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Race Information | ||
Date | 21 May 2016 | |
E-Prix No. | 19 | |
Official Name | 2016 BMW i Berlin ePrix | |
Location | ![]() | |
Lap length | 2.030 km (1.261 mi) | |
Distance | 48 laps / 97.440 km (60.546 mi) | |
Qualifying Result | ||
Pole Sitter | ![]() | |
Team | ![]() | |
Time | 0:57.811 | |
Fastest Lap | ||
Driver | ![]() | |
Team | ![]() | |
Fastest Lap | 0:59.067 on lap 39 | |
ePrix Result | ||
First | Second | Third |
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Winner Team | ![]() | |
Time | 53:46.086 | |
ePrix Guide | ||
Previous | Next | |
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The 2016 Berlin ePrix, otherwise officially advertised as the 2016 BMW i Berlin ePrix, was the eighth round of the 2015/16 FIA Formula E Championship, staged at the Karl-Marx-Allee Circuit in Berlin, Germany, on 21 May 2016.[1] It was the second time that Berlin hosted an ePrix, but the situation at Tempelhof Airport meant that a new circuit would be created for FE's 2016 visit.[2]
Jean-Éric Vergne proved to be the man to beat over a single lap at the Karl-Marx-Alle circuit, edging out title challenging Sébastien Buemi by 0.016s.[3] Daniel Abt also narrowly missed out on pole at his home race, with the two Mahindras ultimately excluded from Super Pole after running with illegal tyre pressures.[4]
However, Vergne's hopes of taking his maiden victory in FE would be dashed right at the start, for Buemi managed to charge past the Virgin into the first corner.[5] The Swiss racer duly blasted out the hairpin with a small lead over Vergne, while Championship leader Lucas di Grassi made ground in sixth.[5]
Vergne was not in the mood to simply roll over, however, and duly dived past Buemi at the start of lap two to reclaim the lead.[5] Those two then began to drift away from Abt in third, with the German racer coming under pressure from Sam Bird as the early laps ticked away.[5]
Buemi subsequently snatched the lead back at the end of lap six, a move that allowed Abt and Bird to close right onto their collective tail.[5] The Swiss ace then drew clear as Vergne came under attack from the German, meaning his advantage grew to two seconds in the space of two laps.[5]
Bird soon dropped out of that fight after being shown a mechanical flag due to damage at the front of his car, with the race settling down ahead of the mid-race car-swap.[5] Vergne would be the big loser in the final moments of the stint, damaging his car on a bollard as he dropped back behind Abt, and had to defend heavily from Prost and di Grassi as the pit window opened.[5]
The stops passed without issue, with di Grassi stopping a lap later than his rivals, before Bruno Senna caused a Full Course Yellow by crashing at the chicane.[5] That would have little impact on the order, however, although it did give di Grassi even more of an energy advantage over Vergne and Prost ahead.[5]
The Brazilian racer duly swept past both to move into third, before being gifted the chance to move into second as a late appearance by the BMW Qualcomm i8 safety car brought the field back together.[5] That pulled in with a few laps to go, with Buemi sprinting clear of Abt, who was trying to let his teammate di Grassi slip past unhindered.[5]
Ultimately, however, that was how the race would finish, with Buemi claiming victory, while di Grassi opted not to pass his teammate for second.[5] Prost, meanwhile, would survive to finish fourth ahead of Vergne, while Senna set the fastest lap down in fifteenth, two laps down.[5]
Background[]
The big news ahead of the Berlin ePrix was that the 2016 Moscow ePrix, set to be held on 6 May 2016, had been cancelled as a result of logistical issues surrounding the closing of roads in the Russian capital.[6] Alejandro Agag led negotiations with other cities to try to arrange a replacement once talks in Russia broke down, with Monaco emerging as a favourite to host the ninth round.[6] Yet, time constraints due to the set race date of the 4th of June meant that Monaco could not be prepared in time for the race, leaving the calendar with ten races for 2016.[6]
A Platz Parade[]
The Refugee Crisis of 2015 had seen the German authorities opt to house a large number of refugees in and around the defunct Tempelhof Airport, the previous host of the Berlin ePrix in 2015.[7] With Tempelhof unavailable, the organisers began negotiations to arrange the 2016 race somewhere else in the city, and with local authorities keen to see a race as well, a solution was quickly found.[7] The proposed new circuit would run around the Strausberger Platz, a little over a mile from the heart of the city.[7] At just over two kilometres long, the circuit will feature fourteen corners with a variety of chicanes, hairpins and a sweeping run round a roundabout.[7]
