Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird was gifted victory in a dramatic finish to the Visa London ePrix as Nelson Piquet (NEXTEV TCR) secured seventh place to be crowned the first Formula E champion.
Stephane Sarrazin (Venturi) crossed the line first but was immediately handed a 49 second time-penalty for exceeding energy usage, handing the win to Bird on home soil.
After a disastrous qualifying session in which he was out on track during the worst of the rain, Piquet lined-up 16th, with both of his title rivals ahead on the road.
Heading into the final Visa London ePrix in Battersea Park just five points ahead of Sebastien Buemi, Piquet looked to have put himself out of contention, but a composed race to seventh ensured he finished the day just a single point ahead of Buemi in the standings.
But after a less-than-auspicious start of the season in which he had only a five-race contract less than two weeks before the Beijing opener, Piquet reflected on a team journey that brought him, and the NEXTEV TCR team, into title contention.
An aggressive race strategy in which the Brazilian concentrated only on his race allowed him to go an extra lap in the first car, and the safety car period prompted by Fabio Leimer’s crash with a handful of laps remaining helped bunch the pack up enough for him to pass team-mate Oliver Turvey and Salvador Duran to claim the crucial seventh place.
Drivers’ Standings (After Rd 11):
1. Nelson Piquet Jr. – 144 pts
2. Sebastien Buemi – 143 pts
3. Lucas di Grassi – 133 pts
4. Jerome d’Ambrosio – 113 pts
5. Sam Bird – 103 pts
6. Nicolas Prost – 88 pts
7. Jean-Eric Vergne – 70 pts
8. Antonio Felix da Costa – 51 pts
9. Louc Duval – 42 pts
10. Bruno Senna – 40 pts
Teams’ Standings (After Rd 11):
1. e.dams-Renault Formula E – 232 pts
2. Dragon Racing Formula E – 171 pts
3. Audi Sport ABT Formula E – 165 pts
4. NEXTEV TCR (China Racing Formula E) – 152 pts
5. Virgin Racing Formula E – 133 pts
6. Andretti Formula E – 119 pts
7. Amlin Aguri Formula E – 66 pts
8. Mahindra Racing Formula E – 58 pts
9. Venturi Formula E – 53 pts
10. Trulli Formula E – 17 pts
