Nissan e.dams worked hard in a tough and demanding 2022 Shell Recharge Berlin E-Prix double-header. The team tested various strategies throughout the weekend but ultimately struggled to find pace on the high-speed Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit.
Sébastien Buemi had a promising start in Saturday’s opening round. The Swiss qualified within the top 10, but he lost several positions at the beginning of the race due to a minor issue and crossed the finish line in P14. Maximilian Günther qualified in P17 and finished the anticlockwise variation of his home race in P18.
On Sunday, it was a challenging Round 8 as the drivers took to the abrasive track in the opposite direction. Günther and Buemi didn’t make it through to the duels phase in qualifying and started the race in P12 and P18, respectively. Buemi fought hard in his #23 Nissan Ariya and worked his way up the grid to finish P14 again. Meanwhile, Günther attempted to chase down the pack in his #22 Nissan Leaf but couldn’t find enough pace and concluded the weekend in P16.
“We came to Berlin hoping for some valuable points because we usually have good results here,” said Tommaso Volpe, general manager, Nissan Formula E, and managing director, Nissan e.dams Formula E Team. “We know that we have some limitations based on our current package, but it is a bit frustrating not to see a bigger improvement at this point in the season. The team and drivers continue to work hard to try and improve at every race, so we will keep our focus on achieving better results in the upcoming races.”
The 2021/22 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship now reaches the halfway point of the season, and the team looks ahead to the next round of the all-electric series as the drivers take to the streets of Jakarta for the very first time on 04 June 2022.
Nissan races in this all-electric world championship to bring the excitement and fun of zero-emission electric vehicles to a global audience. As part of its goal to achieve carbon neutrality across its operations and the life cycle of its products by 2050, Nissan intends to electrify every all-new vehicle offering by the early 2030s in key markets. The Japanese automaker aims to bring its expertise in transferring knowledge and technology between the racetrack and road for better electric vehicles for customers.
Sébastien Buemi said: “I’m disappointed not to score any points here in Berlin, but I didn’t have enough pace to compete with the rest of the field. A frustrating weekend for the team. In the end, I did the best I could, so I’m not completely unhappy; I now need to work with the team to see how we can improve for the next race.”
Maximilian Günther said: “It was not an easy weekend for us. I felt I did a good job during qualifying today and extracted all I could from the car. I was very close to the front and felt good going into the corners. We always knew this track would be a challenge. I tried to fight back from P12, but it was not easy and we did not have the pace. We had good attack mode phases where we gained positions, but we couldn’t score points. Nevertheless, we will come back stronger in Jakarta in two weeks.”