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Flag of Canada 2017 Montreal ePrix I
Montreal Layout 2016
The debuting Montreal ePrix circuit.
Race Information
Date 29 July 2017
E-Prix No. 32
Official Name 2017 Hydro-Québec Montréal ePrix
Location Flag of Montreal Montréal Street Circuit, Montréal, Québec, Canada
Format {{{format}}}
Lap length 2.745 km (1.706 mi)
Distance 35 laps / 96.075 km (59.698 mi)
Support Race {{{support}}}
Qualifying Result
Pole Sitter Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi
Team Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport
Time 1:22.869
Fastest Lap
Driver Flag of France Loïc Duval
Team Flag of the United States Dragon Racing
Fastest Lap 1:24.536 on lap 19
ePrix Result
First Second Third
Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi Flag of France Jean-Éric Vergne Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin
Winner Team Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport
Time 56:55.592
ePrix Guide
Previous Next
Flag of the United States 2017 New York City ePrix II Flag of Canada 2017 Montreal ePrix II
Post-Race Test {{{test}}}

The 2017 Montreal ePrix I, otherwise known as the 2017 Hydro-Québec Montréal ePrix, was the eleventh and penultimate round of the 2016/17 FIA Formula E Championship, staged at the Montréal Street Circuit in Montreal, Canada on 29 July 2017.[1] Located just a mile from the purpose built Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, the first ever ePrix staged in Canada could potentially have seen Sébastien Buemi crowned as Champion for the second season in succession.[1]

His main challenger, Lucas di Grassi made the better start to the weekend, sweeping to pole to effectively cut the Swiss racer's advantage down to seven points.[2] Buemi himself claimed second on the grid, although that would become twelfth when he was slapped with a ten place grid penalty, a consequence of a crash in free-practice.[2]

A reasonably clean start saw di Grassi immediately sprint clear of the field, as title rival Buemi got caught in the swarm.[3] The Swiss racer was too cautious on the brakes, received an unintentional swipe from Robin Frijns that damaged his steering, leaving him to limp around the opening lap in sixteenth.[3]

Fortunately for those looking for a fight-back Buemi was able to adapt to the problem, beginning a slow climb through the field.[3] As he did so, di Grassi steadily moved clear of second placed Stéphane Sarrazin, who was left fighting with Felix Rosenqvist for the second step on the podium.[3]

The pit window was fast approaching when Buemi finally breached the top ten, a move on Loïc Duval securing the final point for the Swiss racer.[3] Moments later and Nick Heidfeld tried a move on Duval, only for the Frenchman to push him into the wall, breaking the German's suspension while also damaging his own car.[3] Heidfeld's attempt to get to the pits faltered, meaning a Full Course Yellow was thrown to retrieve his car.[3]

With the race neutralised a couple of laps before the optimal pitstop window the entire field swept into the pits.[3] Buemi came in right behind di Grassi's teammate Daniel Abt, and the two would come to blows on the exit when the Swiss looked to have been released straight into the German's path.[3] Both then shot out of the pitlane to rejoin, only for Buemi to stamp on the brakes to avoid hitting a non-stopping Jérôme d'Ambrosio.[3]

Abt would hit the back of the Renault e.Dams, but neither driver would face retribution for the incident.[3] Heidfeld's car was cleared and the race briefly resumed as it had before, until José María López spun himself into the wall, bringing out the safety car.[3]

Once Lopez's wreckage was cleared the race restarted for the second time, with di Grassi hitting the FanBoost on the restart to hold his lead.[3] Buemi was waved past teammate Nicolas Prost early on, before Rosenqvist tagged the wall and broke his suspension, promoting the Swiss racer to fourth.[3]

Out front, meanwhile, di Grassi was having to fend off Jean-Éric Vergne for the win, the latter almost taking the position as the pair started the final tour.[3] Buemi, meanwhile, was throwing everything he could at third placed Sarrazin to get himself onto the podium, but a stout defence from the Frenchman would allow Abt and Prost to catch right onto the back of them as the final lap began.[3]

Yet, there would be no late twists on the final lap, meaning di Grassi swept across the line to claim victory, and the lead in the Drivers' Championship with one race still to go.[3] Vergne and Sarrazin claimed another double podium for Techeetah, while Buemi was furious in fourth place, picking fights with everyone when he stepped out of the car in parc ferme.[3]

Unfortunately there would be a late twist after the race, when Buemi's freshly rebuilt car failed post-race scrutineering.[3] A 4kg discrepancy in the car's weight was enough to see him disqualified from the result, meaning di Grassi would head into the final day of the Championship with an eighteen point advantage.[3]

Background[]

Although the title fight dominated the news ahead of the finale, there were two almost trivial matters that emerged in the final week of the season, concerning a future addition to the series. The source of this news would be Mercedes-Benz, who announced that they would be joining Formula E for the 2019/20 season, giving them three years to prepare their entry.[4] The programme was set to continue alongside their Formula One commitments, and meant that they would face their national rivals Audi and BMW in yet another theatre of motorsport.[4]

A Germanic Invasion[]

Porsche Logo

Porsche were set to join the FE family, becoming the fourth German manufacturer in the Series.