Demanding Duties[]
The entry list would also be modified for the Berlin ePrix, with Oliver Turvey missing out due to a scheduling conflict with the Super GT Championship.[8] With the Brit set to be away, NEXTEV TCR announced in mid-March that Ben Hanley would take over the seat in Germany, with Turvey returning in Moscow.[8] This, however, was reversed after an earthquake hit the region in Japan where Turvey was set to compete, meaning he would race in Berlin at the expense of his countryman.[9]
Elsewhere, René Rast was drafted into Team Aguri to replace António Félix da Costa, the Portuguese driver having a prior commitment with the DTM Championship.[10] Rast joined Formula E from numerous Endurance based Championships, with experience in both the 24 Hours of Le Mans and the 24 Hours of Daytona, both with Audi.[10] A German born racer, Rast was among a number of drivers asked by Team Aguri to race in Berlin, becoming the fifth man to race for them in 2015/16.[10]
Other teams, meanwhile, were looking to the future, as the two leading lights in the 2015/16 Formula E Championship put pen to paper for season three. On Friday morning ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport announced that Championship leader Lucas di Grassi would race for them once again in 2016/17, with Daniel Abt also returning for a third consecutive season.[11] Later that day, Renault e.Dams confirmed that title contender Sébastien Buemi, and second driver Nicolas Prost would be continuing on for a third year, e.Dams citing their success over the first two seasons as a reason for not affecting their driver line up.[12]
Parisian Projections[]
On the subject of Championships, it was German based ABT Schaeffler who arrived in Berlin with lead driver di Grassi at the top of the Formula E Championship, eleven points ahead of nearest rival Buemi. With Sam Bird some 33 points further back, the Championship was increasingly looking like a two horse race, although ahead of the Berlin race there were still 90 points left to fight for. That meant that, mathematically at least, everyone down to Robin Frijns in ninth still had a chance at the title, while also confirming that Nelson Piquet Jr. had officially failed in his title defence.
Although ABT Schaeffler had their driver leading the Drivers' Championship, they would arrive as second best in the Teams' Championship, seven points off of leaders e.Dams. Like their respective drivers di Grassi and Buemi the title battle looked set to be an exclusive affair between the German and French manufacturers, leaving DS Virgin Racing and Dragon Racing in a fight for third. All nine entrants had scored in 2016, with NEXTEV TCR remaining at the foot of the table despite their recent spike in performance.
FanBoost voting opened on the 9th of May 2016, with home hero Nick Heidfeld taking an early lead.[13] Elsewhere, it was announced that BMW would become title sponsors for the race with their "i" division.[14]
Entry List[]
The full entry list for the 2016 Berlin ePrix is displayed below:
Practice[]
FP1[]
FP2[]
Qualifying[]
With a bright and warm day in down-town Berlin, the qualifying session around the Karl Marx Alley would follow the now conventional qualifying system.[16] Two groups of five and two groups of four drivers would have six minutes to set a flying lap, with the top five overall going through to the Super Pole shootout.[16] The slowest of those five would then go out first, setting a time on an empty circuit before the fourth fastest driver is released and so on, until all of the top five have set a time to try to take pole.[16]
Group 1[]
Championship leader Lucas di Grassi would lead out the first group of the day, which was also to feature three other drivers from three different teams.[16] Robin Frijns represented Andretti Autosport in the first group, hoping to get into the top half of the field once again, while a resurgent NEXTEV TCR would dispatch Oliver Turvey for the first part of qualifying.[16] Also on circuit would be Stéphane Sarrazin, both his cars now fighting fit after his accident in Free Practice Two.[16]
Group 2[]
The first quintet of the qualifying session would see Daniel Abt hit the circuit for his home race, joined by countryman and debutante René Rast whom was getting his first taste of a Formula E qualifying session.[16] Also on circuit were the two DS Virgin Racing machines of Jean-Éric Vergne and Sam Bird, the latter hoping to make it three poles in a row after his impressive one lap pace throughout the season.[16] Rounding out the group would be Nicolas Prost, the Frenchman looking to continue his recent return in form with a strong qualifying session to support his team mate's title challenge.[16]
Group 3[]
