Lucas di Grassi heads to China hoping to become the first driver of the 2018-19 FIA Formula E season to take a second win after the first five rounds produced five different winners.
Di Grassi heads up the Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler squad heading in to round six, currently third place in the championship, just two points behind leader Sam Bird.
The team is second in the championship as team-mate Daniel Abt has performed constantly, finishing within the top ten finishers on every race this year, including a third place at the Santiago e-prix.
“That Daniel [Abt] and I are now in contention for trophies and victories is the result of the hard work done by the whole team.” explained di Grassi.
“This is what distinguishes our squad: we show our real strength when the conditions are tough and the pressure is high,”
“We’ve now been on the podium three times in a row and will give our all to continue this string of success in Sanya. This season, the championship is more closely fought than ever before.”
Like team-mate di Grassi, Abt has been part of Formula E since the inaugural season and heads to China hoping to add to his two victories from the 2017-18 season, whilst enjoying the location of the races.
“A race in the middle of a tourist resort with white sandy beaches – Formula E keeps coming up with exceptional locations,” said Abt. “It’s great to have another race on the Chinese mainland, because we’ve always received a warm and enthusiastic welcome there.”
Team Principal Allan McNish is in a buoyant mood with the team in strong contention this season, but is remaining focussed with eight races left on the calendar, refusing to get carried away.
“It obviously feels good to be in contention in both championships,” said McNish. “But the championship positions are only really relevant after the last race, so we are only focusing on the next race.
“Sanya is a new track for all of the teams and drivers, so proper preparation is all the more important.”
This has been reflected with Abt and di Grassi heading back to Germany for important preparation time in the Audi Simulator as they look to get ahead of the other teams in China.
