Maximilian Günther reaches fifth position in Monaco as best-placed German driver.

Monaco. In the seventh race of the season in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, Maximilian Günther (GER) crossed the finish line fifth in his adopted country, Monaco (MON). He just missed out on the podium but equalled the best result of the season and scored ten important points in the overall standings. After a tight, thrilling race, Günther missed out on second place by just four-tenths of a second in the #28 BMW iFE.21. Having won the Valencia E-Prix (ESP), Jake Dennis (GBR) suffered back luck this time. A not-at-fault collision early in the race put him at the back of the field and he was unable to score any points. With the first half of the season completed, BMW i Andretti Motorsport is now in fifth place in the team standings with 55 points.

Günther finished third in qualifying to reach Super Pole where he secured fifth position on the grid. The BMW i Andretti Motorsport driver was involved in some close-fought duels on the Formula 1 circuit in the principality. He moved up as high as third place and was battling for his first podium finish of the season. Günther fell back to fifth place as drivers attempted to get their ATTACK MODE timings right, but sound energy management gave him the opportunity to make up some ground towards the end of the race. A minor collision saw Günther’s chance of a podium finish disappear however, when Oliver Rowland (GBR, Nissan) clipped him from behind in the port chicane. Victory went to António Félix da Costa (POR, DS Techeetah).

Dennis’ first race in Monaco, and the first after his maiden Formula E victory in Valencia, did not go according to plan. Starting from 14^th on the grid, he was involved in a not-at-fault accident on the very first lap and dropped to the back of the field. He subsequently also received a drive-through penalty for excessive energy use. Dennis finished the race in 16^th place in the #27 BMW iFE.21.

The FIA Formula E Safety Car, the MINI Electric Pacesetter inspired by JCW, pulled the field back together around 15 minutes before the end after René Rast (GER, Audi) had retired, ensuring that there would be plenty of excitement in the final stage of the race.

Races eight and nine of this season’s ABB FIA Formula E World Championship take place on 19^th and 20^th June in Puebla (MEX).

Reactions to Race 7 in Monaco.

Roger Griffiths (BMW i Andretti Motorsport Team Principal, team standings: 5^th place):

“It was fantastic to be back here in Monaco and race on the full track. It’s been a day of mixed fortunes for our two drivers. Fifth place for Maximilian after P5 in qualifying is a very good result. It’s important for him to be back in the points and it’s also a good finish for the team. Unfortunately for Jake it wasn’t the strong result we had hoped for after such an impressive weekend in Valencia. We go into the six-week break now and look forward to continuing our progression up the standings.”

Maximilian Günther (#28 BMW iFE.21, starting position: 5^th place, race result: 5^th place, points: 22, driver standings: 16^th place):

“First of all P5 was a good start position for us. The race itself was very spectacular and very strategic. When do you take the ATTACK MODE, when do you use energy? Every overtaking move was right on the edge. At one point I was running in P3 but then after the ATTACK MODES I ended up in P5 fighting with Jean-Éric Vergne. He slightly touched me in turn 6 and then had the better run through the tunnel to overtake me. To sum it up, a bit of a shame to have missed the podium here, but we had a good race and scored good points. That was important for everybody.  All in all it was a positive day in Monaco.”

Jake Dennis (#27 BMW iFE.21, starting position: 14^th place, race result: 16^th place, points: 33, driver standings: 10^th place):

“My race was a bit unfortunate. I was in the middle of the pack and there was a backlog into turn 7. As I got hit, the car flipped into reverse gear and I lost a lot of time. After that we managed the race and hoped for a safety car. It came out towards the end but it just wasn’t enough to gain a lot of positions. I think the biggest thing we can take away from here is that we learned the track in Monaco. The performance wasn’t that bad. It is what it is and we move on now.”

The FANBOOST vote.

FANBOOST gives Formula E fans the opportunity to vote for their favourite driver and award them an extra boost of power during the race. The five drivers with the most FANBOOST votes receive an extra 100 kJ of power, which they can make use of during a brief time frame in the second half of the race. Fans can vote for their favourite driver in the four days prior to, and leading up to 15 minutes into, each race. Each fan can vote once per day. There are two ways to vote: Online at https://fanboost.fiaformulae.com/ or via the official Formula E App.

The BMW Group Safety Cars.
The BMW Group has been represented in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship as ‘Official Vehicle Partner’ since the very beginning and will continue to provide the fleet of safety cars for season 7 of the fully-electric racing series. Alongside the BMW i8 Roadster Safety Car (fuel consumption (combined): 2.0 l /100 km; energy use (combined): 14.5 kWh /100 km; combined CO₂ emissions: 46 g/km)*, which has been modified specially for racing use, the MINI Electric Pacesetter inspired by JCW appears as a new safety car since the Rome E-Prix. The development of the car based on the new MINI Cooper SE represents a hitherto unique collaboration between MINI Design, BMW Motorsport, the FIA and Formula E. The fleet also includes the BMW i3s (Power consumption in kWh/100: 14.6-14.0 (NEDC); 16.6-16.3 (WLTP), electric range in km: 278-283 (WLTP))* as ‘Race Director Car’ and the BMW iX3 (Power consumption in kWh/100: 17.8-17.5 (NEDC); 19.0-18.6 (WLTP), electric range in km: 450-458 (WLTP))* in its roles as ‘Medical Car’ and ‘Rescue Car’.