Formula E comes to Germany: this coming weekend, Berlin stages the home race for ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport and its driver Daniel Abt. Together with his team mate and championship leader Lucas di Grassi, the Kempten based racer aims to inspire the fans when the electric racing series appears and as preferably celebrate on the podium on Saturday afternoon. New: German channel DMAX broadcasts live from 15:45 from the capital.
“It’ll certainly be a great feeling to drive through our capital city in my race car – the excitement is growing from day to day,” says Daniel Abt. At 23 years of age the youngest driver on the grid has constantly been one of the fastest on track this season, but has often be unable to show his true potential. Recently, Abt celebrated a podium finish in the USA and currently lies ahead of such illustrious names like Senna or Piquet in the overall rankings.
“The standings don’t interest me. I want to finish on the podium in my home race and celebrate with the German fans,” says Abt. “Furthermore; it’s the best way to help Lucas in the title battle and to bring along our team in the team classification. We know that we can achieve something great with our package and a top team performance. I promise that we’ll do everything to win a trophy.”
While the former airport in Tempelhof hosted the Formula E circus on its German premiere last year, the paddock now moves to the city center: The 1.927 kilometer long track runs along the Karl-Marx-Allee and the Strausberger Platz, the pit lane is located on Alexanderplatz almost in the shadow of the television tower. “Formula E has achieved yet another highlight with the location at the heart of our capital,” says Team Boss Hans-Jürgen Abt. “Congratulations to the entire organization team and thanks to the city and all the Berliners for making us feel so welcome.”
From the sporting aspect, the home race for ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport could hardly be more unpredictable: after the ePrix in Moscow had to be cancelled, only three races will be run with 90 points up for grabs before the title is decided. One thing is already clear: the championship will only be decided in the final races on July 2 and 3 in London. Before the outing in Berlin, Lucas di Grassi heads the overall standings by eleven points, theoretically several other drivers are bidding for the championship spoils in addition to arch rival Sébastien Buemi.
“Our goal is the championship,” says Lucas di Grassi. The Brazilian has dominated the season so far. In seven races he has mounted the podium six times and won three races. He was stripped of one other convincing victory in Mexico because his car was just under the stipulated minimum weight limit. “After two consecutive victories in the USA and Paris, we are on a roll which we aim to continue in Berlin. But we’re not going to waste time on making calculations, but in fact concentrate one hundred per cent on another error free job,” says di Grassi. “Our car is a winner, our team keeps cool and stays focused when the pressure is on – in this way we can win the home race.”
Whoever has not received one of the much coveted tickets can look forward to a spectacular television broadcast: for the final two events of the season, Formula E switches from Eurosport to partner channel DMAX, which broadcasts from Berlin with the longest time on-air so far: commentator Jacques Schulz reports from the capital from 15:45. The TV man known and loved by fans from his Formula 1 days at Sky will capture the thrilling action from track side and report from the podium ceremony up to 17:15 and deliver all the comments.
