Bird Flies through Field from Fifth to Win First Race of Season in Diriyah
2019 SAUDIA Diriyah E-Prix (Rd 1) Talking points
– Sam Bird battles up the order from fifth on the grid for Envision Virgin Racing to seal victory in season-opening SAUDIA Diriyah E-Prix
– TAG Heuer Porsche picks up podium finish on first-ever outing in ABB FIA Formula E Championship with second place for Andre Lotterer
– Stoffel Vandoorne rounds out podium positions in third with strong performance for Mercedes-Benz EQ in debut race for German manufacturer
To read the full race report, receive updates on the results and final classification, visit the Formula E website or download the app on iOS and Android.
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Envision Virgin Racing
Sam Bird
“I felt confident going into the race. Envision Virgin Racing gave me an amazing car. I think some of it is down to the new beard! Last year was difficult and I went through a sort of transformation involving plenty of thinking and mental stuff. It’s very special to win today. There are 23 other amazing drivers out there, so to come out on top means a lot. It’s a great start to the year, but the hard work doesn’t stop. We have another race tomorrow. There’s potential in the car so we need to maximise what we can.”
TAG Heuer Porsche
Andre Lotterer
“Tomorrow we have another race and it’ll be much harder. Either way we take today as it was, which is an amazing debut for the Porsche team. We all worked very hard, we came here, and we did our best. Second place is a great way to start and boost the confidence of the team… it was awesome. I thought about having a crack at Sam [Bird] to give him payback for Hong Kong last season! We weren’t sure on how much energy we had left, so I decided to bring it home safely. I’m sure our time will come soon with a win!”
Mercedes-Benz EQ
Stoffel Vandoorne
“A great start for everyone at Mercedes-Benz EQ today. It’s not easy for a new manufacturer to come into this championship and do so well in the first race. We had to put a lot of work into making sure our package was ready for this race and I wouldn’t say everything ran perfectly, but it was a very pleasing result and I think that everyone can be extremely proud. We have some more work to do. But I’m happy with the podium.”
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|
1
|
Sam Bird
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Envision Virgin Racing
|
46:17.371s
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(26)
|
|
2
|
Andre Lotterer
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TAG Heuer Porsche
|
+1.319s
|
(18)
|
|
3
|
Stoffel Vandoorne
|
Mercedes-Benz EQ
|
+1.672s
|
(15)
|
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4
|
Oliver Rowland
|
Nissan e.dams
|
+1.944s
|
(12)
|
|
5
|
Robin Frijns
|
Envision Virgin Racing
|
+3.983s
|
(10)
|
|
6
|
Nyck de Vries
|
Mercedes-Benz EQ
|
+4.560s
|
(8)
|
|
7
|
Edoardo Mortara
|
ROKiT Venturi Racing
|
+5.122s
|
(6)
|
|
8
|
Alexander Sims
|
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
|
+5.715s
|
(7)
|
|
9
|
Jerome D’Ambrosio
|
Mahindra Racing
|
+6.628s
|
(2)
|
|
10
|
Mitch Evans
|
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
|
+7.048s
|
(2)
|
|
11
|
Pascal Wehrlein
|
Mahindra Racing
|
+7.460s
|
|
|
12
|
Felipe Massa
|
ROKiT Venturi Racing
|
+8.166s
|
|
|
13
|
Lucas di Grassi
|
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
|
+8.404s
|
|
|
14
|
Antonio Felix da Costa
|
DS TECHEETAH
|
+8.853s
|
|
|
15
|
Oliver Turvey
|
NIO 333
|
+10.172s
|
|
|
16
|
James Calado
|
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
|
+11.572s
|
|
|
17
|
Neel Jani
|
TAG Heuer Porsche
|
+15.429s
|
|
|
18
|
Maximilian Guenther
|
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
|
+25.662s
|
|
|
19
|
Brendon Hartley
|
GEOX DRAGON
|
+42.219s
|
|
|
20
|
Ma Qing Hua
|
NIO 333
|
1 Lap
|
|
|
DNF
|
Daniel Abt
|
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
|
29 Laps
|
|
|
DNF
|
Jean-Eric Vergne
|
DS TECHEETAH
|
21 Laps
|
|
|
DNF
|
Sebastien Buemi
|
Nissan e.dams
|
3 Laps
|
|
|
DNS
|
Nico Mueller
|
GEOX DRAGON
|
|
|
Sam Bird
|
Envision Virgin Racing
|
26
|
|
Andre Lotterer
|
TAG Heuer Porsche
|
18
|
|
Stoffel Vandoorne
|
Mercedes-Benz EQ
|
15
|
|
Oliver Rowland
|
Nissan e.dams
|
12
|
|
Robin Frijns
|
Envision Virgin Racing
|
10
|
|
Nyck de Vries
|
Mercedes-Benz EQ
|
8
|
|
Alexander Sims
|
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
|
7
|
|
Edoardo Mortara
|
ROKiT Venturi Racing
|
6
|
|
Jerome D’Ambrosio
|
Mahindra Racing
|
2
|
|
Mitch Evans
|
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
|
2
|
|
Pascal Wehrlein
|
Mahindra Racing
|
0
|
|
Felipe Massa
|
ROKiT Venturi Racing
|
0
|
|
Lucas di Grassi
|
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
|
0
|
|
Antonio Felix da Costa
|
DS TECHEETAH
|
0
|
|
Oliver Turvey
|
NIO 333
|
0
|
|
James Calado
|
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
|
0
|
|
Neel Jani
|
TAG Heuer Porsche
|
0
|
|
Maximilian Guenther
|
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
|
0
|
|
Brendon Hartley
|
GEOX DRAGON
|
0
|
|
Ma Qing Hua
|
NIO 333
|
0
|
|
Sebastien Buemi
|
Nissan e.dams
|
0
|
|
Daniel Abt
|
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
|
0
|
|
Nico Mueller
|
GEOX DRAGON
|
0
|
|
Jean-Eric Vergne
|
DS TECHEETAH
|
0
|
|
|
Envision Virgin Racing
|
36
|
|
Mercedes-Benz EQ
|
23
|
|
TAG Heuer Porsche
|
18
|
|
Nissan e.dams
|
12
|
|
BMW i Andretti Motorsport
|
7
|
|
ROKiT Venturi Racing
|
6
|
|
Mahindra Racing
|
2
|
|
Panasonic Jaguar Racing
|
2
|
|
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler
|
0
|
|
DS TECHEETAH
|
0
|
|
NIO 333
|
0
|
|
GEOX DRAGON
|
0
|
Sources: Formula E PR