Competitively Back to Racing as Formula E Returns in Berlin

It was a weekend of mixed fortunes for Maximilian during his first home race weekend this season, with his pace and the package of the car showing a lot of promise but still unable to return points from the Berlin EPrix double header. There were lots of positives to take away from the weekend and learnings that will be implemented at the next race double header in Monaco.

The first race of the weekend saw the return of Pit Boost, an element of the race that changes the strategy that teams will go for. With the known high tyre management of the Berlin EPrix, it was another factor that Maximilian and DS PENSKE had to consider going into the race. Practice was strong, and both Maximilian and his teammate showcased the potential of the DS-ETENSE FE25, giving them a positive outlook when it came to qualify.

It was extremely close to qualify for the duels, and unfortunately for Maximilian it was those couple of thousandths that were left on track that saw he out in the Group Stages. His P6 in Group B placed him P11 for the start of the race.

The start worked in Maximilian’s favour, and with a great launch off the line he was up into the top ten in the first lap. The team helped manage the tyres as Maximilian cut through the field, making it to the front and positioning himself well to be in a position to attack the front runners after the Pit Boost stops.

It was the Pit Boost that put Maximilian on the back foot, neither trying to undercut or overcut when he came into the pits for his mandatory stop. This left Maximilian and DS PENSKE a little in no man’s land and with a lot of positions to make up to get back into the points. Although a late Attack Mode deployment gave Maximilian the edge on his competitors around him, it was marginally not enough to secure some points from the race.

Going into Sunday’s race, where Pit Boost was traded for two Attack Modes, DS PENSKE and Maximilian had a clearer idea of the strategy they were aiming to implement. Focus was on qualifying, and a P2 in the final practice session gave Maximilian the confidence he needed to go into the one-lap shootout.

As is the way with FIA Formula E, the Group Stage in qualifying is highly competitive and any small thing can be the difference between making it to duels and missing out. For Maximilian in the second qualifying of the weekend, it was tyre temperatures. With the Berlin circuit being so sensitive for tyres, the wrong temperature put him on the back foot, and again he found himself qualifying 11th.

When it came to the race start, Maximilan had to take P14 on the grid after a penalty for impeding in qualifying. It didn’t seem to matter as Maximilian once again got a good start, and found himself back in the top end fight holding the lead of the race for a period of time.

It was all about the timing of the Attack Modes, which Maximilian and DS PENSKE looked to have activated to perfection. Still thickly in the fight for the top six, Maximilian’s point-less streak seemed certain to be coming to an end as he battled intensely with the front runners and looked almost guaranteed for points. But a technical issue coming out of the Full Course Yellow mode in the final lap saw him lose power briefly, dropping him to the back of the grid. Albeit Maximilian did incredibly well to fight back, climbing through the field and almost back into the points, the power drop was too costly to allow him to get back into the top ten.

In two weeks, Maximilian and DS PENSKE will be in Monaco for Maximilian’s second home race and another double header. Monaco is one of Maximilian’s favourite events on the calendar, and he’ll be really hopeful, knowing the strong package he has to race with, of having a solid two races around the prestigious track.

RESULTS

Free Practice 1 – P4, 57.686

Free Practice 2 – P5, 57.555

Qualifying – P11 (Group B, P6, 58.638)

Race – P11

Free Practice 3 – P2, 57,585

Qualifying – P11 (Group B, P6, 58.696)

Grid Start – P14 (+3 placed from penalty)

Race – P15

Championship Standing – P17 (8 points)

MAXIMILIAN GÜNTHER:

“I think it’s my record for the amount of 11th places in the season now, which kind of shows you that we do a good and solid job and have a good understanding of the car and the package. It’s just not enough to get into the point sometimes. That’s a bit the summary as well of today and the weekend in general.

“We started Race 1 very strong, looking very competitive through practice. Then qualifying, a few things didn’t fit together which is why we ended up 11th. I think there was a lot more possible which always gives me a lot of promise. In the first race I started 11th and finished 11th. A lot of things happened in the meantime, but I think we did a very good job in the first phase of that race. Went to the front, which I think was the right thing to, then I think we were not decisive enough on the execution of Pit Boost because we lost a few places. That was where the race shifted for me. We didn’t do an under or over-cut, we did something in the middle which just cost us pace. We were in the wrong train, lost many places and then the race was pretty much written from there. It became more of a recovery strategy at that point. And then with a late attack, we tried to get through the field, which actually worked out quite nicely and almost got us into the points.

“For Race 2, it was a similar story. Was really competitive in FP3 and were one of the fastest in that session. It was great and I felt great with the car. Unfortunately, we couldn’t convert it into qualifying. Didn’t put our tyres in the right window for the first lap, and the first lap has been a great lap for everyone with improvements hard to find as the qualifying session continued. That compromised very much our starting position but I was still confident; it was all to play for in the race, a high-energy saving race. I feel we really drove a great race, drove our hearts out again. We really put ourselves in the best positive position, with the P8 on the table. And then, with the Full Course Yellow mode release at the end, we lost the power and the race basically. To fall all the way to the back is painful when you’ve worked so hard for those points. Sadly, sometimes that just is what it is.

“Another tough weekend without points but we have to take the positives and know that the potential of the car and the package is there, and if we fine tune the small things over the weekend, we’ll be competitively back in the points. Next race is in Monaco and I absolutely love that place and the track. Best track on the calendar in my eyes for many reasons. Just looking forward to be racing back at home. Two home races now in a row, which is a pretty special feeling, and I really hope we can have a strong weekend. We have the package, I know that, we just have to put everything together.”