RACE RECAP: Hong Kong E-Prix
Eventful race in tricky conditions: Félix da Costa in
the points in rainy Hong Kong.
· António Félix da Costa finishes tenth for BMW i
Andretti Motorsport at the Hong Kong E-Prix.
· Rain ensures the 50th E-Prix in the
history of Formula E is held in tricky conditions.
· Alexander Sims fails to finish.
Hong Kong. BMW i Andretti Motorsport was unable to back up the
impressive performances of recent races in tricky conditions at the 50th
E-Prix in the history of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. The team did,
however, manage to pick up points again in the fifth race of the season,
courtesy of tenth place for António Félix da Costa (POR). Alexander Sims (GBR) failed
to finish the Hong Kong E-Prix (CHN) after damaging his BMW iFE.18 when he hit
the crash barriers.
Repeated showers made qualifying a
major challenge. With track conditions changing all the time, the pursuit of
the best grid positions was something of a lottery at times. Sims and Félix da
Costa ultimately had to settle for 13th and 20th place.
The race was neutralised several
times after incidents and was suspended on one occasion allowing the BMW i8
Coupé Safety Car to make several appearances on track. While Sims dropped back
as the result of a number of incidents, before eventually retiring, Félix da
Costa was able to stay out of all the turmoil and steadily worked his way up
through the field – thanks partly to FANBOOST. In the final laps, his fightback
was rewarded with tenth place and one point towards the overall standings.
Reactions to the Hong Kong E-Prix:
Roger Griffiths (Team Principal BMW
i Andretti Motorsport):
“That is not the result we were looking for in Hong Kong. We arrived here
with high expectations. The circuit should actually have suited us and António
has been extremely competitive here in the past. The conditions were very
difficult and qualifying, when the track was wet at first, meant we were
playing catch-up from therein. Qualifying is the key to success in Formula E. This
weekend showed once again that it is difficult to get to the front if you start
from the middle or back of the field. Alex got off to a great start and climbed
five places. Unfortunately, he then made a mistake which saw him drop to the
back of the field. He tried to work his way back into the race, but had to
retire with a broken suspension after hitting the wall. António worked his way
through the field, but then got stuck outside the top ten. We ultimately
benefitted from retirements and managed to pick up a point. Every point helps,
but that is definitely not what we wanted to achieve here.”
António Félix da Costa (#28 BMW
iFE.18, qualifying result: 20th place, race result: 10th place,
FANBOOST voting: 2nd place, points: 47):
“It was clear after
qualifying that it was going to be difficult. Particularly at a circuit where
there are hardly any overtaking opportunities. All the safety car periods meant
that nobody needed to conserve energy and the pace of all the cars was
virtually the same. It was almost impossible to make an overtaking manoeuvre. Having
said that, we did manage to score a point. We must analyse why our pace was so
poor in the wet, especially as it was okay in similar conditions in Ad Diriyah and
at the test in Valencia. We must now concentrate fully on the next race in
Sanya.”
Alexander Sims (#27 BMW iFE.18,
qualifying result: 13th place, race result: DNF, FANBOOST voting: 14th
place, points: 18)
“That was an up and down
day. Some sessions were better than others. The pace was actually okay. In the
race, I had a fantastic opening lap. I was aggressive but considered, which
paid off. However, I then learned another lesson about Formula E: in this
series, it is so easy to make a mistake in these cars, as they are difficult to
drive at the limit. My front wheels locked under braking on lap two and I
missed the corner. My race was over from that point on. I found myself at the
back of the field again. I pushed and tested the limits, then I hit the wall
and that was the end of my race. I will try to take the positives from this and
to finally have a clean weekend. If I can do that, we will get the results that
our work actually deserves.”
The BMW i Fleet
BMW i is “Official Vehicle Partner”
of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship in Season 5. Spearheading the BMW i fleet
is the BMW i8 Coupé Safety Car, modified with BMW M components (combined fuel
consumption: 1.8 l/100 km; combined energy consumption 14.0 kWh/100 km;
combined CO2 emissions: 42 g/km)*. As well as the BMW i8 Coupé, the
BMW i fleet also includes the BMW i3s (combined fuel consumption: 0.0 l/100 km;
combined energy consumption: 14.3 kWh; combined CO2 emissions: 0
g/km)* as “Race Director Car” and the BMW 530e iPerformance (combined fuel
consumption: 2.2-2.1 l/100 km; combined energy consumption: 13.6-13.3 kWh/100
km; combined CO2 emissions: 49-47 g/km)* in its role as “Medical
Car”.
