2015 Punta del Este ePrix

The 2015 Punta del Este ePrix (officially the 2015 FIA Formula E Julius Baer Punta del Este ePrix[1]) was a Formula E motor race held on 19 December 2015 at the Punta del Este Street Circuit in Punta del Este, Uruguay. It was the second Punta del Este ePrix and the third championship race of the 2015–16 Formula E season, the second season of the single-seater, electrically powered racing car series.[2] The race was won by Swiss driver Sébastien Buemi from team Renault e.Dams.[3]

2015 Punta del Este ePrix
Race 3 of 10 of the 2015–16 Formula E season
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Layout of the Punta del Este Street Circuit
Layout of the Punta del Este Street Circuit
Race details
Date 19 December 2015
Official name 2015 FIA Formula E Julius Baer Punta del Este ePrix
Location Punta del Este, Uruguay
Course Street circuit
Course length 2.79 km (1.73 miles)
Distance 33 laps, 91.91 km (57.11 miles)
Pole position
Driver Dragon Racing
Time 1:15.498
Fastest lap
Driver Switzerland Sébastien Buemi Renault e.Dams
Time 1:17.413 on lap 23
Podium
First Renault e.Dams
Second ABT
Third Dragon Racing
Lap leaders
First lap of the 2015 Punta del Este ePrix
North hairpin at the 2015 Punta del Este ePrix
Podium ceremony at the 2015 Punta del Este ePrix

Report edit

Background edit

For this year, the circuit was slightly modified. The first corner was changed, instead of a right-left chicane it is now left-right. The idea behind this change is to make the pit exit much safer than last year, where the cars were exiting the pits on the racing line.[4]

Mahindra driver Nick Heidfeld missed the event, after undergoing surgery to repair ligament damage in his wrist after a crash at the previous race in Putrajaya. He was replaced by Formula Renault 3.5 champion Oliver Rowland, from Great Britain.[5]

Team Trulli withdrew from the championship after failing to enter their new drivetrain for the first two events. Therefore, only 18 drivers participated in this race and also for the rest of the season.[6]

Venturi driver Jacques Villeneuve crashed in qualifying. His team was unable to repair the damage in time for race day, and the Canadian was subsequently withdrawn.[7]

Classifications edit

Qualifying edit

Pos. No. Driver Team Time Gap Grid
1 9   Sébastien Buemi Renault e.Dams 1:15.011 51
2 11   Lucas di Grassi ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:15.115 +0.104 41
3 7   Jérôme d'Ambrosio Dragon Racing 1:15.481 +0.470 11
4 6   Loïc Duval Dragon Racing 1:15.748 +0.737 21
5 2   Sam Bird DS Virgin Racing 1:15.790 +0.779 31
6 8   Nicolas Prost Renault e.Dams 1:15.913 +0.902 6
7 66   Daniel Abt ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:15.993 +0.982 7
8 55   António Félix da Costa Team Aguri 1:16.014 +1.003 8
9 21   Bruno Senna Mahindra Racing 1:16.048 +1.037 9
10 88   Oliver Turvey NEXTEV TCR 1:16.154 +1.143 10
11 27   Robin Frijns Amlin Andretti 1:16.255 +1.244 11
12 1   Nelson Piquet Jr. NEXTEV TCR 1:16.300 +1.289 12
13 4   Stéphane Sarrazin Venturi 1:16.353 +1.342 13
14 77   Nathanaël Berthon Team Aguri 1:17.573 +2.562 14
15 28   Simona de Silvestro Amlin Andretti 1:18.281 +3.270 15
16 23   Oliver Rowland Mahindra Racing 1:19.414 +4.403 16
17 25   Jean-Éric Vergne DS Virgin Racing 1:19.946 +4.935 17
18 12   Jacques Villeneuve Venturi 1:28.451 +13.440 18
Source:[8]

Notes:

  • ^1 – Final grid position of top five qualifiers determined by Super Pole shootout.

Super Pole edit

Pos. No. Driver Team Time Gap Grid
1 7   Jérôme d'Ambrosio Dragon Racing 1:15.498 1
2 6   Loïc Duval Dragon Racing 1:15.875 +0.377 2
3 2   Sam Bird DS Virgin Racing 1:16.109 +0.611 3
4 11   Lucas di Grassi ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 1:16.635 +1.137 4
5 9   Sébastien Buemi Renault e.Dams 1:19.811 +4.313 5
Source:[8]

Race edit

Pos. No. Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 9   Sébastien Buemi Renault e.Dams 33 45:59.697 5 25+22
2 11   Lucas di Grassi ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 33 +3.534 4 18
3 7   Jérôme d'Ambrosio Dragon Racing 33 +6.725 1 15+33
4 6   Loïc Duval Dragon Racing 33 +6.807 2 12
5 8   Nicolas Prost Renault e.dams 33 +21.057 6 10
6 55   António Félix da Costa Team Aguri 33 +22.410 8 8
7 25   Jean-Éric Vergne DS Virgin Racing 33 +57.726 17 6
8 66   Daniel Abt ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport 33 +1:00.744 7 4
9 4   Stéphane Sarrazin Venturi 33 +1:03.559 13 2
10 27   Robin Frijns Amlin Andretti 33 +1:03.840 11 1
11 28   Simona de Silvestro Amlin Andretti 32 +1 lap 15
12 88   Oliver Turvey NEXTEV TCR 32 +1 lap 10
13 23   Oliver Rowland Mahindra Racing 32 +1 lap 16
14 77   Nathanaël Berthon Team Aguri 32 +1 lap 14
Ret 1   Nelson Piquet Jr. NEXTEV TCR 31 Crash 12
Ret 21   Bruno Senna Mahindra Racing 26 Damage 9
Ret 2   Sam Bird DS Virgin Racing 17 Battery 3
DNS 12   Jacques Villeneuve Venturi 0 Crash Damage4
Source:[8]

Notes:

  • ^2 – Two points for fastest lap.
  • ^3 – Three points for pole position.
  • ^4 – Jacques Villeneuve did not start the race due to the heavy accident during Friday's qualifying session, he had to withdraw.

Standings after the race edit

  • Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

References edit

  1. ^ "Bank Julius Baer returns as title sponsor in Punta del Este". Formula E Holdings Limited. 17 December 2015. Archived from the original on 19 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  2. ^ "Round 3 – 19 December 2015 – Punta del Este, Uruguay". Formula E. Formula E Holdings Limited. Archived from the original on 14 November 2015. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  3. ^ "Buemi back on top". Formula E Holdings Limited. 19 December 2015. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2015.
  4. ^ "Punta del Este ePrix - Circuit guide". FIA Formula E. 2015-12-09. Archived from the original on 2021-08-21. Retrieved 2015-12-18.
  5. ^ "Oliver Rowland replaces injured Heidfeld". Formula E. Formula E Holdings Limited. 4 December 2015. Archived from the original on 12 December 2015. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  6. ^ "Trulli Formula E Team announce withdrawal from championship". fiaformulae.com. 15 December 2015. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 18 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Villeneuve to miss Punta race". FIA Formula E. 19 December 2015. Archived from the original on 21 December 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2015.
  8. ^ a b c "PUNTA DEL ESTE ePRIX — Official FIA Formula E Championship". fiaformulae.com. FIA. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 22 December 2015.

External links edit

Previous race:
2015 Putrajaya ePrix
FIA Formula E Championship
2015–16 season
Next race:
2016 Buenos Aires ePrix
Previous race:
2014 Punta del Este ePrix
Punta del Este ePrix Next race:
2018 Punta del Este ePrix