A second quintet would hit the circuit as group three, with almost all of the focus on Nick Heidfeld as he held the majority of home hopes for pole, despite his slightly inferior Mahindra built machine.[16] Also on circuit would be Jérôme d'Ambrosio, hoping for a return to his form early in the season, while the sister Venturi built car of Mike Conway would also be on circuit.[16] Completing the group would be Simona de Silvestro and Nelson Piquet Jr., both of whom would be entertaining hopes of a top ten grid slot after impressive runs in practice.[16]
Group 4[]
The only man who seemed to have a hope of stopping di Grassi's charge to the title found himself in group four, Sébastien Buemi with the advantage of knowing what time he needed to get into the shootout.[16] The Swiss racer, however, would have to overcome his previously poor form, amid a four car group that featured Loïc Duval who had consistently shown strong one lap pace.[16] Rounding out the group phase would be Bruno Senna and Ma Qing Hua, the latter hoping to defeat new team mate Rast despite both having little experience in Formula E, in stark contrast to their qualifying rivals.[16]
Super Pole[]
Post Qualifying[]
After qualifying, both Mahindra Racing cars of Senna and Heidfeld were excluded from the qualifying result in post-qualifying scrutineering.[4] Both cars were found to have been running with tyre pressures below the minimum limit set by Michelin, meaning both cars were running with an illegal specification.[4] Sarrazin and d'Ambrosio were also excluded from the result with a similar discrepancy.[4]
The final qualifying results for the 2016 Berlin ePrix are outlined below:
2016 Berlin ePrix Qualifying Result | |||||||
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Pos. | No. | Name | Team | Time | Gap | Grid | Group |
1st | 25 | ![]() |
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0:57.811 | — | 1 | G2 |
2nd | 9 | ![]() |
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0:57.827 | +0.016s | 2 | G4 |
3rd | 66 | ![]() |
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0:57.852 | +0.041s | 3 | G2 |
EXC* | 21 | ![]() |
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0:58.303 | 15 | G4 | |
EXC* | 23 | ![]() |
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0:59.085 | 16 | G3 | |
Super Pole | |||||||
1st | 9 | ![]() |
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0:57.322 | — | SP | G4 |
2nd* | 21 | ![]() |
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0:57.591 | +0.269s | SP | G4 |
3rd | 25 | ![]() |
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0:57.603 | +0.281s | SP | G2 |
4th* | 23 | ![]() |
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0:57.736 | +0.414s | SP | G3 |
5th | 66 | ![]() |
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0:57.798 | +0.476s | SP | G2 |
6th | 2 | ![]() |
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0:57.838 | +0.516s | 4 | G2 |
7th | 1 | ![]() |
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0:58.026 | +0.704s | 5 | G3 |
8th | 8 | ![]() |
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0:58.028 | +0.706s | 6 | G2 |
9th | 88 | ![]() |
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0:58.118 | +0.796s | 7 | G1 |
10th | 11 | ![]() |
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0:58.183 | +0.861s | 8 | G1 |
11th | 6 | ![]() |
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0:58.298 | +0.976s | 9 | G4 |
12th | 28 | ![]() |
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0:58.654 | +1.332s | 10 | G3 |
13th | 12 | ![]() |
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0:58.687 | +1.365s | 12 | G3 |
14th | 27 | ![]() |
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0:58.742 | +1.420s | 14 | G1 |
15th | 55 | ![]() |
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0:58.756 | +1.420s | 15 | G2 |
16th | 77 | ![]() |
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0:59.301 | +1.979s | 16 | G4 |
110% Time: 1:03.054[15] | |||||||
EXC† | 7 | ![]() |
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0:58.501 | 18 | G3 | |
EXC† | 4 | ![]() |
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0:58.740 | PL | G1 | |
Source:[15] |
- * Senna and Heidfeld had all of their qualifying times deleted for using illegal tyre pressures.[4]
- † d'Ambrosio and Sarrazin both had their group times deleted for using illegal tyre pressures.[4]
Race[]
Ahead of the race Venturi announced that Stéphane Sarrazin would not be taking part in the ePrix, although as the start time approached his car was being pushed to the end of the pitlane, meaning he would, surprisingly, be taking part in the race. Elsewhere, Mahindra Racing were hoping for good fortune having been put to the back of the field after qualifying, while at the front, all eyes were on Sébastien Buemi, as he looked to snatch the lead of the race from Jean-Éric Vergne at the start.
