Renault e.dams driver Sébastien Buemi extended his lead in the Formula E drivers’ championship after beating Lucas di Grassi to victory in Monaco.
The Swiss driver secured his fourth win of the 2016/2017 season, having earlier stormed to his first pole position of Formula E’s third season.
Reigning champion Buemi enjoyed a strong start and opened up a comfortable advantage at the front of the field, with Abt Schaeffler Audi Sport driver di Grassi chasing.
However, his lead was cut just prior to the mid-way point when the safety car was deployed, following a clash between Jean-Éric Vergne and Nelson Piquet Jr.
On the restart, Buemi got a good jump on the field but di Grassi started to close in on the Renault e.dams car in the final stages of the race.
While Buemi was able to pull out a small gap with two laps remaining, di Grassi kept fighting back and finished just three tenths behind him at the chequered flag.
Mahindra’s Nick Heidfeld picked up his second podium of the 2016/2017 season but was a distant third, making up ground in the Vergne/Piquet collision.
While Piquet’s NextEV NIO car was damaged, he quickly pitted and only lost one place. He led a train of cars across the finish line, with Maro Engel just holding onto fifth ahead of Felix Rosenqvist.
Daniel Abt and Esteban Gutierrez were seventh and eighth, with Antonio Felix da Costa and Nicolas Prost – who started 18th – completing the top 10.
It was a tough race for DS Virgin Racing, with both Sam Bird and José María López making numerous trips to the pits following earlier visits for repairs.
They were seven and 14 laps down on the field respectively, with Faraday Future Dragon Racing’s Loïc Duval and Jérôme d'Ambrosio also suffering issues and finishing 11 and seven laps behind the leaders.
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