Formula E: Season 8 reaches halfway mark with return to Berlin
Formula E returns to Berlin’s Tempelhof Airport Circuit for a double-header of races as Season 8 of the Championship reaches the halfway point.
The teams and drivers return to Berlin once again, a city that has been a mainstay of the Championship since the inaugural 2014/15 season. The weekend will see all 22 drivers tackle both clockwise and anti-clockwise variants of the 2.4km, located on the outskirts of the German capital city.
Berlin is the only city to have hosted a race in every season of Formula E. In all but one of those seasons – Season 2, when the German round took place near Alexanderplatz – Tempelhofer Feld has been the host venue.
Sebastien Buemi (Nissan e.dams) has six podium finishes in Berlin, and two victories, albeit one at Alexanderplatz. Antonio Felix da Costa is one of three drivers to have two wins to his name at Tempelhof. The DS Techeetah driver’s came at the Season 6 finale as he hammered home his advantage to take the title.
Lucas di Grassi won here with Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler in 2019 and signed off on Audi’s first spell in Formula E with another win on home soil for the brand in Season 7. Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-EQ) strode to victory in the last race of 2020/21 as Mercedes secured the Teams’ World Championship alongside teammate Nyck de Vries’ Drivers’ title.
Last time out
The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is in full swing after it’s eight week break earlier in the year, and the Drivers’ Standings are delicately poised after a series of nail-biting and action-packed races.
Mercedes EQ’s Stoffel Vandoorne battled to victory last time out on the iconic streets of Monaco, securing first place ahead of Jaguar’s Mitch Evans, who’s season burst into life following his back-t-back victories in Rome.
Another podium finish for DS Techeetah’s Jean-Éric Vergne saw the Frenchman climb into second place in the Championship, just six points off Vandoorne and only three points ahead of Evans. Third in Monaco made it consecutive podium finishes for Vergne after his second-placed finish in race two from Rome. He’s on an unmatched streak of six points finishes – all inside the top eight – and his podium tally of three is a joint-high and a 50% silverware strike rate in Season 8.
What the drivers have to say
Mitch Evans, Jaguar TCS Racing: “Monaco was another strong weekend for me and I’m delighted I could bring home another trophy for the team. That said, there is always room for improvement and I’m keen to build on the positive momentum. I secured a podium in Berlin last year and with only nine points between myself and the top of the driver standings, I’m determined to bring home another points haul this weekend.”
Sam Bird, Jaguar TCS Racing: “Monaco was a challenging weekend for me but having raced in Formula E since its inception, I know it is important to look forward rather than back. The Tempelhof circuit is a key fixture on the Formula E calendar and one that we all know extremely well. A double-header means I have double the opportunities to deliver strong results for the team and score some valuable points. I’m ready for the challenge.”
German icon returns to Formula E
In the week of the Berlin E-Prix, the news was revealed that ABT Sportsline will be making a return to the series, starting next year from the beginning of the Gen3 era.
The German outfit is set to enter as a customer team and makes its way back to Formula E having been a fixture throughout the championship’s first seven seasons. Despite a hiatus in Season 8, following the exit of Audi, ABT can still count itself among the most successful teams in Formula E history, with 47 podiums and 1,380 points to its name.
The team won the first ever Formula E race in Beijing, 2014, while Lucas di Grassi steered to the Drivers’ title in 2017. ABT sealed the Teams’ crown a season later and partnered with Audi between 2017 and 2021.
