This race was especially significant for DS Automobiles, as the French premium manufacturer made its 150th start in the 100% electric racing series.
Once again, the DS E-TENSE FE25 demonstrated its full potential during a rainy free practice session. On this occasion, Taylor Barnard was the brand’s best representative; setting fastest time of all. The young Briton subsequently confirmed his pace by securing a front row start on the grid, while his teammate Maximilian Günther lined up in 11th position.
This gave plenty of cause for optimism on an important day for DS Automobiles, even though the weather was set to be one of the major unknowns for the second race of the Shanghai weekend. While the earlier rain had stopped, the track was still damp with threatening skies – prompting Race Control to start the race with three laps behind the Safety Car before the action got going for real.
Taylor Barnard immediately activated his first Attack Mode and moved into the lead. But as the laps ticked on, the track dried up and the drivers who had gambled with their set-ups on the rain returning were not rewarded. This was the case for Barnard, who gradually dropped down the order before eventually taking the chequered flag in ninth position.
Having saved his second Attack Mode for the end, Maximilian Günther lost the advantage of this strategic choice when the race was neutralised for several minutes by a Full Course Yellow. The German finally crossed the finish line in 11th place. However, a post-race penalty allowed him to move up one position and finish in the points.
The Shanghai double-header left DS Automobiles and its partner PENSKE AUTOSPORT with a certain sense of frustration. For various reasons, the two DS E-TENSE FE25 cars and its drivers were unable to replicate the very strong level of performance shown during free practice in the actual race. The objective will be to maximise every opportunity when the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship continues in the Japanese capital of Tokyo with a double-header from July 25–26.
Taylor Barnard:
“It was a disappointing race. The team did a great job though and that showed in free practice and qualifying: our second place on the grid was a great result for all of us! During the race, I think we maximised the package we had. But several drivers, mainly those at the back of the grid, had gone for tyre pressures more suited to a dry track, which we didn’t do. On top of that, I think we’ve been lacking a bit in efficiency over the last few races and that didn’t help us today. Having said all of that, thanks to the whole team for a great job and we’ll try to be on top form again in Tokyo.”
Maximilian Günther:
“We showed very good pace today, with strong performance in the rain during free practice. We then made a certain set-up choice before qualifying, but the track dried faster than expected and so I found myself in 11th place on the grid. I felt increasingly comfortable during the race and I’d actually saved a long six-minute Attack Mode for the end. But then a car stopped by the side of the track and the race was neutralised by a Full Course Yellow. That meant I lost all the benefit of my Attack Mode and wasn’t able to make up any more places. In the end, I finished in 10th. So we finished in the top 10 twice this weekend and I feel that we had some solid races; it's just unfortunate that luck was not on our side at certain key moments. But a big thanks to the team for another very good job and we certainly won’t give up as we head into the next round in Tokyo.”
