ABT CUPRA achieves best result since Formula E comeback

In Misano, Italy, ABT CUPRA has achieved the best result since its Formula E comeback almost one and a half years ago: After Lucas di Grassi scored his first point on Saturday, team mate Nico Müller finished fourth on Sunday. The Swiss driver missed an even bigger sensation by a hairbreadth: In the end, he was just five hundredths of a second off the podium.
 
Both Formula E races on the Adriatic coast were characterized by different strategies, the search for perfect energy and temperature management and numerous overtakings. While di Grassi at least managed to score his first point of the season on Saturday, Müller failed to score any points despite his fourth place on the grid. 
 
On Sunday, Müller repeated his strong performance in qualifying, making it back to the duels and only being beaten in the semi-final. In the race, the team opted for a different strategy than the day before and steered their driver skillfully and coolly through the 26 laps. It almost looked like a sensation when Müller was running third in the final corners of the race – but when he crossed the finish line he had to settle for fourth place. It is the best result for the team since its comeback at the start of the ninth season in January 2023. Di Grassi would also have scored points with a ninth-place finish, but a 5-second penalty dropped him back to eleventh place.
 
Formula E returns to the track in just two weeks’ time with the Monaco race scheduled for April 27. The race in Lucas di Grassi’s hometown is considered one of the highlights of the season on the Formula E World Championship calendar.
 
Thomas Biermaier, ABT CEO and Team Principal: “Congratulations to Nico, Lucas and the whole team – everyone did a fantastic job this weekend. Of course, a trophy on Sunday would have been the cherry on the cake, but even so, everyone can be proud of this performance. We carried the experience of the previous day’s race perfectly into a different, more aggressive strategy and were rewarded with the best result since our comeback. This sense of achievement makes us even more optimistic for Monaco, where we want to pick up exactly where we left off.”
 
Lucas di Grassi, #11 (Qualifying P16/P14, Race P10/P11): “This was a very important weekend for the team as we scored points on both days. Congratulations to Nico, who almost finished on the podium. I myself was in the top ten on Sunday but then got a penalty. But more important than points and positions is the fact that we are now in a position to fight for points on a regular basis. That was our goal at the beginning of the season. If we continue like this, we’ll be fighting for the podium again soon.”
 
Nico Müller, #51 (Qualifying P4/P4, Race P12/P4): “This was an all-round successful weekend: Twice in duels in qualifying, twice starting the race from the second row and almost on the podium on Sunday. We learned our lesson from Saturday and worked much better as a team on Sunday. The guys in the garage did a great job guiding me through the race. Of course a trophy and champagne would have been perfect, but I’m still going home with a good feeling.”