| |
|
Until the penultimate lap of the Monaco E-Prix, it looked as if ABT CUPRA could repeat its strong performance with points from the home race in Berlin: Nico Müller had fought his way up to ninth place from 17th on the grid when a competitor hit his car, forcing the Swiss to retire. The subsequent time penalty for the rival did little to help the German squad: they were left with zero points and major damage to Müller’s car, which now has to be repaired until the next race. Teammate Robin Frijns finished 13th on the streets of the Principality.
“We were on a good way today to finish in the points under our own steam and even from a rear grid position – this is an important next step for us in our comeback,” says Team Principal Thomas Biermaier. “My thanks go to the whole team who do a fantastic job again every weekend. We’ll take this positive aspect with us into the next rounds, along with all the great impressions of an exciting race day in front of full grandstands and with lots of guests. Formula E presented itself at its best today on one of the most spectacular tracks in the world.”
In a qualifying session that was jumbled by many penalties, Nico Müller kept a cool head and started the race from 17th position. With a good strategy, well-chosen use of the attack mode and little risk on the tight circuit, he drove all the way into the top ten before the non-culpable collision in the first corner of the penultimate lap ended his path to the front. “We definitely deserved points today and were also very close, but unfortunately a competitor obviously had other plans,” says Nico Müller with a shrug. “But we’re not letting that get us down. It was a great race day with lots of fans and it was fun to drive the new GEN3 car here in Monaco.”
Robin Frijns is already looking ahead to the next event, the two races in Jakarta in four weeks time. “We didn’t find the perfect set-up all day and therefore struggled a bit with blunt weapons,” says the Dutchman after his 13th place. He had started the race from 18th on the grid. “We now have a lot of work ahead of us to analyze all the data and set ourselves up for Jakarta. The team showed today what’s possible – that’s exactly what we’ll be building on.”
Before the next Formula E event on 3 and 4 June, the ABT Motorsport weeks already go into the next round next weekend: ABT CUPRA will start with Klara Andersson and Nasser Al-Attiyah at the Hydro X Prix of Extreme E in Scotland.
|
|
|
| |
Company profile of ABT Sportsline
As the world’s largest specialist for automotive aftermarket and performance parts for the Audi, VW, Seat, CUPRA and Skoda brands, the name ABT Sportsline is world-renowned. The product line ranges from more engine power to body kits, over suspensions and interior design, to an extensive collection of alloy wheels. However, the Bavaria-based company, which has its roots in 1896, stands for much more. Today, several attractive subsidiaries with a total of 210 employees join forces under the umbrella of ABT SE. In doing so, they elegantly combine innovation and tradition. When it comes to drivetrain technology, the German company always has its finger on the pulse of the times: through ABT e-Line GmbH, the areas of electric and alternative mobility are covered as a further strong pillar of the company. And of course ABT Sportsline also stands for top-level motorsport, as it always has. This is demonstrated by the success story in the DTM, which continues right up to the present day, as well as the current involvement in the forward-looking electric racing series Extreme E and Formula E.
|
|
|
