On April 24th, the long-awaited Formula E Valencia Grand Prix officially kicked off on the Ricardo Tormo Circuit. Thirty minutes before the start of the race, driver Vandoorne from the Mercedes EQ FE team was penalized for a tire usage error and had to start from the last position. DS Techeetah driver da Costa took over the pole position.
The reason why this race received so much attention is that it is the first time since the start of the Formula E that a race has been held on a permanent track, and it was also a rain-drenched race with many highlights.
During the race, due to the slippery track and other reasons, collisions, skids, and entering the gravel occurred frequently, and the race marshal deployed the safety car five times, which paved the way for the dramatic ending in the end.
In the last two minutes of the race, when the safety car had returned to the maintenance area, most of the drivers’ electric energy levels were almost depleted. Only twelve drivers crossed the finish line, and three of the cars had to crawl over the finish line due to maintenance area speed limits. Five cars were disqualified due to exceeding battery usage standards.
Da Costa, who had been leading for a long time, remained in the lead after the fifth safety car exited and crossed the finish line in the last 15 seconds. However, after multiple safety car periods, the driver’s battery energy level sharply decreased.
Many teams could not accept such a result, but FIA officials hinted that the leading driver da Costa could slow down the car speed. As FIA suggested, the drivers were advised to slow down during the race…
Da Costa was obviously unable to accept such a result, and he claimed after the race that Formula E had become the “joke of the week.”
🔗Source: motorsport
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