Report[]
Off the line, a good start saw Vergne hold hopes of converting pole into a lead, only for Buemi to swing down the inside of the DS Virgin Racing to take the lead into the first corner. As those two came through the hairpin the rest of the field bunched up behind them, with Lucas di Grassi gaining two places through the first turn by going to the inside of the hairpin turn. That move was in stark contrast to Nelson Piquet Jr., who got stuck on the outside into the first corner before getting into a slide as he picked up the power on exit, causing him to lose time.[5] The rest of the lap saw a largely settled field, although a mistake by Bruno Senna saw him smack into the back of René Rast, causing bodywork damage to both cars.[5]
Onto lap two and Buemi was caught sleeping, as Vergne dived down the inside of the Swiss racer into turn one before getting the car stopped and turned on the apex of the hairpin. Further down, Senna swung into the pits for a front wing change, while victim Rast continued with his damaged rear wing, battling away with team mate Ma Qing Hua and Jérôme d'Ambrosio for thirteenth. Back with the leaders and Sam Bird was attacking the back of Daniel Abt for third, although the Brit only succeeded in picking up minor front wing damage from his attempted move into turn one.[5]
The pace settled down after the first two laps, although a civil war was brewing at Andretti Autosport, as Simona de Silvestro and Robin Frijns battled at the lower end of the points. This period which also saw Rast shown a mechanical flag for his damage, proved to be a brief period of calm, as Vergne suddenly found himself down in second, Buemi diving past the Frenchman into turn ten on lap six.[5] That move also opened the door to Abt, although the German found it difficult to use his extra momentum through the final sector, with Vergne just managing to hold on to second.
Within two laps, Buemi was almost two seconds clear with fastest lap, as Vergne defended heavily from Abt, allowing Bird, Nicolas Prost and di Grassi to catch up. Bird needed a strong result in Berlin, regardless of what happened to di Grassi and Buemi, to keep his slim title hopes alive, and it seemed to be all over as, on lap nine, the Brit was shown a mechanical flag for his front wing damage.[5] DS Virgin decided to argue the point as Oliver Turvey was handed the same penalty in his NextEV TCR machine, although, ultimately, they had to surrender to the stewards wishes and so Bird tumbled down the order.[5]
As Virgin argued, their leading driver Vergne lost out, Abt charging down the inside of the Frenchman into turn one, completing a move that had been on for over five laps. Just moments earlier, Frijns had completed a similar move on Loïc Duval for eighth, the Dutchman taking advantage of a rear axle lock up from the Frenchman into the hairpin to take the position.[5] That move was then promoted to seventh when Turvey came in for his front wing change, and eventually for sixth when Bird angrily pulled in.
As one quarter distance passed, Rast stunned the field by setting the fastest lap, the German becoming the first man to set a time under one minute during the ePrix. With Bird down in fourteenth and di Grassi stuck in fifth, things seemed to be heading delightfully in Buemi's favour, particularly when the Swiss racer was also awarded FanBoost for the second half of the race.[5] Also gaining fan power were Nick Heidfeld, who was doing a good job of climbing up the order, and Stéphane Sarrazin, the Frenchman having a quiet race in the middle of the pack.[5]
Elsewhere, de Silvestro claimed seventh place away from Duval, pulling a copy cat move on the Frenchman as her Dutch team mate had done. That allowed Mike Conway and Heidfeld to draw ever closer to the ailing Dragon, although Conway's early attempts to pass Duval saw him slip further into the clutches of the German. Their battle would rumble on, until a lock up from Duval almost allowed Conway to get by, although the attempt faltered and allowed Heidfeld to get alongside as the two exited the hairpin. They continued to be side-by-side as the chicane loomed closer, and it was Conway whom ultimately had to cede the position as Heidfeld had the inside line.