The second development would come on the even of the Montreal ePrix, when a fourth German car manufacturer opted to announce their intention to join the series. This manufacturer would be Porsche, one of the most successful brands in motorsport, and specifically in sportscar racing, a huge coup for Formula E, increasing the number of teams to twelve.[5] Porsche, who would unfortunately cancel their World Endurance Championship programme at the end of 2017 to focus on their FE debut, were to join in 2019/20 citing their desire to improve their electric car technology.[5]

A Montreal Magician?[]

Championship wise and incredibly, despite not turning a wheel in New York, it was still Sébastien Buemi who led the title charge, although Lucas di Grassi had managed to get within striking distance, ten points back. The Swiss racer would therefore return to action in the first Montreal ePrix with a chance of taking the title, a victory enough to see him crowned if di Grassi finished eighth or lower without taking pole or fastest lap. For di Grassi, meanwhile, it would be a case of trying to beat the Swiss racer on Saturday in order to give himself a better shot at the title on Sunday.

There were two other drivers in the title hunt at the finale, although both were dark horses as the series rolled into Montreal. Felix Rosenqvist was one of those still in the hunt, although he would need both of the leading pair to hit trouble in both of the races in Montreal. Meanwhile, Sam Bird could dream of his first FE title although he, like Rosenqvist, would need a dramatic conclusion in Canada to see his name on the role of honour.

ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport managed to fall further behind Team Championship leaders Renault e.Dams, who could now win the title in the first ePrix in Montreal. The French squad now held a 65 point advantage, and with 94 still in play the German effort could not be ruled out, although it would take a complete collapse from the double Champions to see them fail to claim a third title. Mahindra Racing and DS Virgin Racing, meanwhile, were sweeping in to challenge the German effort for second, with the former only twelve points behind and looking the stronger of the trio.

FanBoost for the penultimate round of the 2016/17 season opened on the 24th July, and would remain open until the opening stages of the race.[6]

Entry List[]

The full entry list for the 2017 Montreal ePrix I is displayed below:

2017 Montreal ePrix I Entry List
No. Name Entrant Constructor Car
2 Flag of the United Kingdom Sam Bird Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing DS Virgin DSV-02
3 Flag of Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr. Flag of China NextEV NIO NEXTEV TCR FormulaE 002
4 Flag of France Tom Dillmann Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team Venturi VM200-FE-02
5 Flag of Germany Maro Engel Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team Venturi VM200-FE-02
6 Flag of France Loïc Duval Flag of the United States Faraday Future Dragon Racing Penske 701-EV
7 Flag of Belgium Jérôme d'Ambrosio Flag of the United States Faraday Future Dragon Racing Penske 701-EV
8 Flag of France Nicolas Prost Flag of France Renault e.Dams Renault Z.E. 16
9 Flag of Switzerland Sébastien Buemi Flag of France Renault e.Dams Renault Z.E. 16
11 Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler FE02
19 Flag of Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Flag of India Mahindra Racing Mahindra M3 Electro
20 Flag of New Zealand Mitch Evans Flag of the United Kingdom Panasonic Jaguar Racing Jaguar I-Type I
23 Flag of Germany Nick Heidfeld Flag of India Mahindra Racing Mahindra M3 Electro
25 Flag of France Jean-Éric Vergne Flag of China Techeetah Renault Z.E. 16
27 Dutch Flag Robin Frijns Flag of the United States MS Amlin Andretti Andretti ATEC-02
28 Flag of Portugal António Félix da Costa Flag of the United States MS Amlin Andretti Andretti ATEC-02
33 Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin Flag of China Techeetah Renault Z.E. 16
37 Flag of Argentina José María López Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing DS Virgin DSV-02
47 Flag of the United Kingdom Adam Carroll Flag of the United Kingdom Panasonic Jaguar Racing Jaguar I-Type I
66 Flag of Germany Daniel Abt Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler FE02
88 Flag of the United Kingdom Oliver Turvey Flag of China NextEV NIO NEXTEV TCR FormulaE 002
Source:[7]

