News Nissan e.dams heads to Berlin for six-race Formula E season finale

Season to culminate with unprecedented three double-headers

YOKOHAMA, Japan (July 31, 2020) – The Nissan e.dams team heads to Berlin next week for six rounds of racing to decide the winners of the 2019/20 ABB FIA Formula E Championship.

Staged behind closed doors at Tempelhof Airport circuit, three double-header races will take place over nine days from Aug. 5 to Aug. 13, completing the revised season six calendar. The teams and drivers last competed on-track in February in Marrakesh, Morocco. The season was then suspended, after just five rounds, due to the coronavirus outbreak.

With Nissan e.dams just 9 points behind third place in the teams championship, the stakes for the final rounds are high. Adding to the intensity of the packed schedule at Tempelhof, each pair of races will run on different track layouts, putting the teams and drivers under extraordinary pressure.

“It’s all to play for in the teams championship, and we must prepare like never before for what will be an exciting racing challenge for our team and drivers.” said Tommaso Volpe, Nissan global motorsports director. “Three pairs of back-to-back races on three different circuit configurations is unprecedented. It will certainly test every aspect of team performance.”

The Nissan e.dams drivers maintained their racecraft during the COVID-19 lockdown by competing in the ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge sim series, which finished June 7. Oliver Rowland won two races and finished third in the esports drivers championship, while strong performances from Sebastien Buemi also helped Nissan e.dams finish second in the teams championship.

“We posted good results, but we missed the thrill of racing on-track,” said Gregory Driot, Nissan e.dams team principal. “Seb took the team’s first podium early in the season in Mexico, so the results are in us. We must maximize this opportunity to score many championship points in such a short time.”

The Berlin races will also mark the first time that Nissan’s new brand logo is featured across the Nissan e.dams team garage, race car and driver suits. The new logo was unveiled at the July 15 world premiere of the all-new Nissan Ariya, a 100% electric crossover SUV.

Nissan participates in Formula E to bring the excitement of its powerful EV performance to racing fans worldwide. Lessons learned on the track are also used to help improve the performance of Nissan’s zero-emission road cars, including the Ariya and the Nissan LEAF.

Sebastien Buemi

“My podium in Mexico feels like quite a long time ago now, but the great feeling, satisfaction and momentum it brought us is still with me as we head to Berlin. I feel ready, and I’m excited, but six races in nine days is something I’ve not experienced before. I’ll be taking it one race at a time and remembering Mexico as I compete for as many points as possible.”

Oliver Rowland

“The competition in the Race at Home Challenge was full-on at times, and it was great to be part of the team’s success in that series. But now, we’re back to doing what we love, and I can’t wait to get back in the car. I’ve been training hard and building my focus. With Seb, we’ll be racing hard for every point over the six races. Our motivation after the Covid-19 lockdown is stronger than ever.”

Berlin E-Prix Tempelhof Airport track – three track configurations:

Rounds 6 and 7 - configuration 1
Traditional configuration, reverse direction (clockwise)

Length: 2.355km
Turns:  10 turns

Rounds 8 and 9 - configuration 2
Traditional configuration and direction (anti-clockwise)

Length: 2.355km
Turns:  10 turns

Rounds 10 and 11 - configuration 3
New configuration (anti-clockwise)

Length: 2.505km
Turns:  16 turns
 

Round 6
Wednesday, August 5

8:45 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.: Practice 1
11:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.: Practice 2
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

Round 7
Thursday, August 6

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.: Practice 3
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

Round 8
Saturday, August 8

8:35 a.m. – 9:20 a.m.: Practice 1
11:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.: Practice 2
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

Round 9
Sunday, August 9

9:45 a.m. – 10:30 p.m.: Practice 3
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

Round 10
Wednesday, August 12

8:35 a.m. – 9:20 a.m.: Practice 1
11:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.: Practice 2
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

Round 11
Thursday, August 13

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.: Practice 3
2:15 p.m. – 2:51 p.m.: Qualifying
3 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: Super Pole
7:03 p.m.: Race (45 min + 1 lap)

https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/watch/ways-to-watch

The Nissan e.dams team has been popular in the Fanboost vote. Fans can help the team 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. Voting opens six days before the race and closes 6 minutes into the race.