SUN, SEA AND A HOME E-PRIX IN SANYA FOR DS TECHEETAH
FIA Formula E championship returns to mainland China for the first time since Season Two of the all-electric street racing series.
DS TECHEETAH is gearing up for a successful home E-Prix as the team is keen for a strong comeback following the disappointing end to the Hong Kong E-Prix where André Lotterer saw the win taken away from him on the penultimate lap when Sam Bird collided with him.
The 11-turn, 1.4 mile track in Hainan’s capital city, Sanya, will be the first E-Prix to feature a bridge crossing.
Hainan has pledged to be first southern province of China to completely phase out fossil-fuel cars by 2030, making Formula E’s presence in the province particularly significant.
Mark Preston, DS TECHEETAH Team Principal: “Hong Kong was a real disappointment for everyone in the team, the win was André’s and he really deserved it. We think Sam got away with a very light penalty considering that he hit, punctured and made André retire from the race he had been leading for 28 laps. However, we fully accept the final decision from the FIA and look forward to Sanya. We continue to stride forward and we’ve had everyone back at the factory to re-charge and prepare the Sanya E-Prix. It’s fair to say that we’re all quite motivated to claim a victory and it would even sweeter to do to it here in Sanya as it is our home race.”
Xavier Mestelan Pinon, DS Performance Director: "China is the world’s leading market for premium and electrified vehicles. As such, it is an important country for the international roll out of DS Automobiles. After getting so close to a victory in Hong Kong, the time we have had last week preparing for the Sanya E-Prix has been crucial. Everyone has worked incredibly hard and have given their best during our simulator sessions. André was able to show the way, and I thank him for his hard work. The Formula E championship is difficult, but we have all the pieces to the puzzle in our hands, and now it is up to us to put it all together.”
Jean-Éric Vergne, #25: “Once again, I had an incident filled E-Prix in Hong Kong, we just don’t seem to catch a break this season. Two incidents within two laps is just heart-breaking so we will do everything that we can to have a good E-Prix in Sanya now. It’s time to turn this bad luck around and it would be beyond good to do this at our home E-Prix.”
André Lotterer, #36: "Although Hong Kong was beyond disappointing, I’ve now put it behind me as we re-focus on the next race and I’m keener than ever to get that win. The Sanya layout features a unique combination of very tight corners in sector two in medium speed combined with load corners in sector one and three.”