Practice[]

FP1[]

FP2[]

Qualifying[]

There would be no changes to the qualifying format ahead of the first part of the season finale, with the field split into four groups of five drivers to begin qualifying.[8] Each group would have six minutes to set a single full power lap, with the overall order made up from each driver's best effort.[8] The top five overall would then proceed to Super Pole, where they would have one shot at a full power lap on an empty circuit to try and claim pole position.[8]

Group 1[]

The opening group of the day featured the dark horse for the title, as Sam Bird headlined the quintet knowing he would need to take pole or his title challenge was over.[8] The Brit would be on his own for DS Virgin Racing, with Daniel Abt and Nelson Piquet Jr. likely to challenge the Brit to get into Super Pole.[8] The two Dragons of Loïc Duval and Jérôme d'Ambrosio completed the quintet.[8]

Temperatures had soared since the prematurely ended FP2 session, meaning grip was at a premium when Piquet led the field out onto the circuit half way through the session.[2] The mutual hold by the teams would spell disaster for d'Ambrosio, who missed the chance to set a quick lap at all after going too slow on his warm-up lap.[2] As for the rest, Piquet put together a terrible effort at the head of the field, Duval and Abt missed their FP2 marks, while Bird failed to set a representative time as his Virgin refused to go into full power mode.[2]

Group 2[]

Nicolas Prost headlined the second group of the afternoon, needing a strong result to aid his teammate's title bid.[8] Stéphane Sarrazin had the sister car in Techeetah colours in action, while the José María López was keen for a strong run out after missing the fight in New York.[8] Completing the quintet were the two Andrettis of Robin Frijns and António Félix da Costa, both hoping to be a hazard to someone other than themselves.[8]

Unsurprisingly it was the two Renault powered cars that shot to the top of the times during group two, although with Sarrazin ahead of Prost as both broke into the 1:23.000s.[2] The two Andretti's meanwhile, sandwiched the group on track, da Costa heading out first while Frijns went out last, but they would fail to impress as they only recorded times in the 1:24.000s.[2] Lopez, meanwhile, suffered an identical glitch to teammate Bird in the second Virgin, although he did beat the Brit's effort.[2]

Group 3[]

The third quintet was the main attraction of the afternoon, for the two major title protagonists Lucas di Grassi and Sébastien Buemi would go head-to-head to try and get into Super Pole.[8] The third of the title challengers was also in action in the form of Felix Rosenqvist, who would need pole to hold any hopes of a title charge going forward.[8] Jean-Éric Vergne would threaten to claim a Super Pole in the second Techeetah as usual, while Mitch Evans hoped to get a top ten spot for Jaguar.[8]

First blood of the afternoon would go to di Grassi, an ultra-precise lap seeing the Brazilian go fastest overall, a 1:23.026 the result of his efforts.[2] Yet Buemi could not be downhearted, for he was only three hundredths slower and second overall, with both looking set to go through to Super Pole.[2] Elsewhere, Evans briefly got into the top five only to be bumped by Vergne, who was set to go fastest overall until he messed up the final circuit.[2] Rosenqvist then came charging across the line to go fourth overall, leaving Prost on the bubble ahead of the final group.[2]

Group 4[]

Nick Heidfeld was the only big name in the final group of the afternoon, having looked strong enough for Mahindra Racing throughout the morning.[8] The two Venturis were wheeled out for Tom Dillmann and Maro Engel, while Oliver Turvey and Adam Carroll were looking to beat their teammates.[8]

As expected there were no major thrills from the final group, although Heidfeld cut a disappointed figure after messing up his effort, leaving him well outside the top ten.[2] That opened the door for Carroll to finish as best of the quintet, slipping in just behind teammate Evans in the overall standings, meaning it would be the best starting positions for both Jags.[2] Dillmann and Turvey both achieved their aims as they snuck into the top ten, while Engel somehow suffered the same issue that the Virgins had had earlier in the session.[2]

Super Pole[]

First out onto the circuit in Super Pole would be Prost, who was relieved that Heidfeld had messed up his effort in the group stage moments earlier.[2] The Frenchman produced a largely clean effort to record a 1:23.330, a couple of minor mistakes costing him time early on.[2] Rosenqvist followed him out, but the Swede's effort was over the moment he locked the rear axle while braking for turn one, meaning he could only manage a 1:24.351.[2]

Sarrazin caused a stir with an unusually uncontrolled effort, the Frenchman claiming a 1:23.179 to claim provisional pole.[2] Buemi then hit the circuit and went fastest overall with a 1:23.065, having simply tried to keep out of the barriers.[2] That put pressure on di Grassi to record a strong time or slip further behind the Swiss racer in the Championship, although the Brazilian would ultimately rise to the challenge.[2]

