Mitch Evans has described the feeling of winning his and Panasonic Jaguar Racing’s first ever Formula E race as ‘beautiful’.
The New Zealander drove a brilliant race to get his first win in several years, and Jaguar’s first victory since 1991.
After a great qualifying performance Evans lined up second on the grid, and after stalking the DS Techeetah of Andre Lotterer he used his power boost to great effect to pull a robust move for the lead.
From there he defended the lead admirably, and even managed to overcome a failed attempt to activate his second boost later in the race.
Speaking afterwards he praised his team for their support, and for providing him with a car that had such strong pace.
“This feels beautiful. It was a fantastic race,” Evans said afterwards. “From early on I felt comfortable and my energy management was ahead of target so we decided to use it when it mattered.
“I wanted to use Attack Mode when Lotterer didn’t have it to gain that power difference. We had great pace from the beginning, so I really felt confident out there today.
“It’s been years since I had a win, so this really feels amazing.
“I’m so happy for the team, for everyone at Panasonic Jaguar Racing for all their hard work and to Jaguar Land Rover for their support over the past three seasons. This has really come at a great time.”
Team boss James Barclay said that his team’s first victory was a proud moment for him, and he praised Evans for what he described as a world class performance.
Barclay said, “Seeing Panasonic Jaguar Racing on the top of the podium is a fantastic moment and I’m so proud of all of the team – many of whom have been here since the beginning of season three when we first entered the championship.
“For a long time we’ve been saying that we have a good racecar and that we have good pace, it was just about getting all of the pieces together and that was the difference today.
“It wasn’t easy; Mitch delivered two great qualifying laps and an excellent Super Pole lap to put us on the front row.
“We’ve shown that if we qualify well, we can deliver great results. Mitch delivered a really mature, world-class performance today.”
The victory in Rome has also brought Evans right into contention for the driver’s championship.
He now sits in fourth place on sixty-one points having scored in every single race, and is only four points off of leader Jerome D’Ambrosio.