ROME, Italy – After scoring its first podium in China, the Nissan e.dams team will kick off the first of five Formula E races in Europe this weekend.
The Rome E-Prix on April 13 will be followed by events in Paris; Monte Carlo, Monaco; Berlin; and Bern, Switzerland. The championship will conclude in New York in July.
Oliver Rowland scored Nissan’s second Formula E pole and first podium with a second place in the last race, held in Sanya, China. He and teammate Sebastien Buemi will begin the European leg of the all-electric street racing championship this Saturday at the 2.84-kilometre, 21-turn Circuito Cittadino dell’EUR – one of the longest circuits on the Formula E calendar.
Nissan is the only brand to have scored two pole positions so far in the highly competitive season five of Formula E. The season has so far featured six different pole sitters, and six different race winners, in six races.
Nissan is using Formula E to demonstrate the power and performance of its electric vehicle technology – a key part of the company’s Nissan Intelligent Mobility vision, embodied by the 100 per cent electric Nissan LEAF.
Customers globally have bought more than 400,000 Nissan LEAF vehicles since the model first went on sale in 2010, making it the world’s best-selling electric car of all time.
The LEAF was the best-selling electric car in Europe in 2018. The recently unveiled Nissan LEAF e+, with increased range and power, is now available for order in Europe.
In Italy, Nissan has become a leader in electric mobility through the Nissan LEAF and the Nissan e-NV200. Last year, Nissan's electric vehicle market share in the country was 35 per cent.
“The Nissan LEAF and our Formula E car share the same DNA, right down to some of the software for controls,” said Michael Carcamo, Nissan’s global motorsports director.
“Europe is a huge market for the LEAF, so this leg of the championship will be important for us to highlight Nissan Intelligent Mobility from a performance perspective.
“The championship has been a very steep learning curve for Nissan. But after getting both cars into the top-six Super Pole session in China, getting our second pole position and taking our first podium, we now want to aim for the top spot.”
The race day action in Rome begins at 7:30 a.m. local time on April 13. The 45-minute (plus one lap) race is scheduled for 4:03 p.m.
“Rome was a great addition to the championship last season, and everyone at Nissan e.dams is looking forward to returning there this week,” said Jean-Paul Driot, Nissan e.dams’ team principal.
“Recording our first podium in China was an important milestone, but we want this to be the first of many.”
Driver Quotes
Sebastien Buemi
“Getting our first podium at the last round was a very important step, but now we want to go one better. I’ve been through a really unlucky run in recent races, but you have to keep working hard, focusing on the positives and preparing as best you can. Having two drivers showing strong speed is great for the team and helps drive us forward. We both share what we’re learning on the track, but we both want to beat each other, too. Oliver’s a rookie, so I’ve given him all the help I can – and it seems like I must be doing a good job as a teacher.”
Oliver Rowland
“I’ve got my first podium under my belt, but my preparation for Rome and the other European races will be the same. We’ve made a lot of progress with our simulator. The more miles we do, the more accurate it becomes. It’s a very valuable tool in preparing me for these races, because I’m a rookie, and I haven’t raced at these tracks before. I have to thank Seb and the team for all their help, because I entered the season with really only one day of testing under my belt. I’ve now had a great qualifying run of fourth, second and first in the past three races. I’d like to continue that level of performance as we begin the run of European races.”
Fast Facts
Driver profiles
Sebastien Buemi - https://www.nismo.com/driver/sebastien-buemi/
Oliver Rowland - https://www.nismo.com/driver/oliver-rowland/
Rome E-Prix track
Length: 2.84 km Turns: 21
Timetable
Friday, April 12
:30 p.m.: Shakedown
Saturday, April 13
7:30 a.m.: Practice 1
10 a.m.: Practice 2
11:45 a.m. Qualifying
12:30 p.m.: Super Pole
16:03 p.m.: Race
TV details https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/watch/ways-to-watch
#FANBOOST
The Nissan e.dams team has been popular in the “Fanboost” vote.
Fans of the team can help its drivers access an extra boost of energy during each race by tweeting using the hashtags #FANBOOST and #SebastienBuemi or #OliverRowland.
They can also vote by visiting nismo.com/fanboost/seb or nismo.com/fanboost/oliver.
