Points and a podium signal progress for Envision Virgin Racing

Join Formula E

Sign in or create your Formula E account

It's quick, easy and free to sign up

You'll get access to:

  • Helmet

    News. Analysis. Exclusive Features

  • Schedule

    Priority Booking. Early Bird Pricing

  • Trophy

    Competitions. Discounts. Experiences

  • Podium

    Predict. Vote. Win.

TO CONTINUE READING...

You will need to sign in or create a Formula E account.

Points and a podium signal progress for Envision Virgin Racing

Envision Virgin Racing secured the second-largest Teams' points haul over the first of three double-headers marking Formula E's unprecedented season finale from Berlin's Tempelhof Airport, with Sam Bird securing a Round 6 podium and Robin Frijns following up with a fourth placed finish in Round 7.

Points and a podium signal progress for Envision Virgin Racing

We saw Bird battle hard to make the podium in Round 6 from seventh on the grid and Frijns recover from a brush with a wall on Wednesday to a hard-fought fourth on Thursday in Round 7 with the team climbing to fifth in the Teams' standings.

The Flying Dutchman

Frijns scrapped hard with Lucas di Grassi for the final spot on the podium, with the Brazilian employing all of his experience to fend off the Dutchman's advances.

They looked very evenly matched, both running the Audi powertrain, and traded places back and forth during the ATTACK MODE activation scramble.

It was a straight fight to the finish with Frijns clambering over the back of the Audi for every one of the final five laps and with the pair occupying themselves, Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-Benz EQ) and Bird joined the party in a four-way tussle for the podium.

WATCH: Don't miss a second of Round 8 from the Traditional Berlin Tempelhof Circuit

Di Grassi’s experience and guile served him well, however, as he clung on but there would have been a sigh of relief from the 35-year-old when the chequered flag fell.

"I think the battle was hard with Di Grassi but it was fun to be racing right on the edge against him," said birthday boy Frijns, who turned 29 today.

"The end result was great for me, coming home with points and not risking too much going for the podium was definitely the right call and I’m looking forward to heading out again on Saturday on the Traditional Berlin Tempelhof Circuit.”

Progress

The team had struggled over the last three race weekends prior to Berlin, by its - and Sam Bird's - own admission. After winning the opening round in Diriyah at the hands of the Brit - the outfit managed just two top ten finishes from the next possible eight.

Bird felt the Round 6 return to form was just rewards for Envision Virgin Racing's hard work during the break and with an improved package, the team can now snowball with a run of consistency heading into Rounds 8 and 9.

YOUR VOTE COUNTS! Give your favourite driver a power-boost with FANBOOST

"I was very pleased for the team with that result," said the 33-year-old. "It’s been a bit of a rocky year for us, and hopefully Round 6 marked something of a reset of our season.

"I was a bit disappointed for not finishing second in the end, but I was low on energy in the last couple of laps and had to manage things from there. There is still some work to do on the car, but we have a good base to work with now.

“Consistency is key in Formula E and we’ve managed to get a great points haul for the team between the two of us – it’s still all to play for with the next four races and I think we have a good chance of fighting at the top again over the next week.

"The team have put in some hard work already over the past few days and with only a day between double-headers it’s definitely tough, but we’re going to dig deep and continue to show our strong performance.”