Closed Circuit: NEXTEV TCR in London

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NEXTEV suffered a disappointing weekend that saw them miss out on a potential podium in both races. Oliver Turvey made it into the super pole shoot out on both days and was fighting for the third step of the podium, only to miss out in the closing stages of both races.

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It was a mixed qualifying session for NEXTEV. Whilst Nelson Piquet suffered a technical problem that would put him at the back of the grid, Oliver Turvey was taking the team’s best qualifying of the season. The Brit would start third for the first race of the weekend.

From there, it was a strong start for both drivers. Piquet was able to make up places through the race, but couldn’t make it into the top ten. Meanwhile, Turvey was on course for his first Formula E podium, fighting hard against Jean-Eric Vergne to defend the place. The two made contact repeatedly, but managed to hold strong until he locked up and made contact with the wall, forcing him to retire.

Sunday saw another good qualifying for Turvey, who made it into the Super Pole for a second race in a row. He would start fourth whilst his team mate started ninth.

It was a good start for Piquet, but the need to conserve energy slowed him down. He finished tenth, promoted to ninth after a penalty to Antonio Felix da Costa.

Turvey faced another tough race and fell slowly back. By the midrace pit stop he was running sixth, and kept that for most of the second stint, before brushing the wall and suffering a puncture. He crossed the line in eleventh, tenth after da Costa was penalised.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Team mate comparison: qualifying” tab_id=”1461512175704-af49c202-f1e45043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” style=”modern” x_values=”Beijing; Putrajaya; Punta del Este; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Long Beach; Paris; Berlin; London 1; London 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Nelson%20Piquet%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2218%3B%2016%3B%2012%3B%209%3B%2018%3B%2017%3B%209%3B%205%3B%2018%3B%209%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Oliver%20Turvey%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2215%3B%2017%3B%2010%3B%2011%3B%2015%3B%2013%3B%207%3B%207%3B%203%3B%204%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%2C%22custom_color%22%3A%22%23f7be68%22%7D%5D” title=”Team mate comparison: qualifying”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Team mate comparison: race” tab_id=”1461512175763-831c2584-42cf5043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” style=”modern” x_values=”Beijing; Putrajaya; Punta del Este; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Long Beach; Paris; Berlin; London 1; London 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Nelson%20Piquet%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2215%3B%208%3B%2015%3B%2012%3B%2013%3B%2018%3B%2016%3B%2013%3B%2012%3B%209%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Oliver%20Turvey%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%226%3B%2017%3B%2012%3B%209%3B%2011%3B%2012%3B%2013%3B%2012%3B%2015%3B%2010%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%2C%22custom_color%22%3A%22%23f7be68%22%7D%5D” title=”Team mate comparison: race”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”The team says: “…“” tab_id=”1461512258191-0360a250-a68c5043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_column_text]

Saturday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Gerry Hughes: “It’s unfortunate that Oliver wasn’t able to hold onto third after a very good run in both stints. It was a very disappointing day for him but we will come back strong tomorrow. Nelson unfortunately started at the back of the grid after his qualifying issue so was left with few opportunities today but, coming away with two championship points for the fastest lap of the race, is certainly a positive result for him.”[/pullquote]

Sunday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Hughes: “What a thrilling end to the second season of Formula E. We have been able to end the season taking away some positives, which will create some good momentum going into off-season testing. Oliver was able to extract maximum performance from the car in qualifying, making it through the Super Pole twice in succession this weekend, and we had both drivers in the top ten for qualifying today, Nelson scared the fastest lap yesterday and got a point today, so the team was able to come away with three points. We’ll now focus on preparations for next season.”[/pullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings” tab_id=”1461512214611-352b21f1-c5375043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Beijing; Putrajaya; Punta del Este; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Long Beach; Paris; Berlin; London 1; London 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22NEXTEV%20TCR%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2208%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2016%3B%2019%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%5D” title=”Championship standings”][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”Nelson Piquet” color=”green”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_tta_accordion style=”outline” color=”green” c_icon=”chevron” active_section=”1″ collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Piquet’s race in words” tab_id=”1461512310664-cbeb96df-4af05043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_column_text]

With the Battersea Park track notoriously difficult to overtake on, the back of the grid wasn’t where Piquet wanted to be, but a mechanical fault meant he would have to start there.

It was a strong, simple start to the race for Piquet. The Brazilian slowly moved up through the field and was able to stay out an extra lap when it came to the mid race car swap.

A points position was still out of reach though, and he crossed the line in fourteenth, but Piquet was able to take his first fastest lap of the season and picked up two points.

Piquet started race two ninth on the grid and was soon up to seventh after the first lap incident at the front of the pack. He was able to keep the position through the first stint, but had to slow down to conserve energy in the closing stages of the race. He crossed the line in tenth, promoted to ninth post-race.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Lap chart” tab_id=”1461512310716-c8bf2e2d-dbb95043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Starting position; 1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 13; 14; 15; 16; 17; 18; 19; 20; 21; 22; 23; 24; 25; 26; 27; 28; 29; 30; 31; 32; 33″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Saturday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2218%3B%2018%3B%2018%3B%2018%3B%2018%3B%2018%3B%2018%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2017%3B%2011%3B%2016%3B%2016%3B%2015%3B%2013%3B%2013%3B%2013%3B%2013%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%3B%2014%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Sunday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%229%3B%207%3B%207%3B%207%3B%207%3B%207%3B%207%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%208%3B%207%3B%207%3B%209%3B%209%3B%209%3B%209%3B%2010%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2012%3B%2011%3B%2011%3B%2010%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%5D” title=”Piquet: lap chart”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”The race in numbers – Saturday” tab_id=”1461512375203-dc62694e-d0395043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_column_text]

Best time in FP1: 1:26.200.

