Double title defence as a parting shot: Stoffel Vandoorne finished the 100th race in the history of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in the runner-up spot, a result that was enough to secure the Drivers’ Title by a wide margin. At the same time, the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team successfully defended their title in the Team World Championship in what would be their last race in the all-electric racing series.
To all involved and all the fans: thank you!
- Stoffel set the second-fastest time in qualifying group A to reach the Duels stage. He then advanced to the semi-finals, where he narrowly lost out to Edoardo Mortara. Stoffel started the final race of the season in Seoul from fourth place.
- Nyck emerged from his qualifying group in sixth place, missing out on a place in the Duels and starting the Seoul E-Prix from twelfth on the grid.
- Stoffel held his position at the start and then moved up into the podium group in the second half of the race. Stoffel crossed the finish line in second place as beneficiary of a time penalty for Jake Dennis.
- It was Stoffel’s 15th podium in Formula E and his eighth of the season. At the same time, he finished in the points for the 15th time in the 16th race of the season.
- Stoffel (213 points) rounded off his fourth season in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship with a 33-point lead over Mitch Evans (180) as World Champion for the first time in his career.
- Nyck fought his way up into the points in the early stages of the race before having to pit his car which had sustained damage in a collision with another driver. He ends the season in ninth place on 106 points.
- The race, which was extended by 6:45 minutes due to a lengthy safety car deployment, was won by Edoardo Mortara. It was the eighth win for the Mercedes-EQ Silver Arrow 02 this season, the most for any car in the current campaign.
- The Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team (319 points) finishes Season 8 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship with a 24-point lead over Venturi Racing (295) as Team World Champions.
- Season 8 also sees a 1-2 finish in the Teams’ Championship with Venturi Racing finishing second in the standings.
- For the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team, the centenary Formula E race in Seoul was also their last. The team is retiring from the racing series after three seasons, having scored seven victories, 23 Podium finishes and having won two consecutive Double World Championships.
|
Driver |
FP3 |
Qualifying |
Race |
Standings |
|
#5 S. Vandoorne |
P6 1:21.620 14 Laps |
P4 (Semi-Final) 1:21.069 |
P2 Grid: P4 FL: 1:23.009 |
P1 213 Points |
|
#17 N. de Vries |
P14 1:21.904 18 Laps |
P12 (Group A: P6) 1:22.148 |
DNF Grid: P12 FL: 1:24.141 |
P9 106 Points |
Stoffel Vandoorne:
“Wow, I’m speechless. It’s fantastic – the whole season has just been great. It’s an incredible feeling when you think about what we’ve achieved together this year. Thank you to the whole team for making this possible. The car was superb again today, and everyone in the team deserves this success. We have accomplished something very special together. Mitch gave everything right up until the end – he was always there. But in the end, consistency was the deciding factor: he won more races than I did, but I had the most podiums. As a team, we have achieved a level of consistency that has never been seen before in Formula E. I am incredibly proud of my team and our performance this season. It’s the perfect way to end the season, to be on the podium in the last race of the season, the 100th E-Prix in the history of the series, and to win both World Championship titles.”
Nyck de Vries:
“A disappointing end to my race, but a fantastic result for the team. The only thing that counts today is that we won both World Championships. I’m obviously disappointed that I didn’t finish, but fortunately that didn’t change anything. I am very happy for the whole team. Congratulations to Stoffel, who’s had a fantastic season. He’s been very consistent and deserves the title. The team has done a great job over the years, and we couldn’t have asked for a better end to our journey together than this final result. I am super happy that we have managed to win both World Championship titles in each of the past two seasons. That’s a remarkable achievement in such a fiercely competitive race series. I’m not happy with the way my season went, of course, but it wasn’t always apparent from the outside what the problem was. It was a kind of snowball effect of small things that meant we weren’t able to score points on a consistent basis.”
Ian James, Team Principal:
“Wow! What a day and what a journey it’s been! Congratulations to the team, congratulations to Stoffel and congratulations to Nyck. Everyone has played such a vital role in us winning the team title. When the Mercedes-Benz board made the decision to enter Formula E four years ago, we didn’t know how it would turn out. Now we are sitting here and have won both World Championship titles for the second time in a row. This success we’ve had together in Formula E is just phenomenal. Congratulations to all the women and men at Brackley, Brixworth and Stuttgart. I have to admit, this is an emotional moment for me. Stoffel has done a fantastic job all year. He really deserves this title. But not only because of the title win, but also his development has been mega. The same goes for the team, everyone has been great. This achievement has only been possible because of the dedication and effort of all the team members in Brixworth, Brackley and Stuttgart. Together they have done it. With this work ethic. I’ve never seen anything like it before, but that’s what leads to results like this. We can’t wait to be back next season for a new chapter in our story as a team, but for now: I’ll be off to celebrate with the team.”
Toto Wolff, Team Principal and CEO of the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team:
“I’m incredibly proud of all the team to have scored a consecutive double World Championship in Formula E again this year. An incredible achievement for an incredible team; and on top of that a 1-2 in the Teams’ Championship for Mercedes powered cars. That really shows the strength in depth of our racing organisations. Congratulations also to both our drivers, both having won a Drivers’ Championships on merit, and especially to Stoffel on today’s achievement after a season that was the picture of championship winning consistency. Mercedes-EQ are leaving the series on a high, and with great memories. It has definitely been a fun ride. Formula E – it was great to have met you!”