After a relatively slow opening sector di Grassi put together the fastest second sector of the weekend, hitting every apex to perfection.[2] An equally precise third sector and the Brazilian smashed Buemi's time, a 1:22.869 giving him pole and reducing the gap to the Swiss racer to seven points in the Championship.[2] The news got even better for the Brazilian when Buemi's ten place penalty was confirmed, leaving the Swiss racer in twelfth, while Prost was excluded from the Super Pole results when his car was found to be underweight.[9]

Post Qualifying[]

The final qualifying results for the 2017 Montreal ePrix I are outlined below:

2017 Montreal ePrix I Qualifying Result
Pos. No. Name Team Time Gap Grid Group
1st 11 Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:22.869 1 G3
2nd* 9 Flag of Switzerland Sébastien Buemi Flag of France Renault e.Dams 1:23.065 +0.196s 12 G3
3rd 33 Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin Flag of China Techeetah 1:23.179 +0.310s 2 G2
4th 19 Flag of Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Flag of India Mahindra Racing 1:24.351 +1.482s 3 G3
EXC 8 Flag of France Nicolas Prost Flag of France Renault e.Dams Excluded 4 G2
Super Pole
1st 11 Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:23.026 SP G3
2nd 9 Flag of Switzerland Sébastien Buemi Flag of France Renault e.Dams 1:23.053 +0.027s SP G3
3rd 33 Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin Flag of China Techeetah 1:23.138 +0.112s SP G2
4th 19 Flag of Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Flag of India Mahindra Racing 1:23.232 +0.206s SP G3
5th 8 Flag of France Nicolas Prost Flag of France Renault e.Dams 1:23.239 +0.213s SP G2
6th 25 Flag of France Jean-Éric Vergne Flag of China Techeetah 1:23.398 +0.372s 5 G3
7th 20 Flag of New Zealand Mitch Evans Flag of the United Kingdom Jaguar Racing 1:23.532 +0.506s 6 G3
8th 47 Flag of the United Kingdom Adam Carroll Flag of the United Kingdom Jaguar Racing 1:23.869 +0.843s 7 G4
9th 88 Flag of the United Kingdom Oliver Turvey Flag of China NextEV NIO 1:23.923 +0.897s 8 G4
10th 4 Flag of France Tom Dillmann Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team 1:23.931 +0.905s 9 G4
11th 6 Flag of France Loïc Duval Flag of the United States Dragon Racing 1:23.999 +0.973s 10 G1
12th 66 Flag of Germany Daniel Abt Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:24.302 +1.276s 11 G1
13th 27 Dutch Flag Robin Frijns Flag of the United States Andretti Formula E 1:24.622 +1.696s 13 G2
14th 23 Flag of Germany Nick Heidfeld Flag of India Mahindra Racing 1:24.769 +1.743s 14 G4
15th 28 Flag of Portugal António Félix da Costa Flag of the United States Andretti Formula E 1:24.805 +1.779s 15 G2
16th 37 Flag of Argentina José María López Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing 1:25.239 +2.213s 16 G2
17th 5 Flag of Germany Maro Engel Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team 1:25.369 +2.343s 17 G4
18th 2 Flag of the United Kingdom Sam Bird Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing 1:25.770 +2.744s 18 G1
19th 3 Flag of Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr. Flag of China NextEV NIO 1:26.165 +3.139s 19 G1
110% Time: 1:31.328[7]
NC 7 Flag of Belgium Jérôme d'Ambrosio Flag of the United States Dragon Racing 1:36.580 +13.554s 20 G1
Source:[7]
  • * Buemi handed a ten place grid penalty for changing a battery.[9]
  • Prost excluded from the Super Pole results after his car was found to be underweight after that session.[9]
  • d'Ambrosio failed to set a time within 110% of the fastest time in the group stages, but would race at the race steward's discretion.

