Triumphant debut: Félix da Costa wins for BMW i Andretti Motorsport at Formula E season opener.

Ad Diriyah. Perfect start for BMW i Andretti Motorsport and
the BMW iFE.18 in the ABB FIA Formula E Championship: António Félix
da Costa (POR) celebrated victory at the BMW works team’s debut in
Ad Diriyah (KSA). Félix da Costa claimed pole position to start. In
the race, the support of fans via “FANBOOST” voting helped him
defend first place in a fiercely contested duel with reigning
champion Jean-Eric Vergne (FRA) down to the finish line.

 

It was Félix da Costa’s second win in his Formula E career. Alexander
Sims (GBR) was involved in plenty of duels in his maiden race in the
race series for fully electric single-seater cars and crossed the
finish line in 18th place after two penalties for breaching
technical regulations.

 

After rain showers in the morning, the 22 drivers in the field only
had one practice session available before it was on to qualifying.
Numerous delays meant that the drivers started in two instead of the
usual four groups. Félix da Costa achieved his pole time in the very
first qualifying group. The race was held in dry conditions. The newly
introduced “ATTACK MODE” and the “FANBOOST” provided additional
excitement. Félix da Costa was one of five drivers who was able to use
this additional boost of energy in the closing stage of the race. The
BMW i8 Coupé Safety Car was in action during the season opener.

 

The ABB FIA Formula E Championship enters its second round in
Marrakech (MAR) on 12th January 2019.

 

Reactions to the Ad Diriyah E-Prix:

 

Jens Marquardt (BMW Motorsport Director):

“First race for our BMW i drivetrain, first pole position, first win
– it’s just incredible! Big thanks go to the entire development team
of BMW i and BMW Motorsport in Munich. Together you did an incredible
job! And of course, congratulations to António and everyone in the BMW
i Andretti Motorsport team. I’m very proud of the whole team. There’s
no better way to end the 2018 motorsport year, and you would be hard
pushed to have a better start to a new project and a new season.”

 

Roger Griffiths (Team Principal BMW i Andretti Motorsport):

“It’s impossible to put into words the emotions in this moment. This
race was our first opportunity to show what we as the BMW i Andretti
Motorsport team can achieve – and we won at the first time of asking.
It’s incredible. Without the support and the technology of BMW, this
success would never have been possible. The victory belongs to the
whole team.”

 

António Félix da Costa (#28 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result:
1st place, race result: 1st place, FANBOOST
voting: 3rd place, points: 28):

“That’s a great day for me, BMW and the whole team. Thank you to
everybody! I’m delighted – for me, that I’m back at the top of the
podium again after such a long time, but primarily for the team. We
have always had the same goal, to get to this point. And each of us
gave it our all. Days like this make it clear: It’s worth all the
effort! Many thanks to everyone who played their part in this win. But
we still have a lot of work to do. Jean-Eric Vergne was incredibly
fast, it was really close at the end, my heart rate went through the
roof. But in the end, I did enough.”

 

Alexander Sims (#27 BMW iFE.18, qualifying result:
17th place, race result: 18th place, FANBOOST
voting: 13th place, points: 0):

“My first Formula E weekend was a big challenge and I learned a great
deal. António did a fantastic job with pole position and the win, and
showed how fast our car is. After a difficult qualifying session, I
was actually doing quite well in the race in eighth place, but then
two penalties unfortunately pushed me right down the field. Despite
this, the weekend has made me optimistic for the upcoming races.”

 

The BMW i Fleet

BMW i is “Official Vehicle Partner” of the ABB FIA Formula E
Championship in Season 5. Spearheading the BMW i fleet is the BMW i8
Coupé Safety Car, modified with BMW M components (combined fuel
consumption: 1.8 l/100 km; combined energy consumption 14.0 kWh/100
km; combined CO2 emissions: 42 g/km)*. As well as the BMW
i8 Coupé, the BMW i fleet also includes the BMW i3s (combined fuel
consumption: 0.0 l/100 km; combined energy consumption: 14.3 kWh;
combined CO2 emissions: 0 g/km)* as “Race Director Car” and
the BMW 530e iPerformance (combined fuel consumption: 2.2-2.1 l/100
km; combined energy consumption: 13.6-13.3 kWh/100 km; combined
CO2 emissions: 49-47 g/km)* in its role as “Medical Car”.