Hard-fought P8 for Nissan e.dams in intense Monaco E-Prix

MONTE CARLO, Monaco – Nissan e.dams Formula E driver Sébastien Buemi battled hard to secure P8 and four points at today's Monaco E-Prix, despite starting in P22. Teammate Maximilian Günther also drove with grit and determination, rising to P7 from P11 on the grid before having to slow down on the final lap and finishing in P17.

Round 6 of the 2021/22 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship took place in front of busy grandstands and in perfect sunny conditions at the iconic Monaco track. The Formula E cars raced on the famous full circuit, and the fans enjoyed endless action.

Both drivers showed good pace in the two free practice sessions taking a P5 each, but were unable to progress past the group stage in qualifying. However, the Nissan e.dams cars came alive in the second half of the race as the drivers moved forward through the bustling pack.

Buemi put his extensive Formula E experience to good use and made up a remarkable 14 positions. Günther held on to a P7 that was almost his until the very end but that he couldn't secure on the final lap after running low on energy.

"A bittersweet Monaco E-Prix for us," said Tommaso Volpe, general manager, Nissan Formula E, and managing director, Nissan e.dams Formula E Team. "We still have some improvements to make in our qualifying performance, and Max missed out on the duels by a very small margin. However, our race strategy was strong and our pace was good.

"Both drivers recovered many positions. Séb had a great race starting from P22 and finishing in P8. Max was in P7, but on the last lap he had to slow down as he was low on energy. Overall, we are moving in the right direction in terms of performance and come away from Monaco with some positives and a few points."

Away from the Formula E racing action, Nissan wowed the fans with another of its high performance all-electric cars – the LEAF NISMO RC. Based on the Nissan LEAF road car, this carbon fiber-bodied, twin-motor, track-only prototype took a handful of guests on hot laps, showcasing it's thrilling 3.4 seconds 0-100 km/h sprint performance.  

Nissan races in Formula E to bring the excitement and fun of zero-emission electric vehicles to a global audience. As part of its goal to achieve carbon neutrality across its operations and the life cycle of its products by 2050, Nissan intends to electrify every all-new vehicle offering by the early 2030s in key markets. The Japanese automaker aims to bring its expertise in transferring knowledge and technology between the racetrack and road for better electric vehicles for customers.

DRIVER QUOTES

Sébastien Buemi
"Mixed emotions today. Overall, we had a great race from last on the grid up to P8, and I think we deserved our points. Qualifying was disappointing after being P5 in FP1, and I am struggling to understand what happened. I know we have pace; it's just a matter of making sure I can put it all together. But the changes we made to the car and the result we achieved gives me confidence that we can go to Berlin with full focus to do a better job in qualifying."

Maximilian Günther
"I started from P11 today, so we were fighting right from the beginning. Our efficiency wasn't quite as good as the cars around me, so we were a little bit down on energy throughout. Overall, we did a good race; I did gain a few positions with some opportunistic moves and run in P7 for much of the time until the last lap. We did everything we could and left nothing on the table. No regrets about our team performance - no points for me, but positives to take away. I am very motivated for Berlin."

For more information, please visit the Formula E press kit

Contact

Maria C. De Juana
Head of communications, Nissan global motorsports
Phone: +33 617 36 37 61
mdejuana@nissan-europe.com

Sophie Rowlatt
Press officer, Nissan global motorsports
Phone: +44 7392 190 706
srowlatt@prismteam.com