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Best time in FP2: 1:23.879.

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Best time in qualifying: 1:38.922.

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Best time in the race: 1:25.783.

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Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 73.3s (3.3s gap).

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Best time in FP1: 1:25.582.

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Best time in qualifying: 1:23.937.

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Best time in the race: 1:27.415.

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Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 72.2s (2.2s gap).

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Saturday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“It’s great to be back here in London, where I have such special memories and, for me, it’s one of the best tracks. We had a software problem in qualifying, which meant we couldn’t qualify, so our plan was to try for Visa fastest lap if a top ten finish wasn’t possible. It’s great that we managed to achieve that and we accomplished something good. We got a couple of points, which is important, and we want to try to finish the season on a high because we need to pick up the momentum to have a strong off-season and start season three well.”[/pullquote]

Sunday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“The race today was okay. I tried to keep position while saving as much energy as I could but we couldn’t hold off the guys behind so, towards the end of the race, I backed off a little bit and had to give the positions. The good news is that we finished the race and still got a point, and now we will work hard in pre-season testing to have a much more competitive car for next season. I’d like to say congratulations to Sebastien Buemi, he did an amazing job to win the championship this year and I hope he enjoys it!”[/pullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings” tab_id=”1461513704972-abbca216-e1a55043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Beijing; Putrajaya; Punta del Este; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Long Beach; Paris; Berlin; London 1; London 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Nelson%20Piquet%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%220%3B%204%3B%204%3B%204%3B%204%3B%204%3B%204%3B%204%3B%206%3B%208%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%5D” title=”Championship standings”][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”Oliver Turvey” color=”green”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_tta_accordion style=”outline” color=”green” active_section=”1″ collapsible_all=”true”][vc_tta_section title=”Turvey’s race in words” tab_id=”1461512547855-b3644413-70595043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_column_text]

Rain helped Turvey in the first qualifying session of the weekend. He set the second fastest time in the group stages and third in his first ever Super Pole, NEXTEV’s best starting position of the season.

Turvey had a strong race. Though he fell away from the leading two cars, he was able to keep his third place through the first stint.

In the second stint, Vergne was pushing hard against the Brit, knocking the rear of his NEXTEV car, but he couldn’t get past. Turvey held the position until he locked up on the penultimate lap and made contact with the wall.

Turvey didn’t need the rain to get into the Super Pole in race two. He qualified fourth but struggled on the opening lap. He had fallen back to sixth by the mid race car swap, but his second stint was strong. It looked like Turvey was going to finish with strong points when, three laps towards the end of the race, he brushed a wall.

The Brit was able to make it to the end of the race, crossing the line eleventh bit taking the final point for tenth thanks to the stewards.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Lap chart” tab_id=”1461512548457-fc72c98b-1a615043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Starting position; 1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12; 13; 14; 15; 16; 17; 18; 19; 20; 21; 22; 23; 24; 25; 26; 27; 28; 29; 30; 31; 32; 33″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Saturday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%223%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%2014%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%203%3B%20%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Sunday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%224%3B%204%3B%204%3B%205%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%205%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%206%3B%2011%3B%2011%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2011%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%5D” title=”Turvey: lap chart”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”The race in numbers – Saturday” tab_id=”1461512549057-0abe4d02-33bc5043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_column_text]

Best time in FP1: 1:26.224.

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Best time in FP2: 1:24.179.

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Best time in qualifying: 1:23.969.

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Best time in the race: 1:28.576.

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Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 70.4s (0.4s gap).

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Best time in FP1: 1:25.971.

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Best time in qualifying: 1:23.183.

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Best time in the race: 1:27.989.

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Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 71.0s (1.0s gap).

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Saturday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I had a good start and the first stint went well, with us staying in P3. We then had a good pit stop and maintained third position in the second stint. It was a really solid race and I was defending position well. I was keeping hold of P3, but then Vergne was being very aggressive and drove into the back of me a few times towards the end of the race, which damaged the rear wing and rear diffuser and the car didn’t feel the same after then. Three laps before the end I locked the rear tyres and made contact with the wall. This meant the race was over which is really disappointing as it was looking good for a podium finish at my home race.”[/pullquote]

Sunday:

[pullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I was able to really nail my qualifying lap. It was easily my best lap of the season and it was good to be able to get through to Super Pole on merit. I lost two positions at the start as got too much wheel spin, eing on the dirty side of the track. I was able to hold position and was pushing every lap to the maximum as we were losing time under acceleration. The team did a great job at the pit stop and I was able to hold position. I was pushing hard to keep the Dragon cars behind and just brushed the wall and it caught the tyre rim, bent it and the tyre went flat. It was a shame not to get the result, but I’m happy with the pace over the weekend.”[/pullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings” tab_id=”1461513723518-ee223709-f56c5043-b572853b-7c50317b-0239″][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Beijing; Putrajaya; Punta del Este; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Long Beach; Paris; Berlin; London 1; London 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Oliver%20Turvey%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%228%3B%208%3B%208%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2010%3B%2011%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%5D” title=”Championship standings”][/vc_tta_section][/vc_tta_accordion][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

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Images courtesy of Rajan Jangda

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