Jake Dennis in the #27 BMW i Andretti iFE.21 won his second race of the season in the first of two ABB Formula E races run at the ExCel London exhibition center. Then, in race two, Max Günther in the #28 iFE.21 finished sixth and Dennis finished ninth.
The series ran on a combined indoor/outdoor circuit at the center. Dennis started second on the grid in the Saturday race, passed Mahindra’s Alex Lynn to move into first, and extended his lead enough to enable him to go through his second attack mode and remain in first. Günther started at the back of the pack after an incident in qualifying and moved up to finish twentieth.
After winning his home race, Dennis said, “I am super happy. I pretty much didn’t know what to expect going into the race. It was a little bit different to normal, with really not much energy-saving going on. It was obviously an intense battle with Alex Lynn; I was trying to put him under pressure. We took the risk to stay up in front when he took his second attack mode. I knew I could keep him behind, but I didn’t know if it would work out better or not. Luckily he made a small mistake and then it was about three qualifying laps to pull the two-second gap before I went for my second attack mode. Then it was just a matter of bringing it home when we got the lead. We had really severe vibrations on the right rear. It was probably in the last fifteen laps of the race. I was generally not taking any curb just to make sure to bring it home. Now being third in the championship is far more than I expected at the beginning of the season.”
In race two, Günther made it into the super pole qualifying session and started sixth. Dennis went out in the first qualifying session when the track was wet. His time was eclipsed as the track dried; he started seventeenth. Günther finished sixth, where he had begun, while Dennis found his way into the points, finishing ninth. It would have been higher, but a late race drive-through penalty set the Saturday winner back. Alex Lynn won the race.
Team principal Roger Griffiths said, “The second race here in London was much more eventful. Everyone was a little more conservative yesterday but it was much more aggressive today. In the end, we finished with both cars in the points. That’s what we came here for and that is what helps us in the championship. Maximilian came home in sixth place; Jake finished ninth. It was a great performance from Jake, who worked his way up from P17 after a somewhat disappointing qualifying session. Maximilian reached Superpole again. We are now fifth in the team standings and we had a great time here in London. Formula E organized a fantastic event. Now we are heading into the final two rounds of the world championship in Berlin. Let’s see what we can achieve.”
Going into the final two races of the season in Berlin on August 13–15, Dennis is fourth in drivers’ points, Günther is fifteenth, and the BMW i Andretti team is fifth.—Brian Morgan
[Photo courtesy BMW Motorsport.]
