Formula E - Hong Kong: Sam Bird opens the Season 4 with a victory
Sam Bird (DS Virgin Racing) wins the first race of the Hong Kong ePrix, the first round of the 2017/2018 FIA Formula E Championship season. The 30-year old Briton overcame pit lane problems and drive-through penalty to dominantly win (11.575 seconds) ahead of Jean-Eric Vergne (Techeetah) and Nick Heidfeld (Mahindra Racing). It’s the sixth Formula E win in a career for Sam Bird.
Maro Engel (Venturi) made a fantastic job to finish fourth, progressing from P14 on the starting grid, but he received a post-race penalty because of an energy overuse, which dropped him to P14. That promoted Nelson Piquet Jr. (Jaguar) to P4, ahead of Daniel Abt (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler) and Antonio Felix da Costa (Andretti).
Sam Bird is the first winner in the new season of Formula E
Felix Rosenqvist (Mahindra) lost few positions in closing laps to finish seventh. Edoardo Mortara (Venturi) is the best rookie in the 8th place. Other point-scorers are Alex Lynn (DS Virgin Racing) and Nico Prost (Renault e.dams).
The opening race of the Season 4 was red-flagged shortly after the start when Andre Lotterer (Techeetah) hit a wall and blocked a track. A damage wasn’t big so he rejoined the race.
After the re-start, pole-sitter Jean-Eric Vergne stayed in the lead until lap 20, when Bird made a decisive move to overtake him.
Traffic jam behind Andre Lotterer on lap 1
The Hong Kong ePrix is a double-header event, so one more race, together with practice session and qualifying, is scheduled for Sunday.
Check the full results of the Hong Kong ePrix
Photos: DS Virgin Racing,