As Heidfeld set off after Duval, whom would fall to the German just a couple of laps later, attention turned to the front of the field, as Vergne desperately defended from Prost. The Frenchman had already tried several times to take the position, and his latest move into turn one was successfully blocked by his countryman, as ABT Schaeffler came on the radio. They confirmed to di Grassi that he would need to try to save energy, as they attempted to gain an extra lap on their rivals ahead. With the stops approaching, and 5% battery life needed to complete a single lap, di Grassi was just on the edge of doing so, although serious saving would be needed.[5]
There would be ever increasing tension in their fight, as Vergne clipped the bollards on the inside of the chicane, braking the side pod off of his front wing, meaning he was duly called in with a mechanical flag.[5] Fortunately for the Frenchman the three lap maximum response time to the mechanical flag carried into the pit window, meaning that was not an issue.[5] What was an issue for the DS Virgin man was Prost, whose attacks continued to force small mistakes from the pole sitter, while also allowing di Grassi to save energy and stay with them for third.[5] Frijns was also closing in on the group, while his team mate de Silvestro became the latest victim of Heidfeld's charge from the back, the German now into seventh.[5]
Lap 24 marked half distance and also the first of the scheduled stops, although the drama was still centred on Vergne as the Frenchman still defended heavily from Prost.[5] As they came through to the chicane Vergne locked up under pressure from Prost, and so went for a bounce over the first curb, launching his car slightly into the air.[5] His car then came tumbling down, just as his front wing crossed over the inside curb of the second part of the chicane, meaning that the already damaged wing shattered.[5] Prost went past as Vergne recovered, with di Grassi unfortunate to get caught behind the Virgin as the Frenchman limped back to the pits, as Buemi, Abt and Prost all swept in to complete their stops, opening the flood gates.[5]
With di Grassi leading a quartet of cars around for an extra tour, Duval, Conway and Sarrazin also remaining on track, a significant amount of debris was building up at the chicane, meaning it was inevitable that a Full Course Yellow would be thrown in the near future.[5] As di Grassi and co entered the pits, Senna proved that point, steaming into the chicane and spinning on the various pieces of carbon fibre littering the exit, although the officials waited until the entire field had completed their stops.[5] A lap after di Grassi launched out of the pitlane, rejoining between Prost and Vergne, the FCY was thrown, neutralising the race with Buemi ten seconds up the road from Abt with just under half the race still to go.[5]
One lap later and the race was being run at full throttle once again, with di Grassi now holding a usable energy advantage over rivals Prost and Abt, although the latter was drawing in Buemi ahead. Behind that group came Vergne, now running in a healthy, but lonely, fifth place, while Heidfeld drew in Frijns for sixth. Even further back, Bird was drawing attention by taking Ma Qing Hua for thirteenth, before launching an attack on d'Ambrosio for twelfth, just as Buemi drew up behind to lap them.[5] Cunningly, Bird allowed the race leader to pass with relative ease, before tucking his Virgin right behind the Renault as Buemi started to charge on d'Ambrosio. Bird remained in Buemi's wake for the rest of the lap, but a mistake through the final corner saw him drop too far back, meaning d'Ambrosio could allow Buemi through without any risk of losing out to Bird.[5] The Englishman still tried anyway into turn one, but it would be another lap before he could elbow his way past the struggling Belgian at the same place.
Heidfeld, meanwhile, had drawn close enough to Frijns that he thought he could use his FanBoost to pull a move into turn one, although he came from too far back to successfully claim the inside line, meaning it was status quo for sixth. A few seconds back and de Silvestro and Sarrazin were battling for tenth, with a dive down the inside of turn one allowing Sarrazin to pull level with de Silvestro on the exit of turn one.[5] The two went toe-to-toe as they approached the chicane, and it was Sarrazin who braked latest, only to skip across the inside of the chicane and bounce across the curb, meaning he had to hand the position back.[5] Their battle would continue, but would soon be a fight for ninth as Duval swept into the pitlane to serve a penalty for excessive energy use.
