Heidfeld: We have the feeling that we’re moving forward

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Ahead of the inaugural Paris ePrix, e-racing.net’s Bethonie Waring caught up with Mahindra Racing’s Nick Heidfeld, to talk about his fortunes this season and how he sees the future unfolding.

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“Yes. I hope so. We think so. We have the feeling that we’re moving forward. On the other side, you can never be too sure in motorsports. Sometimes you make some progress and it works well and then you change the circuit, even more so in Formula E where we have street circuits that are all different, different tarmac, different surface, and maybe you find out that it’s not working. But I am very hopeful and think that we are moving in the right direction with some of the work we’ve done on the dampers and on the set up.”

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“Of course it’s a bit of both. On the race weekends, we are focusing fully on the race like here. Of course, back in the factory, the team is also organising for next year.”

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“I think this year’s more difficult overall because the regulations have opened in terms of what you can develop. Last year everybody had the same car. This year we see that there are some teams have a better hang of the tracks, which is especially Renault. Normally they are one of the strongest teams, followed by Abt, and then maybe Virgin. But I think Mahindra did a good job compared to last year in terms of how they improve, develop, and change things. So I’m quite happy with how things are going. But we’re always trying to improve. We’re working hard. And next year we’ll try to get closer to the front.”

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“It’s nice because we get along very well. Of course this is the first time I’ve worked together with Nelson. As expected, he was quick. He did a good job. We’re getting on well.”

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“It’s getting better. It’s not perfect. It’s always a little… not knowing what would happen when I drive for the first time on a circuit.”

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Images courtesy of Rajan Jangda, Thierry Courtois and FIA Formula E Media

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