BMW i Andretti Autosport team boss Roger Griffiths has praised Jake Dennis’ flawless pole to flag victory in the second Valencia EPrix, which lifted BMW from the bottom of the standings.
Dennis claimed his maiden pole position on Sunday before leading the entire race to take the checkered flag to claim his first Formula E victory in what is only his sixth race in the series.
The 29 points for pole and win lifted BMW from the bottom of the standings to seventh, just below long-time rival Porsche.
“We are super happy! Jake did a phenomenal job,” said Griffiths. “He drove a really mature race, was always able to control the pace and at the same time be efficient. That was the key in the end – together with the perfect strategy that the whole crew figured out.
“Coming here being at the bottom of the standings we really needed such a good result. We needed it for the team, for the drivers and most of all for BMW and Andretti.
“It was super important to deliver today – and we did it.”
On the other side of the garage, it wasn’t so positive as Maximilian Gunther started from last place, but managed to climb to 12th.
“Starting from the back makes life difficult of course. I think he [Gunther] made the most of it, passing some really strong competitors.
“Anyway, this victory means that the whole team will travel to the next race in Monaco on a high. But first we will enjoy this.”
Dennis was relieved to finally get a strong haul of points on the board, having failed to score before the Valencia weekend. But he now sits eighth, just 24 behind championship leader Nyck de Vries.
“I am lost for words. The whole race inside the cockpit was incredibly technical. Pulling a gap at the right point to get Attack Mode was so crucial.
“Everyone in the team did a great job. I’m really happy for everybody. We had such a tough start to the season, but today we turned it around. We are back in it again.”
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