In the mean time, di Grassi had drawn onto the back of Prost, and attempted an optimistic move around the outside of turn one with ten laps to go, a move which Prost was easily able to swat away.[5] Yet, the next time through, di Grassi went to go to the outside once again prompting Prost to cover that line into the hairpin. That, however, was a feint, and di Grassi suddenly shot to the inside of the track as they braked for turn one, snatching third place away from Prost to now sit behind his team mate Abt.[5] The question now became whether the German based team would forfeit a second place finish for their German driver Abt to allow di Grassi to hold onto his Championship lead, with Buemi currently holding fastest lap to give him a one point advantage if things stayed as they were.[5]
Moments later, however, the situation was seemingly beyond both teams' reach, as events transpired to take attention away from the title fight.[5] First off was Senna, whom set a stunning time of 0:59.067 to take the fastest lap points, all the more remarkable given his troubles during the race.[5] That came just seconds before Duval made his final mistake of the day, losing the rear of his car through the tricky run around the fountain, smacking heavily into the barrier and hence breaking his suspension.[5] The Dragon driver was out, and with his car stuck at the side of the road, and no clear exit within pushing distance, the safety car was called with six laps to go so the car could be recovered.[5]
As the field gathered behind the safety car, news emerged that di Grassi was under investigation for speeding under the FCY earlier in the race, although with time pressing the incident would be investigated after the race.[5] This was made all the more important as swift work from the track marshals saw Duval's car moved away swiftly, alleviating fears that the race would end under the safety car.[5] Ergo, there would be a two lap dash to the finish to decide the Berlin ePrix, with Buemi set to get the race back under way as the safety car pulled in.[5]
A clean get away for Buemi and he was streaking away from Abt, as Bird pulled to one side to allow the leaders past without incident.[5] Prost was unable to attack di Grassi, and it soon became clear that they would have a chance to swap their cars around to give di Grassi second place.[5] A cryptic message over the radio to Abt would infer that he was to allow di Grassi by, although the German did not respond immediately, suggesting that he had either not heard, or was simply ignoring the message.[5] The answer was soon revealed, with Abt trying to gesture to his team mate to allow him by but the Brazilian, for an unknown reason, did not take the invitation, meaning the order remained Buemi, Abt, di Grassi as the cars began the final lap.[5]
And, a lap later, the order remained unchanged, with Buemi sweeping home to claim his third win of the season and, crucially, close to within a single point of di Grassi in the title battle. Abt claimed a jubilant second at his home race, later claiming he wanted to let di Grassi through despite not receiving a clear order to do so, while di Grassi himself was satisfied with a podium despite his difficult qualifying session.[5] A penalty did not materialise after the race for the Brazilian regarding the FCY incident, meaning his third place was confirmed, and that he and Buemi would go to London as the only two drivers in the title hunt.[5]
Result[]
The final classification of the 2016 Berlin ePrix is displayed below, with the fastest lap setter indicated in italics, and the pole sitter shown in bold.
2016 Berlin ePrix Race Result | |||||||
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Pos. | No. | Name | Team | Laps | Race Time | Fastest lap | Pts. |
1st | 9 | ![]() ![]() |
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48 | 53:46.086 | 0:59.209 | 25 |
2nd | 66 | ![]() |
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48 | +1.767s | 0:59.950 | 18 |
3rd | 11 | ![]() |
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48 | +2.381s | 0:59.793 | 15 |
4th | 8 | ![]() |
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48 | +3.328s | 1:00.007 | 12 |
5th | 25 | ![]() |
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48 | +4.927s | 1:00.045 | 13 |
6th | 27 | ![]() |
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48 | +6.501s | 1:00.208 | 8 |
7th | 23 | ![]() ![]() |
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48 | +7.700s | 1:00.607 | 6 |
8th | 12 | ![]() |
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48 | +8.305s | 0:59.901 | 4 |
9th | 28 | ![]() |
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48 | +12.473s | 1:00.582 | 2 |
10th | 4 | ![]() ![]() |
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48 | +13.241s | 1:00.496 | 1 |
11th | 2 | ![]() |
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47 | +1 Lap | 1:00.229 | |
12th | 88 | ![]() |
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47 | +1 Lap | 0:59.898 | |
13th | 1 | ![]() |
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47 | +1 Lap | 1:00.567 | |
14th | 77 | ![]() |
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47 | +1 Lap | 1:01.957 | |
15th | 21 | ![]() |
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46 | +2 Laps | 0:59.067 | 2 |
16th | 7 | ![]() |
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45 | +3 Laps | 0:59.070 | |
NC* | 55 | ![]() |
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42 | +6 Laps | 0:59.357 | |
Ret | 6 | ![]() |
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39 | Accident | 1:00.108 | |
Source:[15] |
Indicates a driver was awarded FanBoost during the race.
- * Rast was not able to be classified as a finisher as he failed to complete 90% of the race distance.[15]
Milestones[]
- Second Berlin ePrix to be staged.
- Début race for René Rast.
- Jean-Éric Vergne claimed the third straight pole position for DS Virgin Racing.
- Sixth victory for Sébastien Buemi.
- e.Dams secured their seventh ePrix victory as an entrant.
- Third victory for Renault as a powertrain supplier.
- Bruno Senna recorded his first fastest lap.
Standings[]
Victory for Sébastien Buemi swung the momentum of the Championship in his favour as the field headed to the season finale in London, the Swiss driver ending Lucas di Grassi's win streak and, crucially, closing the gap to one point. Their totals of 141 and 140 also meant that the title fight was now an exclusive duel between the two of them, Sam Bird now 59 points back with 60 still to argue over. Mathematically of course, the Brit still remained in the title fight, but would require two perfect scores, with both Buemi and di Grassi failing to claim a point, to take the title, leaving him to try to secure third place in the final two races.
