Lucas di Grassi took victory in Saturday’s Berlin ePrix, and moves to second in the ABB Formula E championship.
Pole-sitter Buemi started well, holding off Stoffel Vandoorne into turn one, with di Grassi slotting in behind.
Lap Three saw the first position changes at the front, with di Grassi overtaking Vandoorne into Turn Six. Buemi was the next target, and di Grassi took the lead from the Nissan just two laps later.
And @LucasdiGrassi takes the lead of the 2019 #BerlinEPrix by overtaking @Sebastien_buemi #ABBFormulaE pic.twitter.com/gBBp4FFSVt
— ABB Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) May 25, 2019
Further back, Felipe Massa clipped the wall at Turn Six, but was lucky to remain unscathed in his Venturi.
Pascal Wehrlein also made contact with the barrier as Oliver Rowland forced his way through, earning the Brit a warning.
Turn Six also proved to be a popular overtaking spot, with Vergne scything past Alex Lynn and Daniel Abt in consecutive laps.
Vandoorne was also unable to provide any resistance to Vergne, allowing the Techeetah to take fourth place.
Lynn then became the first retiree from the race on Lap Twenty-Four, due to a drivetrain issue. Unsurprisingly, a full course yellow was necessary to remove the stricken Jaguar from the start-finish straight.
The majority of the front runners immediately activated their second attack mode, although both Audi’s chose to wait until two laps later.
This proved to be an inspired move, as di Grassi was able to use this extra power to extend his lead once the track was clear.
Buemi was preoccupied with defending from BMW’s Antonio Felix da Costa, with the two making minor contact at Turn One. Vergne also made contact with the BMW, but was able to get past da Costa to take third.
Di Grassi was left alone and claim his second victory of the season, and his tenth in Formula E. In addition, it was Audi’s second consecutive win at Tempelhof. Buemi held to claim second, with Vergne in third place.
The Brazilian also earned another point for the fastest lap, and with three races remaining, Lucas Di Grassi is now second in the championship standings.
He is currently six points shy of Jean-Eric Vergne, while a non-points finish dropped Andre Lotterer to third place.
The latest championship standings after the 2019 #BerlinEPrix ?? pic.twitter.com/qm3pZmzPPJ
— ABB Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) May 25, 2019
