Both Venturi drivers Stéphane Sarrazin and Mike Conway did a great job in Buenos Aires in round 4 of the FIA Formula-E Championship. To start the day both drivers were at the forefront of the battle for a pole position and a front spot on the starting grid. They began in the first qualifying ground, which is said to be the worst position as the cars in the front encounter dirt on the track.
Stéphane and Mike landed the 4th and 5th spot on the starting grid after the qualifying round a great performance specifically for Conway who was participating for the first time ever in the Formula-E Championship.
The afternoon brought a difficult race with very hot temperatures, 35°C in the air, 52°C on the ground, which is strenuous on the batteries with a much higher risk of overheating and forcing engineers to deploy different strategic techniques and to use extra vigilance in order to manage the energy consumption. But both Venturi cars saw difficulty establishing a connection on the radio with the engineers in the pit making it difficult to have precise information about battery management.
In the beginning of the race, Stéphane and Mike fought to keep a lead position going into the car swap at lap 17 for Conway and lap 18 for Sarrazin and the strategy worked. At lap 19 they were in P5 and P4. Stéphane was able to maintain his position, finishing the race in 4th place. « I am really happy with this result despite the radio issue and lack of communication with the team. We have shown that Venturi is right there – just behind the big three teams – and we have something to play in this championship. We are more and more consistent and that’s good.
In his first Formula-E race, Conway would have less luck in his final results. Mike spun-out on lap 24 and lost his position, finishing the race in P15. « I am really sorry for the team regarding this race result. I had a lot to learn this weekend. I am disappointed but I can see that I was on pace with drivers who are used to driving in this series and particularly in these electric singleseaters. That’s encouraging for the next race.
It will be in Mexico March 12th.
Thierry Apparu,