Like the Drivers' Championship, the Teams' Championship was also a tight run affair, Renault e.Dams narrowly outscoring ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport to extend their lead to eleven points. e.Dams also broke the 200 point barrier for the second season in succession in Berlin, an impressive feat despite their troubles in mid-season, while ABT Schaeffler ensured that they would also hit the 200 mark with even mediocre points at the finale. DS Virgin Racing and Dragon Racing, meanwhile, would go to London just seven points apart in their battle for third, with a similar gap separating Mahindra Racing and Andretti. At the back of the field remained NEXTEV TCR, the Chinese backed outfit failing to score once again.
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Only point scoring drivers and teams are shown.
References[]
Videos and Images:
References:
- ↑ 'WMSC reveals dates for season two Formula E calendar', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 10/07/2015), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2015/july/wmsc-reveals-dates-for-season-two-formula-e-calendar.aspx, (Accessed 10/07/2015)
- ↑ 'Berlin, Germany', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/calendar/2016-berlin.aspx, (Accessed 21/03/2016)
- ↑ 'Vergne takes pole in Berlin', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 21/05/2016), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/vergne-takes-pole-in-berlin/, (Accessed 18/08/2018)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 'Both Mahindras drivers sent to back of the grid', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 21/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/both-mahindra-drivers-sent-to-back-of-the-grid/, (Accessed 21/05/2016)
- ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 5.16 5.17 5.18 5.19 5.20 5.21 5.22 5.23 5.24 5.25 5.26 5.27 5.28 5.29 5.30 5.31 5.32 5.33 5.34 5.35 5.36 5.37 5.38 5.39 5.40 5.41 5.42 5.43 5.44 5.45 5.46 5.47 5.48 5.49 5.50 5.51 5.52 5.53 5.54 'Buemi win cuts di Grassi's lead to just one point', fiaformula.com, (FIA Formula E, 21/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/buemi-win-cuts-di-grassi-s-lead-to-just-one-point/, (Accessed 21/05/2016)
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 'MOSCOW NO MORE', current-e.com, (Current E, 06/05/2016), http://current-e.com/chatter/moscow-no-more/, (Accessed 07/05/2016)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 'New central location for Berlin ePrix', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 15/02/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/february/new-central-location-for-berlin-eprix.aspx, (Accessed 21/03/2016)
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 'Ben Hanley to race for NEXTEV TCR in Berlin', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 17/03/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/march/ben-hanley-to-race-for-nextev-tcr-in-berlin.aspx, (Accessed 21/03/2016)
- ↑ 'Turvey to race for NEXTEV TCR in Berlin', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 02/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/turvey-to-race-for-nextev-tcr-in-berlin/, (Accessed 18/05/2016)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 'Rast replaces da Costa at Team Aguri', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 18/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/rast-replaces-da-costa-at-team-aguri/, (Accessed 20/05/2016)
- ↑ 'ABT retains drivers for season three', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 20/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/abt-retains-drivers-for-season-three/, (Accessed 20/05/2016)
- ↑ 'Renault e.Dams confirm Buemi and Prost for 2016/17', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 20/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/renault-edams-confirm-buemi-and-prost-for-201617/, (Accessed 20/05/2016)
- ↑ 'FanBoost open for Berlin ePrix', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 09/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/fanboost-open-for-berlin-eprix/, (Accessed 19/05/2016)
- ↑ 'BMW i announced as title sponsor for Berlin ePrix', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 17/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/bmw-i-announced-as-title-sponsor-for-berlin-eprix/, (Accessed 18/05/2016)
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 'Round 8 - Berlin ePrix: Results Booklet', fiaformulae.alkamelsystems.com, (FIA Formula E, 2015), http://fiaformulae.alkamelsystems.com/Results/01_2015-16/08_Berlin/71_FIA%20Formula%20E%20Championship/201605211607_Germany_Booklet.pdf, (Accessed 17/08/2018)
- ↑ 16.00 16.01 16.02 16.03 16.04 16.05 16.06 16.07 16.08 16.09 16.10 16.11 16.12 16.13 16.14 'Qualifying group lottery results', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 21/05/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/may/qualifying-group-lottery-results/, (Accessed 21/05/2016)