Venturi Formula E Team heads to the Chilean capital of Santiago for round three of the 2018-19 ABB FIA Formula E Championship at the 2019 Antofagasta Minerals Santiago ePrix, hopeful that they can see a sizeable improvement this weekend in South America.
This weekend’s Santiago ePrix is the second Formula E race in the Chilean capital, but the first at Parque O’Higgins Circuit in central Santiago. The track is 2.348 Km in length; including long, fast bends as well as technical chicanes around the Movistar Arena.
Venturi head to South America hopeful that they can make improve on their form in the first two races, with the Monegasque-based team unable to score points in the opening two rounds of the season. But after their test and reserve driver, Norman Nato was testing the car at Marrakesh on 13 January, combined with concerted work back at their headquarters, Venturi is hopeful that they can see improvements up the grid this weekend.
Felipe Massa is determined to put on a good show as this will be the closest that the ex-Formula 1 racer gets to a home race this season, speaking before the racing action got underway, the Brazilian said:
“I’m delighted to be making this stop in South America. Chile is a country I love and I know there are many Chileans amongst my fans – that’s an extra source of motivation for me. We haven’t started the season as well as we would have liked, but we’re constantly challenging ourselves to improve. We have tried to find solutions to our issues, and now I’m looking forward to testing them on the track.”
Venturi know that tyre wear will be an important factor in what will be a sizzling race in Santiago. Edoardo Mortara will hope to use his experience and lead the team after failing to score points last year and in the opening two races of the season, aiming to use his Chilean connections to deliver a positive result this weekend, with the Swiss-Italian racer saying:
“My wife is originally from Chile, so this is obviously a country dear to my heart. I also have great memories of the incredible warm welcome I received in Santiago last year. In sporting terms, after the technical issues we had in the first two races, we’ve learned a lot and worked hard. I’m looking forward to seeing how we measure up against the other teams.”
