With P12 in the first race of the London E-Prix, David Beckmann secured his best finish in Formula E yet. More could have been possible, as he had to defend against new champion Oliver Rowland during the chaotic race.
To stay out of trouble was important
The start has been chaotic. DS Penske’s Maximilian Günther was involved in an incident with Edoardo Mortara, which ended the German’s race. Through all that, Beckmann had to get through after initially starting from P13. He was fortunate enough to stay away from trouble.
“It was chaotic. I stayed out of it and was able to make up a few positions. So it was relatively good for me,” the rookie told Pit Debrief after the race.
“But I also had a few contacts. I was glad that the car was okay. I wasn’t sure at first, but in the end everything was fine.”
Safety car helped Beckmann at the end of London E-Prix race
Towards the end of the race, a safety car was deployed for Dan Ticktum, who went straight at Turn 9. Beckmann used Attack Mode to stay in the fight for points, but the power boost didn’t help him to P12. It was actually the safety car.
“The Attack Mode didn’t really help me in the end. The safety car helped me, so I simply had more energy available at the end. And I was back in the window a bit, compared to the other drivers.
“I couldn’t really do much with Attack Mode. In the end, the pace was so high again that it wasn’t easy to overtake with Attack Mode.
“But, it was a good race at the start, but we went into the pits too late and then spent too much time fighting with other drivers, and after our pit window, we just slipped right to the back because the others were able to drive much faster times in free air. And the start had already been very chaotic.”
First to use attack mode but stuck in fight with Rowland
Beckmann was involved in defending his position against Rowland, who was on attack mode. That ruined the strategy of the Cupra Kiro driver, who couldn’t maintain the pace he wanted.
“The strategy was then to make up ground, because a few drivers came straight into the pits. We were already aware of that.
“But behind me, two drivers also went straight into attack mode. Oliver Rowland in particular tried to overtake me continuously the whole time. And that wasn’t good, because I had to defend extremely hard again and couldn’t maintain the pace I wanted to. And at the same time, I wasted a lot of energy.
“Rowland also had a very fast pace. So I had to defend really hard. In the end, he kind of ruined his race because he only finished in 11th place.”
Getting to know the track helps for second race day
Speaking about the upcoming second race day, Beckmann hopes to do better with the experience he gathered on the first day. Points could be possible, if he starts further up the grid.
“I think tomorrow’s qualifying will be a little better because I still need to learn the track a bit more, and I’m continuously improving.
“Then just starting a little further up the grid, maybe 10th or 9th or 8th or something like that. And I think that’s possible.”
“And tomorrow there’s no pit boost, so I’ll just stay out of the chaos on the first lap and then defend my position and try to take the first opportunities that come along.”
