Lucas Di Grassi finally returned to the points last weekend for the first time since the season-opener in Mexico City, following an excellent Portland E-Prix.
The Formula E veteran performed brilliantly at the inaugural event held at the Portland International Raceway, with him having qualified in thirteenth. Qualifying has been an issue for the Brazilian all season, who’s often shown very good race pace. By qualifying closer to the top ten, Di Grassi was able to use his good pace to progress into the points positions much easier, where he looked very comfortable.
He ultimately finished the race in seventh, to end his ten race point-less streak. It was certainly a great day for Di Grassi and for Mahindra Racing, with the former FE Champion having been “very happy” with the side’s progress in Portland.
“We had a good weekend in Portland. It was a very difficult, strategic race but we finished P7 and got six points. I’m very happy with the progress of the team that we were more competitive in this race. I’m looking forward to the next four races and to finish out this championship by hopefully scoring more points for Mahindra Racing.”
“We are still analysing the issue” – Roberto Merhi
For rookie Roberto Merhi it was a weekend to forget, as the Spanish driver retired from the race in its early stages. Merhi started in seventeenth and made up several places in the opening laps, with the car having “honestly felt fantastic”.
However, he suddenly grinded to a halt, with the team still investigating what actually happened to his car.
It was a bitterly disappointing and “painful” way for his third FE race to end, leaving Merhi feeling “very sad”. He was gutted to retire from the race as he viewed it as a “super opportunity”, due to how good the car felt.
“I am very sad today as it was a super opportunity for me. We have done some modifications to the car compared to the previous race and I was really happy and pleased with my car, especially during the race. I made up places at the beginning of the race from where I started, and the car honestly felt fantastic. I made it up to 14th and then stopped on track.
“We are still analysing the issue but I was happy with my pace, and I was already saving energy well. So yes, I’m a bit sad about what happened today. Qualifying was maybe not so good as we had an issue in FP2 that limited my running but even so, I was pretty close to Lucas. I felt like I made a good step forward from Jakarta and I think that’s why it is so painful. Hopefully I can come back.”
Credit: LAT Images courtesy of FIA Formula E