In a stunning end to the Monaco E-Prix, Sebastien Buemi claimed his first Formula E victory in nearly six years on Sunday, bringing Envision Racing their first win in almost two seasons.
The Swiss veteran, whose Formula E future had been questioned in recent months, delivered a commanding performance on the damp streets of Monte Carlo, crossing the finish line almost five seconds ahead of Nissan’s Oliver Rowland. The victory marked Buemi’s third triumph on the iconic circuit, cementing his status as a Monaco specialist.
Perfect execution when it mattered
Speaking to the media including Pit Debrief, Buemi touched on how he kept belief in himself, despite tough seasons under his belt. “You know, you need everything to align properly in these kind of races. The attack mode, you know, when you do what, when you fight, when you overtake,” he explained.
All change ⚡😮
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A huge battle between de Vries, Rowland, Buemi and Vergne ⚔️#MonacoEPrix pic.twitter.com/0io0oFVDmm
“And I guess today everything just aligned properly. I was lucky to take the attack mode at the right time,” Buemi reflected in the post-race press conference.
The second race, held in challenging conditions with a wet track gradually drying throughout, saw Buemi execute a flawless strategy. Starting from a modest position, he navigated through the field with precision, utilising his Attack Mode deployments to maximum effect.
“I think I was just able to pass Oli [Rowland] and De Vries and JEV [Jean-Éric Vergne] quite quickly. And then I was able to make a big gap at the end with the attack mode. And I think that was the key, because every straight you spend behind the car that is not in attack mode, you basically waste a lot of lap time.”
A breakthrough victory for Buemi at the Monaco E-Prix
The victory was clearly significant for the 36-year-old driver, who showed rare emotion during post-race interviews. When asked about maintaining faith during his lengthy winless streak, Buemi admitted to moments of self-doubt.
Back where he belongs 💚@Sebastien_buemi #MonacoEPrix pic.twitter.com/k3lxmW3UNj
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“I guess, you know, you are a competitor, you go again and again. But, of course, at some point you doubt yourself, you think, you know, I can’t do it. I was teammates with those two guys and at some point they were a lot better than me,” he revealed.
But perseverance paid off for the Formula E veteran. “You’ve got to work hard and, you know, if you keep pushing at some point, you try to learn from your mistakes and get better. I think that car never suited my style very much, but I’m trying to learn still.”
With this victory, Buemi extended his record as Formula E’s most successful driver with 14 wins and reinforced his special relationship with the Monaco circuit. When asked about the secret to his success on the challenging street track, Buemi emphasised the importance of adaptability.
When asked about the secret to winning Monaco, Buemi answered, “You need a good car, you need to make the right decisions.”
“Also at the end it was drying up quite a lot. You could see a bit, so you had to be kind of clever on where to put the car, because you could start to see the line drying up. And there was quite a lot of lap time if you were able to have the confidence to attack in those corners,” he explained.
Celebrating the Monaco E-Prix victory with family
The emotional significance of the victory in Monaco was highlighted by Buemi’s celebration with his family at trackside. After a challenging period that had seen questions raised about his long-term future in the series, this triumph provides a timely reminder of the Swiss driver’s enduring class.
For Envision Racing, the victory represents a welcome return to form after a difficult period since winning the Teams’ Championship in Season 9. Powered by Jaguar, the British outfit will hope Buemi’s breakthrough signals the start of a competitive resurgence.
“But, yeah, I mean, the last ten laps really I was just hoping for no crash from anyone, no safety car. I was lucky with that,” Buemi admitted.
Luck may have played its part, but on the streets of Monaco, it was skill, experience, and determination that brought Sebastian Buemi back to the top step of the podium after 2,128 days of waiting.
