After a messed up qualifying, Stoffel Vandoorne at least managed to limit the damage in the Formula E race in Marrakech thanks to a strong race to catch up. From 20th on the grid, the title contender worked its way up into the points during the course of the E-Prix, but when leaving Morocco a feeling of disillusionment prevailed. The result of Mercedes’ first error analysis: Vandoorne struggled with brake problems in qualifying.
The expectations of the Belgian ahead of the weekend were high given his promising position in the drivers’ standings, after all Vandoorne traveled to Marrakesh as overall leader. His lead over Edoardo Mortara (Venturi) was twelve points before the weekend. However, it was already clear to many in the Formula E paddock after qualifying that defending the lead in the world championship would be difficult: Vandoorne only qualified for the E-Prix from 20th place on the grid.
The reason for this unusually poor qualifying performance was a mistake in fine-tuning his braking system. Already in the 2nd free practice he had problems with the brakes and slightly locking wheels. The problem was much more serious in qualifying. “It was manageable (in practice) but it was a lot worse in qualifying. It was just impossible to do a lap,” says Vandoorne.
“We can’t afford something like that, especially not in a World Championship where every point counts. I’m a bit torn, because on the one hand I’m frustrated with the problems in qualifying. On the other hand, at least we did damage limitation. In the race It was just a matter of picking up a point or two or however many points. I think we got the maximum out of P20 with P8.”
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Nevertheless, Vandoorne slipped down in the drivers’ standings. There he only occupies third place with 125 points behind Edoardo Mortara (139 points) and Jean-Eric Vergne (128 points). The sobering performance in Morocco did not go unnoticed by Mercedes team boss Ian James. “All in all it was a tough weekend,” says the Brit.
James: “Already collapsed in the middle of the season in the last few years”
“We’re leaving Marrakech with a few points, but at the same time we’ve taken on a new challenge on the way to New York,” explains James. “In the last few years, we’ve slumped a bit as a team in the middle of the season. Of course, that’s not a situation we like to find ourselves in.”
The Marrakech points yield is not yet a cause for concern. “The quality of the team, the caliber of the women and men who work in our team is so good that we can quickly get out of difficult situations. That gives me confidence for the last six races of the season.”
Edo Mortara’s result should also cause limited optimism, after all the Venturi driver was driven by Mercedes power on the way to his third win of the year. In the World Championship, the Monegasque racing team is still competition for the “Silver Arrows”: At the Marrakesh E-Prix, Venturi took over the overall standings in the Team World Championship and relegated the works team to third place. Second is DS Techeetah.
The next opportunity for points is in two weeks for Vandoorne and Mercedes. On July 16th and 17th, Formula E meets for the New York City E-Prix at the “Big Apple”.
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