Posted on 3rd July 2016
__Renault e.Dams driver Nico Prost took victory of the second round of the London ePrix, his third win of his Formula E career and second win of the season ahead of Daniel Abt and Jerome D'Ambrosio in an ePrix that focused more on the championship battle between his team mate Sebastien Buemi and Lucas Di Grassi which came to a head on the opening lap but allowed Buemi to clinch the 2015/16 Formula E title at the Battersea Park circuit.
On the opening lap of the ePrix, Di Grassi sent himself and Buemi into the barriers at Turn 3 The accident tore off Buemi’s rear wing and pitched di Grassi nose-first into the barriers, breaking his front-right wheel. Both drivers were able to continue in the race; with Buemi continuing for a short while at the back before being forced to pit with his damage and di Grassi limping back to change cars as Prost lead dominantly out front.
With the drivers level on points going into the finale, the race was turned into a battle for the two points for fastest lap. Buemi needed to secure those points to become champion, with di Grassi otherwise set to pick up the title on countback to third-place finishes, and the duo played a cat-and-mouse game for the remainder of the race.
Di Grassi took first blood on a 1m27.037s but that was never likely to be quick enough, and Buemi set a 1m26.056s after getting baulked by Ma Qing Hua before improving again to a 1m24.582s.
In the heat of the battle, Di Grassi posted a 1m24.9s then set the best first and second sectors of the race with three laps remaining, but could not complete the lap at that pace and fell a tenth shy.
With his rival returning to the pits and getting out of his car, Buemi claimed the points and the championship with some kind of flourish by going even quicker and ending the race with a 1m24.150s.
But it was Nico Prost who won the final round of the London ePrix, gained his team the Constructors Championship and third place in the Drivers' Championship ahead of Daniel Abt in a stunning second place 7.633 seconds behind Prost and Jerome D'Ambrosio finishing in an unbelievable third place 22.524 seconds behind Prost. Jean-Eric Vergne had finished a comfortable third after jumping Nick Heidfeld after the car swaps and escaping from the Mahindra over the remainder of the race. But Vergne, Heidfeld and Antonio Felix da Costa were all handed a 50s penalty for using too much energy,
Loic Duval finished in fourth place ahead of Stephane Sarrazin in fifth place, Bruno Senna in a brilliant sixth place, Jean-Eric Vergne in seventh place, Nick Heidfeld in eighth place, Antonio Felix Da Costa in ninth place and Nelson Piquet Jr who rounded off the top ten finishers of the race.
Oliver Turvey finished just outside the top ten in eleventh place ahead of Ma Qing Hua in twelfth place and Mike Conway in thirteenth place. Lucas di Grassi, Sebastien Buemi, Robin Frijns, Simona de Silvestro and Sam Bird did not finish the ePrix.
Here is the classification of the 2016 London ePrix (R2) as follows:-
1. Nicolas Prost, Renault e.Dams, 56:32.648s
2. Daniel Abt, ABT Shaeffler Audi Sport, 7.633s
3. Jerome D'Ambrosio, Dragon Racing, +22.524s
4. Loic Duval, Dragon Racing, +23.290s
5. Stephane Sarrazin, Venturi, +24.984s
6. Bruno Senna, Mahindra Racing, +27.124s
7. Jean-Eric Vergne, DS Virgin Racing, +1.07.002s
8. Nick Heidfeld, Mahindra Racing, +1.07.544s
9. Antonio Felix Da Costa, Team Aguri, +1.08.324s
10. Nelson Piquet Jr, NEXTEV TCR, +1.14.274s
11. Oliver Turvey, NEXTEV TCR, +1.22.216s
12. Ma Qing Hua, Team Aguri, 1 lap
13. Mike Conway, Venturi, 1 lap
14. Lucas di Grassi, Abt Schaeffler Audi Sport, Not Classified
15. Sebastien Buemi, Renault e.Dams, Not Classified
16. Robin Frijns, Andretti, Not Classified
17. Simona de Silvestro, Andretti, Not Classified
18. Sam Bird, DS Virgin Racing, Not Classified
Sebastian Buemi wins the Formula E Drivers Championship with 155 points ahead of Lucas Di Grassi in second with 153 points, Nicolas Prost in third with 115 points, Sam Bird in fourth with 88 points, Jerome D'Ambrosio in fifth with 83 points, Stephane Sarrazin in sixth with 70 points, Daniel Abt in seventh with 68 points, Loic Duval in eighth with 60 points, Jean-Eric Vergne in ninth with 58 points Bruno Senna in tenth with 52 points.
Driving for Pleasure would like to thank you for reading our coverage of a great 2015/2016 season of the FIA Formula E Championship. We will be covering all the latest news during the off season and look forward to reporting on the 2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship when it restarts on the 9th October for the first inaugural Hong Kong ePrix.
Sarah Jones- @jonesy_laaa
