Sacha Fenestraz‘s performance at the Cape Town E-Prix last weekend was exceptional, with the Frenchman having been phenomenally fast all weekend in South Africa. Fenestraz was so fast in fact, that he claimed his first ever ABB FIA Formula E World Championship pole position, thanks to breaking the record for the fastest lap in the history of the sport.
It was a blistering lap by the Nissan Formula E Team driver, who went on to show equally impressive pace during the race. Whilst he didn’t quite have the pace to fight for the win, Fenestraz was occupying third place in the final few laps of the race, until he crashed into a wall on the final lap following contact with Nick Cassidy.
Fenestraz ultimately retired from the race, with him having come so close to a maiden podium, something he admits was a “hard pill to swallow”. The rookie can take so much confidence from his performance, with the driver targeting now to “continue to show this level” that got him so close to a top three finish.
“Overall we had a really strong weekend, we were quick in every session. To take pole position was amazing, I have to thank the team for their hard work. They’ve been pushing day and night since the start of the season. It was a great moment so hopefully we can continue to show this level of performance.
“In the race we were doing well, a bit unlucky with the timing of the second Full Course Yellow, but I managed to get back up to third before the contact took us out of the race on the final lap. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but we know we are quick and have the car to compete at the front for the rest of the season.”
“The pace of the car wasn’t quite as quick as in previous weeks” – Norman Nato
On the other side of the Nissan garage, Norman Nato claimed a solid eighth place, to gain him four more points in the Drivers’ Championship.
The Frenchman had a mediocre weekend and qualified ninth, before making up a place during the race. Nato was unable to show the same pace that Fenestraz had, with him having admitted after the race that the car “wasn’t quite as quick” as it has been in recent races.
Nevertheless, he moved to fourteenth in the standings following his second consecutive points finish, giving him some confidence to take into the next round.
“We showed some really positive signs this weekend and our pace is clear to see. In qualifying I got caught up in some traffic, which cost us a bit of time on my best lap, but we had a good race and I’m happy to score points for the second weekend in a row.
“Today the pace of the car wasn’t quite as quick as in previous weeks, but we still managed to finish in the top-10 for the second race in a row, which shows the progress we’ve made as a team. Time for a short break before we move on to Sao Paulo and hopefully capitalise on our pace there.”
