Lola Yamaha ABT secured a milestone weekend at the Monaco E-Prix Race 2, gaining the team’s first-ever double points finish in a Formula E race. With Lucas di Grassi finishing P9 and Zane Maloney P10, both drivers finished in the points during Race 2 on the streets of Monaco.
The weekend also marked the first time Lola Yamaha ABT has scored points in both races of a Formula E double-header, with di Grassi finishing P8 in Race 1.
Difficult qualifying leaves Lola Yamaha ABT on the back foot
The weekend did not start smoothly for the team. Both drivers struggled with pace during qualifying. Di Grassi and Maloney each finished in P10 in their qualifying groups for Race 2, leaving them to start from P19 and P20 on the grid.
Despite their starting positions, the team focused on the opening stages. While di Grassi used the first attack mode in the early stages of the race, Maloney saved energy during the opening stages before activating the attack mode first race mid-race. Both drivers were able to charge through the field. When Full Course Yellow came, Maloney was 12th and di Grassi 13th. Although the Barbadian took his final attack mode in the last part, he was not able to gain a significant advantage. However, post-race penalties for drivers ahead moved the pair into the points.
Di Grassi praises team execution in Monaco
Reflecting on the weekend, Lucas di Grassi highlighted the significance of securing points in both Monaco races for the first time in the team’s Formula E campaign. Looking ahead to the next race weekend in Sanya in five weeks, di Grassi explained that the focus now shifts toward understanding both the positives and weaknesses from the Monaco weekend.
“We scored points in both races in Monaco which is a fantastic result and one we have not achieved before. We managed to execute the race very well and the team thoroughly deserved these points. Even though of course we want to be fighting for wins and podiums, this is a great step and consistent points is an amazing result. Now we have to analyse what went right and what went wrong in the weekend so we can be prepared for Sanya next month and try to score more points there.”
Maloney secures another important point finish
For rookie driver Zane Maloney, Monaco presented a difficult challenge throughout qualifying. However, he remained satisfied with his individual performance over one lap despite the team’s pace struggles. The Barbadian explained that the team’s race strategy centered around saving energy early before attacking later in the race. However, technical issues during the attack mode limited his progress through the pack.
“We’ve struggled quite a lot for pace as a team this weekend. I thought I did a very good job in qualifying getting as close as I could to the field and I was very happy with my lap. Of course, how the groups played out I then had to start P20 in the race. We executed a very good strategy where I saved energy at the back before coming through the field. Although a settings issue limited my performance in 350kW meaning I wasn’t able to make up as many places in Attack Mode, we came away from the weekend with a point which is great for the team as they did a very good job. Now we move on to Sanya where we can hopefully add more points for the team.”
Team Principal praises hard work after challenging weekend
For Lola’s team principal Mark Preston, the Monaco E-Prix weekend was an important step in the right direction. He praised the hard work of the entire team after overcoming a difficult qualifying session, securing the team’s first double points finish in Formula E.
“It was a challenging morning as we struggled for pace in qualifying however the team worked extremely hard to enable us to secure our first double points finish in Formula E. It is also the first time we’ve scored points in both races in a double-header weekend so I’d like to thank the whole team for a job well done. We will now continue to assess where we can improve in the gap before the races in Asia where we hope to continue this trend of improvement and securing points.”
Formula E season 12 will not take a short break before returning in Sanya in five weeks where Lola Yamaha ABT will aim to continue its recent momentum and score points.
