NEXTEV TCR driver Nelson Piquet Jr believes that “it’s going to be a fantastic race” in Mexico, as the FIA Formula E Championship arrives in Mexico City for the country’s first ePrix.
“I think it’s going to be a fantastic race in Mexico City,” admitted the 2014/15 FIA Formula E Champion. “The fans there are some of the most enthusiastic in the world. They gave Formula 1 an incredible reception earlier in the year and I hope they enjoy what we bring to the city with Formula E. It’s just right that big racing series’ are going back to a city with such a history of motorsport.”
Piquet Jr visited Mexico City back in 2009 where he completed a demonstration with a Formula 1 car, during a Renault Roadshow but has never previously raced in the historic country. “I’ve been to Mexico City before when I took part in the Renault Roadshow,” continued the Brazilian driver. “I was driving the Formula 1 car. It’s a great country that I really love and I’m excited to get there and race properly.”
The brand new Mexico ePrix circuit is 2.092kms in length, with a total of 18 corners running in a clockwise direction and will host 43 laps on Saturday afternoon equalling 89.956kms in race distance by the time the winning driver reaches the chequered flag at the end of the race.
Piquet Jr added: “…I hope that it has a great future in motorsport. It’s a fantastic country with some of the most passionate fans in the world. There is also so much history there that it seems right that they are attracting world class racing once again.”
At the moment, the reigning champion sits 15th position in the championship standings after scoring just four points altogether in the first four races of the season. “This year has been difficult so far,” said Piquet Jr. “The design of our car is now frozen due to Formula E rules and regulations, we’re going to have to optimize everything we can on the car to try to maximize our results.
We’re learning as much as we can about the car and working on all the different areas we can. But the worst thing we could do is say ‘we don’t have a good enough package, let’s sit still, cross our arms and do nothing’. This is a development battle and we have to keep optimizing every area we can.”
