- Mitch Evans records sixth place finish at Berlin E‑Prix
- Nelson Piquet Jr demonstrates overtaking ability and efficiency of the Jaguar I‑TYPE 2 and narrowly misses out on a top ten finish
- Panasonic Jaguar Racing now head to Switzerland for the inaugural Zurich E‑Prix
Berlin, Germany, Saturday 19 May 2018: Panasonic Jaguar Racing returned to the points today with a hard fought sixth place finish at the Berlin E‑Prix at Tempelhof Airport circuit.
Before the race, Panasonic Jaguar Racing discovered Mitch Evans was unable to provide radio feedback however he could still hear the team’s communications. Despite this, he brought his Jaguar I‑TYPE 2 home higher than his qualifying position of ninth to demonstrate his natural racing ability and the strong team dynamic that exists between the driver and engineers.
Mitch and team mate Nelson Piquet Jr instantly gained places on the opening laps and settled into their race strategies on the notoriously hard temporary Templehof circuit. During one of the longest races of the championship, Mitch consistently matched the energy levels of the race leaders but was unable to break into the top five.
During the latter stages of the race Nelson’s smooth driving style and his ability to conserve energy was on full display. In the last five laps Nelson jumped from 13th to tenth in a series of skilful overtaking manoeuvres. As he battled for ninth on the last lap he overshot turn one and lost a number of places. He rejoined the circuit in 12th place a position he held to the finish.
Panasonic Jaguar Racing now move on to Switzerland for the inaugural Zurich E‑Prix, the tenth E‑Prix of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship, with Mitch sitting seventh and Nelson eighth.The British team retain fifth place in the teams standings.
James Barclay, Team Director, Panasonic Jaguar Racing: “After a tough day it is good to be leaving Berlin with a points finish but it could have been a better day for the team. Both Nelson and Mitch raced well and with just three remaining E‑Prix this season the whole of Panasonic Jaguar Racing are determined to finish strongly.”
Mitch Evans, #20: “Finishing in the points is the best we could have hoped for after a tough day. I was feeling optimistic before we started and thought we had a good chance. We haven’t felt massively comfortable with the set up all day but I’m happy with the race and taking points home is a solid result.”
Nelson Piquet Jr, #3: “A hard weekend where we struggled to get the best out of the car. The race was promising and we were due to finish in the points before my last lap incident. We finished with good pace and look forward to challenging higher up the grid in Zurich.”
FanBoost opens for the Zurich E‑Prix at 17:00 BST on Tuesday 5 June and closes 15:10 GMT on Sunday 10 June.
Tweet your boost using #MitchEvans or #NelsonPiquetJr and #FanBoost, or visit: http://fanboost.fiaformulae.com/
Further information
Adrian Atkinson, Global PR Manager, Panasonic Jaguar Racing
Email: aatkins5@jaguarlandrover.com
Notes to Editors
ABOUT PANASONIC JAGUAR RACING
Jaguar returned to racing in October 2016, becoming the first premium manufacturer to join the all‑electric FIA Formula E Championship street racing series.
Jaguar’s Formula E programme will create tangible R&D benefits for the electrification of future Jaguar Land Rover road cars and is designed around the team’s founding principle, ‘Race to Innovate’.
Manufacturers can design their own powertrain, which includes the motor, transmission, inverter and rear suspension. Common components across all teams to control costs include the carbon fibre chassis and battery. The focus is on developing electric vehicle powertrains.
Beyond its all‑electric concept, Formula E is unique in the world of motorsport for its choice of venues. With the exception of the Mexico E‑Prix, every round of the championship takes place on temporary street circuits in the centre of the world’s major cities. All track action including practice, qualifying and racing takes place in a single day. Beginning on December 2, the 2017/18 calendar includes 12 races in 10 cities, including double‑header races in Hong Kong and the finale in New York.
