FIA Formula E championship leader Lucas di Grassi has once again called for the VW Group to provide more help to his Abt Schaeffler Audi Sport team.
Although the team has Audi in their name, and features Audi and VW logos on the car, their powertrain is in fact developed with Schaeffler, making the German team one of four independents on the grid.
This hasn’t stopped them being competitive though, with di Grassi consistently finishing in the top three and Abt currently sitting second in the teams’ championship.
However the Renault e.dams car is currently perceived as being the fastest on the grid, and with Jaguar entering the championship next season with support from Williams Advanced Engineering, it will be even more competitive at the top.
And having committed to drive for the Abt team next season, di Grassi is concerned that they risk falling behind unless they quickly get help from a manufacturer.
Speaking to Autosport.com he said, “Us as Abt Formula E will need the support as quick as we can from a manufacturer.”
“We managed this year to fight against two or more important manufacturers putting a lot more money into the project than we are doing and beat them so far, with a very good drivetrain from Schaeffler. Whether it’s any brand from the VW Group – we have two brands on the jacket – it’s very important that as soon as we can, we need support from the factory.”
“Being a privateer, we will not have the successes we’ve had this year for the years to come. Because the championship is increasing the professionalism and complexity we will need a manufacturer, a full manufacturer, behind us soon.”
Team Aguri, Andretti Autosport and Dragon Racing, the other three independent teams, are also rumoured to be seeking a tie up with a car manufacturer.
