TOP 10 FOR MAX GÜNTHER AND DS AUTOMOBILES IN THE FIRST ACT OF THE MONACO E-PRIX

• Maximilian Günther and DS Automobiles scored a point in the drivers’ and constructors’ championships by  finishing in the top 10 overall

• Jean-Éric Vergne, who finished 12^th, is determined to fight back along with the rest of the team in the second race of the weekend on Sunday

• N°8 was presented to the public with an on-track demonstration before the opening race at the most prestigious venue of the year

DS Automobiles has often starred at the principality of Monaco in the past, but the DS E-TENSE FE25 cars were not able to show their full potential on Saturday in the first of two races this weekend.

At the end of a very competitive qualifying session, Maximilian Günther and Jean-Éric Vergne just missed out on the duels and were forced to start from 10th and 16th places on the grid respectively. This posed a real challenge at the famous Monaco circuit, also used by Formula 1, where overtaking is notoriously tricky.

Just before the race, N°8 was publicly showcased with a number of exhibition laps, demonstrating the latest all-electric flagship from DS Automobiles, which incorporates several concepts and elements that come directly from Formula E. A few minutes later, Maximilian Günther and Jean-Éric Vergne made a careful start to avoid the usual coming-togethers at the first corner, Sainte-Dévote.

The two drivers weren’t quite able to make the most of their setup as they had hoped, and were fighting in the thick of the pack while aiming for the top 10 places. With two ‘Full Course Yellow’ neutralisations and Pit Boost – a new feature for this year that allows a rapid energy top-up in the pits – strategy also played a part.

Maximilian Günther was consistently in the top 10, running as high as fifth, but ended up 10th, scoring one point in both the drivers’ and teams’ championships. Jean-Éric Vergne fought his way back up to 12th place after getting underway from 16th on the grid.

For the first time in its history, the Monaco E-Prix will host a second race on Sunday. The whole DS PENSKE squad is determined to fight back strongly, by securing better positions on the starting grid. After free practice at 08:30, the all-important qualifying session will get underway at 10:40, with the second race at 15:00.

Eugenio Franzetti, DS Performance director:

“The first Monaco race was a difficult one for us. We struggled a bit to find the right setup in free practice and didn’t improve in qualifying. It was a session that meant we weren’t able to secure good grid positions, which is often problematic in Monaco. In the race, we fought hard to recover some places. JEV made good progress up the leaderboard compared to his start position, but ended up outside the points at the flag. Max scored one point thanks to 10th place. Now we have to work hard to put our finger on precisely how we can improve and become more competitive tomorrow in Race 2.”

Jean-Eric Vergne, 2018 and 2019 Formula E champion :

“It was a complicated race, where we didn’t score points. But it was always going to be difficult given our start position. I tried everything, but it wasn’t enough today. We’ll get another chance tomorrow, with another qualifying session, to try and have a better race.”

Maximilian Günther :

«It wasn’t an easy day for us. From the first session, we weren’t at our normal pace within the field. We tried to make progress from session to session. We were still able to hope for something from the race, but I suffered a bit with the overall balance and picked up a bit of damage avoiding an accident. That slightly compromised our final laps in terms of car efficiency and balance. We tried everything. We’re going to work hard to be quicker tomorrow.”

Key figures since DS Automobiles entered Formula E:

• 127 races
• 4 championship titles
• 17 victories
• 52 podiums
• 25 pole positions

PRESS CONTACTS

DS Performance : Nathalie Dumas  +33 (0) 6 60 26 10 37 –nathalie.dumas@external.stellantis.com

DS Automobiles : Benjamin Maigre  + 33 (0) 6 75 58 80 41 – benjamin.maigre@dsautomobiles.com