With just two rounds and three races left in the 2017-18 FIA Formula E Championship season, Jean-Eric Vergne and the TECHEETAH team are looking increasingly to wrap up the drivers’ and teams’ championships this year. A win in the Paris ePrix and a third-place finish in the Berlin ePrix have resulted in the Frenchman holding a 40-point lead over DS Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird.
The early leaders in the championship, Felix Rosenqvist and Mahindra Racing, are now well adrift of the lead, thanks to eighth and eleventh finishes for Rosenqvist in Paris and Berlin, respectively.
In fact, Rosenqvist is in danger of being leapfrogged by Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler’s Daniel Abt, who won in Berlin and now lies just one point behind in fourth place.
Abt led the Berlin ePrix from the front after clinching pole position to pick-up his second win of the season after standing on the top step in Mexico City earlier this year.
Not only did Abt collect three extra points for posting the quickest time in qualifying, he earned an additional point for fastest lap, taking the spoils and gathering the maximum amount of points on offer.
Abt was barely troubled throughout the race, with only a slow pit-stop causing added pressure from behind when exiting the pitlane. He lost three seconds compared to his team-mate in the mid-race car swap, closing the gap to under a second when returning to the track.
Lucas Di Grassi had to settle for second place and couldn’t mount a serious challenge against Abt, who crossed the chequered flag over six seconds behind.
Audi Sport’s 1-2 finish is the second in the history of Formula E, with TECHEETAH the only other team to manage the feat in Santiago earlier this season. Now Audi can add their name to the list, and what’s even sweeter is that they have achieved it on their home soil.
The German outfit has vaulted up the table and now sits second in the team standings in a bid to chase down TECHEETAH as the championship approaches its climax.
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