Closed Circuit: Techeetah in Berlin

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

After an unawarded ePrix in Paris, the Techeetah outfit wanted to get back into the points in Berlin. Unfortunate problems during their pit stops prevented their drivers from scoring better results though.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_text_separator title=”THE TEAM” 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=”The team’s race in words” tab_id=”1461512664883-ac9eb41a-467a5043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

It was a surprising message when Techeetah announced they had signed former Venturi driver Stephane Sarrazin for their car #33, replacing Esteban Gutierrez with immediate effect. Alongside his fellow-countryman Jean-Eric Vergne he should score points to consolidate the team’s fifth position ion the team standings.

Both drivers showed solid performances during the races, but had been retained by problems during one of their pit stops. Vergne was able to score in both races and could have even been fighting for a podium finish in the second race, whereas Sarrazin failed narrowly to score his first points for the Chinese outfit on his debut.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Team mate comparison: qualifying” tab_id=”1461512175704-af49c202-f1e45043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_line_chart type=”line” style=”modern” x_values=”Hong Kong; Marrakesh; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Monaco; Paris; Berlin 1; Berlin 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Jean-Eric%20Vergne%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%229%3B%205%3B%202%3B%204%3B%204%3B%202%3B%206%3B%205%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22St%C3%A9phane%20Sarrazin%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%22%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%2012%3B%2016%3B%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-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_line_chart type=”line” style=”modern” x_values=”Hong Kong; Marrakesh; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Monaco; Paris; Berlin 1; Berlin 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Jean-Eric%20Vergne%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%22%20%3B%208%3B%202%3B%202%3B%20%3B%20%3B%208%3B%206%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Stephane%20Sarrazin%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%22%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%20%3B%2011%3B%2014%3B%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-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Jean-Eric just missed out the SuperPole today. I know JEV well, so he will definitely go full-attack tomorrow. He was going well throughout the race until the penalty. We will put some new procedures in place to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”[/perfectpullquote]

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Stéphane’s grid position didn’t reflect his full potential as he had a fairly big rear lockup on his timed lap. In the race he fought well with his opponents. We will try to solve the oversteer problem he had in the race. Tomorrow will be his second qualifying in our car, so I am sure will have a much better race.”[/perfectpullquote]

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Mark Preston, Team Principal[/perfectpullquote]

Sunday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Jean-Eric had a race of two halves today, and had the potential to come home third. We’ll have to investigate how the balance of his car changed so much after the stop, but this abrasive track is quite unique on the calendar and I don’t think the setup of our cars suited such a high degradation environment.”[/perfectpullquote]

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I was impressed by Stéphane’s race though, he did a great job. He managed his energy very well and picked up places in the race. I think you can expect to see normal service resumed in New York, and I’m confident that we’ll be challenging for podium places once again.”[/perfectpullquote]

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Mark Preston, Team Principal[/perfectpullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings (points)” tab_id=”1461512214611-352b21f1-c5375043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Hong Kong; Marrakesh; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Monaco; Paris; Berlin 1; Berlin 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22TECHEETAH%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%220%3B%204%3B%2022%3B%2041%3B%2045%3B%2045%3B%2049%3B%2057%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=”Jean-Eric Vergne” 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=”Jean-Eric Vergne’s race in words” tab_id=”1461512310664-cbeb96df-4af05043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

Jean-Eric Vergne had a pretty good start into the double-header weekend. He showed solid times and put constantly put his car around P6 in both practices and the qualifying. A better starting place was within reach, but the later pole-setter Lucas di Grassi (ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport) outpaced the Frenchman by just seven hundredth.

Starting from P6, Vergne confirmed his good pace from the previous sessions and kept his eyes glued to local hero Daniel Abt (ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport). After overtaking him on lap 21 everything went into the right direction, but an unsafe release after changing his car – followed by a 5-second time penalty – threw him back into P8, letting him score 4 points on Saturday.

Sunday

Vergne started on Sunday where he finished the day before. Constant progress and a solid performance guaranteed him a try in the Superpole shootout, letting him put his Renault-powered car into P5 for the second race.

Again the Frenchman drove in a smart manner, which allowed him to push his Techeetah during the last few laps before the mandatory car-swap. It worked out well and let him jump from P5 to P3 after the pit stops. Unfortunately, Vergne had problems with his second car, which is why he finished in sixth position, although he looked like a candidate for the podium.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Lap chart” tab_id=”1461512310716-c8bf2e2d-dbb95043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][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; 34; 35; 36; 37; 38; 39; 40; 41; 42; 43; 44; 45; 46;” values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Saturday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%226%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B7%3B6%3B7%3B6%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B8%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Sunday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%225%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B4%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B3%3B4%3B4%3B4%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B5%3B6%3B6%3B6%3B6%3B6%3B6%3B6%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%5D” title=”Jean-Eric Vergne: lap chart”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”The race in numbers” tab_id=”1461512375203-dc62694e-d0395043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

Best time in FP1: 1:09.805 (P6)

Best time in FP2: 1:08.555 (P8)

Best time in qualifying: 1:08.457 (P6)

Best time in the race: 1:11.352 (lap 26)

Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 48.950s (0.950s above minimum time)

