DS PENSKE celebrates a memorable win in India after Jean Eric Vergne secured the team’s first victory of the season at today’s inaugural Greenko Hyderabad E-Prix. Stoffel Vandoorne fought hard to come back from P17 on the grid to finish P8, bringing home the team’s first double points of the season.
The oustanding victory marks the first win for the new PENSKE AUTOSPORT and DS Automobiles partnership. After a challenging start to Season 9, the team have been working tirelessly to maximise the Gen 3 car’s potential and fight as hard as possible to be at the front of the grid. Bringing home today’s well-deserved win offers a first glimpse of what the DS E-TENSE FE23 car is capable of.
Starting from P2, JEV drove one of his best races in Formula E to secure his eleventh win, making his way to the front of the pack on Lap 15. Thanks to a great strategy from the team, the two-time Formula E champion delivered a masterclass in defensive driving and energy management to fend off fierce competition and lead for over half the race. Taking the chequered flag at the Lumbini Park street circuit, he advances to third in the driver’s championship.
Starting from 17th on the grid, Stoffel Vandoorne delivered a sensational comeback to finish in the points. Crossing the line in sixth, the Belgian’s incredible rise through the pack was classified as 8th place, after receiving a 5-second penalty for exceeding track limits.
With everything still to fight for, the team departs this historic race weekend with the ultimate morale boost and the focus firmly ahead to the inaugural Cape Town E-Prix on 25th February. The goal remains to work hard, push the car to the limit and return to the podium.
Jay Penske, Team Principal
JEV drove an unforgettable race today. This win is for the team. Thanks to their dedication, drive and determination, we’re standing on the top step. Thank you to DS Automobiles and Stellantis for providing us with an outstanding and efficient car, which JEV was able to make history with and Stoffel a sensational comeback. I’m excited to see what we can do together in Cape Town, and beyond.
Jean-Eric Vergne, Formula E Champion in 2018 and 2019
I am obviously very happy with this victory! It’s great for the team to get back to the top after three tough races, and to come back to everyone with a win after working so hard on our understanding of the car. Clearly, we have made good progress. We have to keep up this momentum but, to tell you the truth, I’m quite confident because I think we still have a lot of room for improvement. It’s up to us to keep working hard to get more results like this!
Stoffel Vandoorne, reigning Formula E world champion
Eighth in the final standings, obviously it could have been better. In fact, we finished in 6th position, but the penalty for the limits of the track made us lose two places. All in all, we can speak of a good comeback from 17th place on the grid. We must nevertheless continue to progress because we lack regularity. Sometimes we are completely in on it, sometimes not so much. We have to work particularly hard on our qualifying practice because it would obviously make our life easier if we were better placed on the starting grid. In racing, we have proven since the start of the year that we have a good rhythm and that our energy management is good. But even if the car is performing well, it is difficult to aim for the podium starting from such a distance, especially since overtaking is more complicated this year. In any case, it’s a very good day for the team with this victory for JEV and, after the complicated start to the season, it’s really deserved for all those who work hard behind the scenes. We have taken important points, but there is no question of slackening our efforts!