Race[]

It was warm 24°C in Montreal ahead of its maiden ePrix, meaning that, as ever, it was battery temperature that was the main concern for the teams.[10] This was not aided by the relatively high track temperatures, resting at 29°C, meaning the Michelin tyres would also be at risk of overheating if drivers slid around too much.[10] Regardless, all 20 drivers would line-up on the grid, with Jérôme d'Ambrosio starting dead last after being granted permission to start.[10]

Report[]

Pole sitter Lucas di Grassi made a good start off the line, allowing him to sweep across in front of Stephane Sarrazin to secure his lead into turn one.[10] Behind, Nicolas Prost made a dismal start and got attacked by Jean-Éric Vergne, while the two Jaguars went eight side of the scrapping Renaults into the first corner.[10] The ploy would work for Mitch Evans who ended up in fourth, while in the resulting concertina behind, Sébastien Buemi lost ground after his poor qualifying result.[10]

Indeed, the Swiss racer was simply hoping to avoid contact at the first corner, and duly drove so cautiously that he ended up further down the pack.[10] Furthermore, the ploy ultimately failed, with Buemi getting attacked by Robin Frijns into turn two, only to clip the Andretti as the Dutchman dived inside.[10] The resulting contact would break the Swiss racer's steering, with Buemi having to turn slightly to the left down the straights to keep in a straight line.[10]

The rest of the opening tour was equally frantic, with José María López attacking Maro Engel into turn nine, only for the German, and Buemi, to dart past into turn ten.[10] That left the Swiss racer down in sixteenth at the end of the opening tour, as title rival di Grassi led the field with a small lead over Sarrazin and Felix Rosenqvist.[10] Behind them came Evans and Vergne, while Prost fended off the attentions of Adam Carroll and Oliver Turvey.[10]

The early stages of the race would be all about the progress of Buemi, who quickly got over his steering issues to go hunting for points.[10] Successive moves on Engel, Frijns and António Félix da Costa put the Swiss racer into twelfth by lap five, although the Swiss racer was still a few seconds off the back of the next group.[10] Ahead, Rosenqvist would lunge at Sarrazin into turn one to try and gain second, but was ultimately blocked, while Nick Heidfeld forced Tom Dillmann into a mistake at the same corner, opening the door for himself and Daniel Abt to pass the Venturi.[10]

Evans would begin to fall away from the leaders after the opening stages, ultimately dropping to fifth behind Vergne after a mistake into turn one.[10] The Kiwi then came under attack from Prost into turn four on the same lap, although the Frenchman almost lost a position to Evans' teammate Carroll into turn six.[10] That fight further condensed the pack behind the #20 Jaguar, allowing Buemi to close onto the back of Dillmann at the back of the train.[10]

Abt was another driver on the move in the Evans queue, diving past Heidfeld into turn six as the Mahindra focused on re-gen.[10] Behind, Buemi would lunge past Dillmann at the start of lap ten for twelfth, before taking a couple of laps to get into striking position behind Heidfeld.[10] Indeed, the Swiss racer would wait until lap thirteen to take the German into turn three, while ahead Abt would catch Loïc Duval sleeping at the "Bus Stop".[10]

Indeed, it was the start of a quick decline for Duval, who was powerless to prevent Buemi charging past at the start of lap fourteen, before having to defend heavily from Heidfeld.[10] Unfortunately, Heidfeld would force the issue into turn six despite Duval trying to squeeze him into the wall, resulting in heavy contact at the apex of the 90° right hander.[10] Duval was put into a spin, recovering at the back of the field, while Heidfeld had terminal suspension damage that ultimately caused him to run into the barriers at the "Bus Stop".[10]

With Heidfeld stuck in a dangerous position the stewards had no choice but to throw a Full Course Yellow, prompting everyone bar Carroll, Engel, d'Ambrosio and Duval to pit at the end of lap fifteen.[10] This would lead to some unsavoury actions in the pitlane, with Abt deliberately slowing Buemi down as they went along the pitlane, before the Renault e.Dams was released right into the path of the German as they left.[10] Buemi then sprinted out of the pits before slamming on the brakes, leaving Abt no other option but to ram into the back of him at pit-exit.[10]

The Full Course Yellow was withdrawn at the start of lap seventeen, just as Carroll and Duval, who had been hit with a drive through penalty, came in to make their stops.[10] On track, meanwhile, d'Ambrosio would get caught sleeping at the restart, with both Buemi and Abt diving past the Dragon into turn one.[10] The Belgian was duly left to fend off a double charge from the Andrettis, who almost hit each other on the brakes for turn one on lap eighteen, before peeling off to make his stop.[10]

Buemi and Abt were continuing their upward climb by taking Oliver Turvey, Buemi into the "Bus Stop" before Abt dived past at the start of the following lap.[10] Behind, Sam Bird was quietly climbing the order after a move on teammate López put him into tenth, with the Brit soon making his way past Turvey.[10] Up ahead, Prost threw a dummy at Evans into turn six to grab fifth, allowing Buemi to pull onto the back of Jaguar at the end of lap 22.[10]

