unable to exploit the potential.
Qualifying showed the haul marks of a great session, with both drivers putting in lap times fast enough to get them through to the duels. Unfortunately for Jake, he suffered a brake failure during his final run. This not only pitched him into the tyre barrier, breaking his front suspension and ending any further participation in the session, but also resulted in the deletion of his fastest lap time due to a regulation when a driver causes a red flag. Stoffel topped the group and progressed through to the duels but the incident saw Jake start P11 on the grid when he had the pace to start higher.
Stoffel was against Oliver Rowland in his quarter final duel. It was a valiant effort, but the championship leader had the edge on him. He was second fastest of those relegated from the quarter finals, giving him a third row starting position.
Neither Jake nor Stoffel had a great start and the team decided the best strategy was to be on a long first stint, aiming to go into energy management for the first half of the race and try to pounce on anyone struggling with energy come the end of the race.
A couple of Safety Cars extended the race by three laps, and Jake and Stoffel tried to use their late Attack Modes to their advantage, but with everyone using them late the advantage was negated and progress up the field was difficult. Jake had a great, but a late Full Course Yellow stopped him from making it into the points at the chequered flag. A ten second penalty for Andretti’s Nico Mueller post-race moved Jake up to P10 to give him a point.
Maserati MSG Racing would like to express their congratulations to Oliver Rowland for securing his first FIA Formula E World Championship.
The final round of the season takes place in London with a double-header in two weeks’ time, where Maserati MSG Racing will give everything to end the season on a high.
Jake Hughes, Driver, Maserati MSG Racing: “It was a frustrating race in the end. It was a shame in the morning to have the brake failure that caused my crash. We were looking really strong, definitely in the duels and possibly fighting for pole. The guys and girls in the garage did a fantastic job to get me back out in time for the race. We left the garage with 30 seconds to spare before the pit lane closed for the race! It was a bit of a rush but the car felt rock solid, so that’s a massive credit to all the hard work from the team. The race was actually going very well. Arguably I was the strongest on energy and on the same strategy as the cars that finished on the podium, so I really believe I should have finished in the top five. Unfortunately, I think we mistimed our second Attack Mode, which in these races with the four-wheel drive now can be really detrimental. We got a point due to some penalties, but I really think we should have come away with a few more.”
Stoffel Vandoorne, Driver, Maserati MSG Racing: “Today was a difficult one. I think we were on the right strategy to save energy early on, build a massive delta to the guys in front, but unfortunately, we just lacked pace and had massive amounts of understeer. As soon as the pack accelerate, I just couldn’t make any moves and we didn’t really go anywhere. It was a real shame because we were looking quite good at some points and it really felt like we could capitalise and get some strong points with the duels performance and starting P6.”
Cyril Blais, Team Principal, Maserati MSG Racing: “Not the day we were hoping for. Overall, a disappointing weekend. We come back from a double header with just a single point which is very frustrating considering the potential we know we have. Today we had a good strategy, but the execution wasn’t great, which is something we’ll have to work on. One race weekend remains, and we’ll do what we can to end on a high to pull something strong out of the second half of the season.”
Maria Conti, Head of Maserati Corse: “Today's race concludes the penultimate weekend of Season 11 in one of the main markets for Maserati, Germany. Every race weekend, as well as an opportunity to meet our customers, is a chance to learn lessons. Our goal throughout the current season is to optimise every round, compete with the best, and pass on Maserati’s performance-oriented DNA every time we take to the grid. We continue to come closer to next year’s big event, the Trident's first 100 years in motor racing, and we’re ready to battle in the season finale in London, for what promises to be an adrenaline-packed final round and another step in the countdown to our celebrations.”
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