Saturday

Best time in FP3: 1:09.136 (P6)

Best time in FP4: 1:08.078 (P6)

Best time in qualifying: 1:07.993 (P3, P5 in Superpole)

Best time in the race: 1:11.804 (lap 22)

Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 48.918s (0.918s above minimum time)

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Jean-Eric Vergne says: “…“” tab_id=”1461513354622-5577f4b1-edaf5043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Our garage is at pit entry so it was difficult for me to notice the upcoming traffic. So it was a shame getting the penalty. That aside, just missing out on SuperPole was a shame but I will have another go tomorrow. I did the maximum in the race. P5 without the penalty is a good reflection of our speed today. We will analyze the data to see if we can understand this very abrasive track surface even further. That is the key point to unlock this track.”[/perfectpullquote]

Sunday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“The first car was running pretty well and the podium was within reach. We had a good car swap, but straight away I could feel I was regenerating a lot less energy in the second car, which made it hard to fight. We will investigate this after the race, but we’ve got some valuable points and I’m sure we’ll be back on it in New York.”[/perfectpullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings (points)” tab_id=”1461513704972-abbca216-e1a55043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Hong Kong; Marrakesh; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Monaco; Paris; Berlin 1; Berlin 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Jean-Eric%20Vergne%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%220%3B%204%3B%2022%3B%2040%3B%2040%3B%2040%3B%2044%3B%2052%3B%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=” Stephane Sarrazin” 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=”Stephane Sarrazin’s race in words” tab_id=”1461512547855-b3644413-70595043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

It has been a big surprise – not just for Stephane Sarrazin – when Techeetah announced him as a substitute for the former Mexican driver Esteban Gutierrez. But after a short settling-in period the team’s second Frenchman put his car into eleventh position for the start of the first race.

Sarrazin had some battles with the cars around him and was always able to race at the same pace. In the end, he benefited from the disqualification from Renault’s Sebastien Buemi and finally finished eleventh on his debut for the Chinese outfit.

Sunday

Sarrazin had a promising start into the second day of the Berlin ePrix with P9 in FP3, but he was unable to carry the good performance into the following sessions. He could not improve as much as some other drivers and also had break issues during the qualifying, which forced him to start the 8th race of the season from the 8th row.

His performance throughout the whole race was very good. He was able to gain some places, but problems with his seatbelt during his car change made it impossible for him to fight for points. In the end, Sarrazin crossed the finish line in P14.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Lap chart” tab_id=”1461512548457-fc72c98b-1a615043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][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; 34; 35; 36; 37; 38; 39; 40; 41; 42; 43; 44; 45; 46;” values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Saturday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2212%3B13%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B14%3B13%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B12%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B13%3B11%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22green%22%7D%2C%7B%22title%22%3A%22Sunday%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%2216%3B18%3B18%3B18%3B18%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B17%3B16%3B16%3B16%3B16%3B16%3B16%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B15%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B14%3B%22%2C%22color%22%3A%22turquoise%22%7D%5D” title=”Nicolas Prost: lap chart”][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”The race in numbers” tab_id=”1461512549057-0abe4d02-33bc5043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

Best time in FP1: 1:10.213 (P13)

Best time in FP2: 1:08.415 (P5)

Best time in qualifying: 1:08.890 (P12)

Best time in the race: 1:11.580 (lap 24)

Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 49.345s (0.345s above minimum time)

Sunday

Best time in FP3: 1:09.408 (P9)

Best time in FP4: 1:08.931 (P15)

Best time in qualifying: 1:08.822 (P16)

Best time in the race: 1:11.690 (lap 26)

Pit stop time and difference to minimum pit stop time: 59.100s (11.100s above minimum time)

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=” Stephane Sarrazin says: “…“” tab_id=”1461513386630-de10c68d-06ab5043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_column_text]

Saturday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“A rear lockup in qualifying meant I didn’t repeat my very competitive FP2 lap, so I should have started further up the grid. In the race I am still trying to find my rhythm. I gradually got used to it, and my engineers already had some good directions to improve the car. Hopefully with a clean qualifying and further understanding with the car, tomorrow will be a much better day.”[/perfectpullquote]

Sunday

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“We did a good job in the race and I was on the same pace as Jean-Eric, so it was good for me. But we had a problem with the seatbelt during the car swap and we lost the opportunity to challenge for a P10 finish in the points.”[/perfectpullquote]

[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“We need to understand the break balance issues we had in Qualifying but it is a promising start to my time with the team and I know we can do it in the next race.”[/perfectpullquote]

[/vc_column_text][/vc_tta_section][vc_tta_section title=”Championship standings (points)” tab_id=”1461513723518-ee223709-f56c5043-b572853b-7c5006cc-defb”][vc_line_chart type=”line” x_values=”Hong Kong; Marrakesh; Buenos Aires; Mexico City; Monaco; Paris; Berlin 1; Berlin 2″ values=”%5B%7B%22title%22%3A%22Stephane%20Sarrazin%22%2C%22y_values%22%3A%221%3B1%3B1%3B1%3B1%3B2%3B2%3B2%3B%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]

Sven Kannenberg | e-racing.net

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Images courtesy of FIA Formula E Media

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]