Evans ultimately yielded to the charging trio of Buemi, Abt and Bird, losing out to them at turn six, the "Bus Stop" and turn one respectively, all in the space of half a lap.[10] López then took the Kiwi through turn six, only to push too hard into turn eight a few seconds later and go sliding into the barriers.[10] The DS Virgin was left with heavy damage to the left hand side, with López climbing out in frustration.[10]

The wrecked Virgin was unrecoverable without off track intervention, meaning the BMW Qualcomm i8 safety car had to be called upon on lap 25.[10] That would destroy di Grassi's three second lead out front, although tactical use of FanBoost allowed the Brazilian to sprint clear of Vergne at the restart.[10] Prost, meanwhile, would allow Buemi to go up his inside into the first corner, before sharply coming across Abt and Bird as they tried to sneak through as well.[10]

A lap after the restart and Buemi made a mistake into turn one, catching out teammate Prost who was therefore powerless to fend off Abt into the same corner.[10] Abt then launched an offensive at Buemi into turns two and three, while Bird was mugged by Evans into the latter left hander.[10] Behind, da Costa sent himself spinning at the first corner after bouncing off the side of Piquet Jr., before Rosenqvist smashed his suspension on the exit of "Bus Stop".[10]

The Swede would quickly tumble down the order with his damaged rear-end, trying to crab his way to the flag as Buemi, Abt, Prost and Bird passed in short order.[10] Bird would then go past Prost to claim sixth, having had an earlier attempt blocked into turn six, before going chasing off after Buemi and Abt.[10] The Swiss racer, in the meantime, had tried to catch onto the back of Sarrazin, although as they started the final lap it seemed as if Buemi would have to settle for fourth.[10]

However, Buemi was not going to simply cruise around in fourth, and duly sent his Renault e.Dams slithering past Sarrazin into turn six.[10] Sarrazin, however, would be stubborn in his resistance, holding on around the outside of Buemi, before squeezing the Renault towards the wall into turn seven.[10] Buemi then ran went around the outside of the Techeetah through turn seven before squeezing Sarrazin into turn eight, although Sarrazin had just enough momentum to hold onto third into turn nine.[10]

Up ahead, meanwhile, di Grassi just managed to fend off a late challenge from Vergne to claim victory, putting the Brazilian into the lead of the Championship.[10] Buemi crossed the line a furious fourth behind Sarrazin, while Abt held onto sixth ahead of Bird and Prost.[10] Evans and Frijns were next, while Rosenqvist some how managed to drag his ruined Mahindra to tenth and claim the final point.[10]

Post-race[]

As the field lined up in the pitlane after the race, Buemi would launch an incredible tirade at da Costa, believing it was the Portuguese racer that had broken his steering.[10] When da Costa questioned what he was on about, Buemi stalked further down to confront Frijns, who believed that the Swiss racer was going to thank him for not causing a bigger accident.[10] After a furious, but one sided, exchange Buemi then went off to challenge Abt, before proclaiming that both the German driver and his team ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport were "dirty".[10]

However, while Buemi was burning bridges with his post-race antics, his second, rebuilt, car was being weighed in post-race scrutineering.[3] That check saw the Renault e.Dams weigh-in 4kg lighter than it should have done, meaning that the Swiss racer was disqualified from the results.[3] That meant that Buemi would head into the final day of the season eighteen behind di Grassi, effectively handing the Championship to the Brazilian.[3]

Result[]

The final classification of the 2017 Montreal ePrix I is displayed below, with the fastest lap setter indicated in italics, and the pole sitter shown in bold.

