A CHALLENGING JAKARTA E-PRIX FOR DS AUTOMOBILES, WITH THE TEAM ALREADY FOCUSSED ON THE NEXT RACES

• The 12th round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, held in Jakarta on Sunday, did not go in favour of DS Automobiles and PENSKE AUTOSPORT
• Jean-Éric Vergne and Maximilian Günther were both involved in collisions, which compromised their hopes of strong results
• DS PENSKE remains third in the Teams’ standings ahead of the Berlin double-header on July 12 and 13

Round 12 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship halted the mission of DS Automobiles to continue its strong run of points. After a stunning one-two finish in Shanghai, the French premium brand’s representatives had no luck on the very dusty track set in the sprawling Indonesian capital of Jakarta. Nonetheless, the potential was clearly there: as shown by Maximilian Günther setting the fastest time of all in the first free practice session.

Starting eighth on the grid, Jean-Éric Vergne had a good opportunity to score valuable points on Saturday. Unfortunately, the Frenchman made contact with another competitor on lap four, after the cars ahead braked harder than expected. With a damaged front wing, the two-time Formula E World Champion was forced to pit for repairs. Rejoining at the very back of the field, “JEV” eventually worked his way back up to 16th place.

His teammate was equally unlucky, this time on lap six. While battling to break into the top 10, Maximilian Günther was pushed wide into the dust by another driver and hit the wall with the left-rear of his DS E-TENSE FE25. As a result, the German was subsequently obliged to retire.

Despite the turbulent weekend, DS PENSKE still holds on to third place in the Teams’ standings and remains fully in contention for the championship title. All eyes are now on Berlin in Germany, where rounds 13 and 14 of the season will take place on July 12 and 13.

Eugenio Franzetti, DS Performance Director:

“In motorsport, your reality can quickly change from one race to the next. There are some wonderful days, like those we experienced in Shanghai, and some more difficult ones, like today in Jakarta. We’re disappointed because we had the pace to be among the frontrunners but we unfortunately weren’t able to capitalise on it, which is a real shame. The good news is that we’re still third in the Teams’ standings. Our direct rivals also struggled today. Now we have to focus on Berlin! Only a few races are left this season, and we absolutely need to put in strong performances.”

Jean-Éric Vergne, 2018 and 2019 Formula E Champion:

“It was a really tough race for us. I broke my front wing early in the race, which forced me into the pits for repairs. From that moment on, our chances of a good result were compromised because we lost too much time. Now we need to regroup and focus on the next race.”

Maximilian Günther:

“This race didn’t live up to our expectations, as we had set an excellent pace in the first free practice session. So the performance was clearly there. Unfortunately, we paid the price for a qualifying session that was not so good, and found ourselves quite a long way down the order. And after that, the race didn’t go our way as we were forced to retire. Having said that, I know that we have the strength in depth and ability to bounce back from a tricky weekend like this. So I’m keen to prove the point very soon!”

Key figures since DS Automobiles entered Formula E:

• 133 races
• 4 championship titles
• 18 victories
• 54 podiums
• 26 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