Munich. Alexander Sims (GBR) gave another impressive
performance in round three of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.
Seventh place in the Santiago E-Prix (CHI) earned him valuable
points in the Drivers’ Championship. Sims actually crossed the
finish line third in the #27 BMW iFE.18, however, was given a time
penalty for a collision with Edoardo Mortara (SUI) which saw him
relegated to seventh place in the final classification. António
Félix da Costa (POR) did not finish. BMW i Andretti Motorsport Team
wore black ribbons, in memory of Charly Lamm.
Sims started the third Formula E race of his career from eighth place
and, in hot conditions, gradually worked his way through the field
until he came across third-placed Mortara. During their battle for
position Mortara spun, allowing Sims to pass him and take third place.
He was subsequently given a time penalty for the incident.
Like his fellow competitors, Félix da Costa struggled with a very
slippery track in group one of qualifying. As a result, he started the
race down in 17th place. He was involved in a collision
with André Lotterer (GER) and Jean-Éric Vergne (FRA) in the packed
midfield, during which his BMW iFE.18 suffered a puncture. Félix da
Costa found himself at the back of the field with no hope of
recovering after the pit stop, and subsequently returned the severely
damaged car to the garage, bringing his race to a premature end.
Victory in Santiago de Chile went to Sam Bird (GBR).
Reactions to the Santiago E-Prix:
Roger Griffiths (Team Principal BMW i Andretti Motorsport):
“The track here in Santiago created some exciting racing; it was just
disappointing we couldn’t finish on the podium. We knew that the key
aspect was going to be getting a grip on the temperatures during all
sessions. To be honest, it was a disappointing qualifying result with
Alexander in eighth and António in 18th but the race is what counts
and we got off to a good start. António unfortunately had contact with
another car, resulting in a punctured tyre and a damaged car.
Alexander was making really good progress through the field, and when
the checkered flag dropped we crossed the line in third place. It was
a great result for Alexander and the team was back up on the podium,
but post-race penalties dropped Sims back down to seventh place. We as
a team respect the decision of the stewards. We will move on to the
race in Mexico City.”
Alexander Sims (#27 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result:
9th place, race result: 7th place, FANBOOST
voting: 14th place, points: 18)
“Firstly, thank you very much to the team, who did an outstanding job
of helping me to manage the car during this very tough race. I think
everything went superbly. Unfortunately, I then had the incident with
Edoardo Mortara. To be perfectly honest, I did not feel any contact,
but I trust the investigation of the race stewards and accept the
penalty. Despite that, I will take a lot of positives from Santiago
and am now focussing on the next race.”
António Félix da Costa (#28 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result:
18th place, race result: DNF, FANBOOST voting:
5th place, points: 28):
“All the drivers in the first qualifying group had to start from the
very back as the track was far slower at that point than it was for
the later groups. Despite that, I was still optimistic about the race
and was able to climb a few positions after a good start.
Unfortunately, I then had the collision. I was hit from behind and
suffered a puncture as a result. We tried to continue after the pit
stop but the damage to the car was ultimately so severe that we had to
retire, which is obviously disappointing.”
The BMW i Fleet
BMW i is “Official Vehicle Partner” of the ABB FIA Formula E
Championship in Season 5. Spearheading the BMW i fleet is the BMW i8
Coupé Safety Car, modified with BMW M components (combined fuel
consumption: 1.8 l/100 km; combined energy consumption 14.0 kWh/100
km; combined CO2 emissions: 42 g/km)*. As well as the BMW
i8 Coupé, the BMW i fleet also includes the BMW i3s (combined fuel
consumption: 0.0 l/100 km; combined energy consumption: 14.3 kWh;
combined CO2 emissions: 0 g/km)* as “Race Director Car” and
the BMW 530e iPerformance (combined fuel consumption: 2.2-2.1 l/100
km; combined energy consumption: 13.6-13.3 kWh/100 km; combined
CO2 emissions: 49-47 g/km)* in its role as “Medical Car”.