2017 Montreal ePrix I Race Result
Pos. No. Name Team Laps Race Time Fastest lap Pts.
1st 11 Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi FanBoost Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 35 56:55.592 1:25.130 28
2nd 25 Flag of France Jean-Éric Vergne FanBoost Flag of China Techeetah 35 +0.350s 1:25.248 18
3rd 33 Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin Flag of China Techeetah 35 +7.869s 1:25.386 15
4th 66 Flag of Germany Daniel Abt Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 35 +8.592s 1:25.444 12
5th 2 Flag of the United Kingdom Sam Bird Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing 35 +8.913s 1:24.904 10
6th 8 Flag of France Nicolas Prost Flag of France Renault e.Dams 35 +10.058s 1:24.760 8
7th 20 Flag of New Zealand Mitch Evans Flag of the United Kingdom Jaguar Racing 35 +10.457s 1:25.488 6
8th 27 Dutch Flag Robin Frijns Flag of the United States Andretti Formula E 35 +15.836s 1:25.791 4
9th 19 Flag of Sweden Felix Rosenqvist Flag of India Mahindra Racing 35 +16.764s 1:25.982 2
10th 4 Flag of France Tom Dillmann Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team 35 +19.320s 1:26.215 1
11th 7 Flag of Belgium Jérôme d'Ambrosio Flag of the United States Dragon Racing 35 +20.229s 1:26.388
12th 5 Flag of Germany Maro Engel Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team 35 +22.314s 1:26.657
13th 3 Flag of Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr. Flag of China NextEV NIO 35 +23.145s 1:26.492
14th 28 Flag of Portugal António Félix da Costa Flag of the United States Andretti Formula E 35 +34.786s 1:26.106
15th 88 Flag of the United Kingdom Oliver Turvey Flag of China NextEV NIO 35 +46.996s 1:26.311
16th 47 Flag of the United Kingdom Adam Carroll Flag of the United Kingdom Jaguar Racing 35 +49.612s 1:25.400
DSQ* 9 Flag of Switzerland Sébastien Buemi FanBoost Flag of France Renault e.Dams 35 Disqualified 1:24.978
Ret 6 Flag of France Loïc Duval Flag of the United States Dragon Racing 26 Damage 1:24.536 1
Ret 37 Flag of Argentina José María López Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing 23 Retired 1:26.128
Ret 23 Flag of Germany Nick Heidfeld Flag of India Mahindra Racing 13 Accident 1:26.311
Source:[7]
  • FanBoost Indicates a driver was awarded FanBoost during the race.
  • * Buemi disqualified after his second car was found to be 4kg underweight.[3]

Milestones[]

Standings[]

There was a new Championship leader heading into the final round of the season, with Lucas di Grassi taking an eighteen point advantage over Sébastien Buemi into the finale. The latter's late disqualification meant it was the former who entered the final race as favourite, with di Grassi needing to finish fourth or higher to make it impossible for Buemi to overhaul him. Countless other scenarios would allow either one of them to win, as Sam Bird and Felix Rosenqvist dropped out of the fight.

Renault e.Dams had all but secured their third title in a row in the Teams Championship after Buemi's fourth place, although ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport were still in mathematical contention. Buemi's disqualification had made it slightly closer between the two efforts, although the latter would still need to claim a maximum score alongside a seventh place finish at a minimum. Mahindra Racing and DS Virgin Racing were engaged in a private fight for third, while Techeetah were best of the rest in fifth.

 
2016/17 Drivers' Championship
Pos. Name Pts. +/-
1st Flag of Brazil Lucas di Grassi 175 ▲1
2nd Flag of Switzerland Sébastien Buemi 157 ▼1
3rd Flag of the United Kingdom Sam Bird 110 ▲1
4th Flag of Sweden Felix Rosenqvist 106 ▼1
5th Flag of France Jean-Éric Vergne 92 ▲2
6th Flag of France Nicolas Prost 92 ▼1
7th Flag of Germany Nick Heidfeld 78 ▼1
8th Flag of Germany Daniel Abt 59 ▲1
9th Flag of Argentina José María López 50 ▼1
10th Flag of Brazil Nelson Piquet Jr. 33 ◄0
11th Flag of France Stéphane Sarrazin 32 ▲4
12th Flag of the United Kingdom Oliver Turvey 26 ▼1
13th Dutch Flag Robin Frijns 24 ▼1
14th Flag of New Zealand Mitch Evans 22 ▲2
15th Flag of France Loïc Duval 20 ▼2
16th Flag of France Pierre Gasly 18 ▼2
17th Flag of Germany Maro Engel 16 ◄0
18th Flag of Belgium Jérôme d'Ambrosio 11 ◄0
19th Flag of France Tom Dillmann 11 ▲1
20th Flag of Portugal António Félix da Costa 10 ▼1
21st Flag of the United Kingdom Adam Carroll 5 ◄0
22nd Flag of Mexico Esteban Gutiérrez 5 ◄0
23rd Flag of the United Kingdom Alex Lynn 3 ◄0
2016/17 Teams' Championship
Pos. Name Pts. +/-
1st Flag of France Renault e.Dams 267 ◄0
2nd Flag of Germany ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 234 ◄0
3rd Flag of India Mahindra Racing 184 ◄0
4th Flag of the United Kingdom DS Virgin Racing 163 ◄0
5th Flag of China Techeetah 127 ◄0
6th Flag of China NextEV NIO 59 ◄0
7th Flag of the United States Andretti Formula E 34 ◄0
8th Flag of the United States Dragon Racing 31 ◄0
9th Flag of Monaco Venturi Formula E Team 29 ◄0
10th Flag of the United Kingdom Jaguar Racing 27 ◄0

Only point scoring drivers and teams are shown.

