DS Penske Deputy Team Principal Phil Charles has described the team’s first-ever 1-2 finish in Formula E “a race day we will remember” after Max Guenther led Jean-Eric Vergne home in the Shanghai E-Prix.
The German took his second win of the season, with team-mate Vergne snatching third and then second places off Dan Ticktum and Taylor Barnard to secure a historic result for the Franco-American squad.
Like last year’s inaugural running of the double-header at the Shanghai International Circuit, the race was another peloton, pack-style event, and Charles’ tactical nous enabled Guenther and Vergne to navigate the chaos.
The peloton-style races often see less importance on qualifying, but Guenther was able to keep his pole position, scoring 28 points to move up to fourth in the Drivers’ standings, just 14 points behind second place.
“It is not often you get a pole position, P1 – P2 in the race and fastest pitstop,” Charles exclusively told Motorsport Week. “So this is definitely a race day we will remember! The drivers did an amazing job managing a difficult race with some masterful overtakes and well-managed tyres and energy.
“However, the whole team also delivered incredibly well, including our ops room support, mechanics, race engineers, systems, tyre engineering, manufacturer support and the strategy group. Thanks to everyone for all the great work today.”
Charles will need to put his thinking cap on a little earlier than expected ahead of Race 2, with the day’s schedule having been brought forward by one hour to mitigate the heavy rainfall forecast.
READ MORE – Shanghai E-Prix: Max Guenther leads home DS Penske 1-2 in Formula E thriller
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