References[]

Videos and Images:

References:

  1. 1.0 1.1 'FIA RELEASES REVISED SEASON THREE CALENDAR: DATE SWAP FOR NEW YORK CITY AND MONTREAL', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 28/09/2016), http://fiaformulae.com/en/news/2016/september/fia-releases-revised-season-three-formula-e-calendar/, (Accessed 28/09/2016)
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 'Di Grassi take pole, cuts gap to seven points', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/di-grassi-take-pole-cuts-gap-to-seven-points/, (Accessed 29/07/2017)
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 'Di Grassi wins, Buemi disqualified', fiaformuale.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/di-grassi-wins-buemi-disqualified/, (Accessed 30/07/2017)
  4. 4.0 4.1 'Mercedes-Benz to enter Formula E in Season 6', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 24/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/mercedes-benz-to-enter-formula-e-in-season-6/, (Accessed 25/07/2017)
  5. 5.0 5.1 'Porsche set to compete in Formula E from Season 6', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 28/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/porsche-set-to-compete-in-formula-e-from-season-6/, (Accessed 28/07/2017)
  6. 'FanBoost opens for first Montreal race', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 24/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/fanboost-opens-for-first-montreal-race/, (Accessed 24/07/2017)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 'Round 11 - Montreal ePrix: Results Booklet', fiaformulae.alkamelsystems.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/07/2017), http://fiaformulae.alkamelsystems.com/Results/02_2016-17/11_R11%20Montreal/78_FIA%20Formula%20E%20Championship/20_R11%20Montreal%20Booklet.pdf, (Accessed 23/05/2018) Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; name "Results" defined multiple times with different content
  8. 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 8.13 'Di Grassi and Buemi drawn together for qualifying', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/di-grassi-and-buemi-drawn-together-for-qualifying/, (Accessed 29/07/2017)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 '10-place penalty for Buemi', fiaformulae.com, (FIA Formula E, 29/07/2017), http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/news/2017/july/10-place-penalty-for-buemi/, (Accessed 29/07/2017)
  10. 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13 10.14 10.15 10.16 10.17 10.18 10.19 10.20 10.21 10.22 10.23 10.24 10.25 10.26 10.27 10.28 10.29 10.30 10.31 10.32 10.33 10.34 10.35 10.36 10.37 10.38 10.39 10.40 10.41 10.42 10.43 10.44 10.45 10.46 10.47 10.48 10.49 10.50 10.51 10.52 10.53 ABB Formula E, 'Formula E Full Race Show: 2017 FIA Formula E Hydro-Quebec Montreal ePrix - Saturday', youtube.com, (YouTube: ABB FIA Formula E Championship, 29/07/2017), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UmwA53FXNXY, (Accessed 23/05/2018)
2016/17 FIA Formula E Championship
Entrants
ABT Schaeffler Audi SportDS Virgin RacingFaraday Future Dragon RacingMahindra RacingMS Amlin AndrettiNextEV NIOPanasonic Jaguar RacingRenault e.DamsTecheetahVenturi Formula E Team
Manufacturers
ABT SchaefflerAndretti TEDSJaguarMahindra & MahindraNextEVPenskeRenaultVenturi Automobiles
Cars
Spark-Renault SRT 01E
ABT Schaeffler FE02Andretti ATEC-02DS Virgin DSV-02Jaguar I-Type IMahindra M3ElectroNextEV FormulaE 002Penske 701-EVRenault Z.E. 16Venturi VM200-FE-02
Drivers
2 Sam Bird • 3 Nelson Piquet Jr. • 4 Stéphane Sarrazin/Tom Dillmann • 5 Maro Engel • 6 Loïc Duval/Mike Conway • 7 Jérôme d'Ambrosio • 8 Nicolas Prost • 9 Sébastien Buemi/Pierre Gasly • 11 Lucas di Grassi • 19 Felix Rosenqvist • 20 Mitch Evans • 23 Nick Heidfeld • 25 Jean-Éric Vergne • 27 Robin Frijns • 28 António Félix da Costa • 33 Ma Qing Hua/Esteban Gutiérrez • 37 José María López/Alex Lynn • 47 Adam Carroll • 66 Daniel Abt • 88 Oliver Turvey
E-Prix
Hong KongMarrakechBuenos AiresMexico CityMonacoParisBerlin IBerlin IINew York City INew York City IIMontreal IMontreal II
Tests
2016 Donington Test
Related Content
FIA Formula E Championship2015/162017/18
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