DS VIRGIN RACING DETERMINED TO DEMONSTRATE TRUE CAPABILITIES IN MARRAKECH
DS Virgin Racing is determined to show what it can do in Marrakech, after missing the opportunity to win the season-opener in Hong Kong.
For the team, Race 2 is all about capitalising on the undoubted pace of the car and drivers and getting points on the board.
DS Virgin Racing travel to Marrakech determined following their upset in Hong Kong. Despite both cars qualifying on the second row of the grid, the team came away having not scored points. All now look toward race 2 as Formula E debuts in Africa.
Marrakech is a track of significance to the team. “I’ve raced and won here three times before with the WTCC” explains Jose Maria Lopez. “It was a touch narrow. But then again, a Formula E car takes up less room than a WTCC car, so It should be a good fight.”
The team’s experience here isn’t limited to its drivers. Our engineers have a history of racing and winning in Marrakech, and are confident this will give the team an edge. Our track simulator testing revealed that the top achievable speed for a Formula E car is 210 km/h, faster than WTCC’s 205 km/h.
The track is a dramatic departure from Hong Kong – twelve turns to Hong Kong’s nine and over half a kilometre longer. As the longest track in the series, the teams’ challenge for Marrakech will be tactical battery preservation – something that Sam Bird displayed masterfully during Hong Kong, leading the pack for several laps before the car change.
The track isn’t the only place where key strategies are being played out. The Marrakech ePrix coincides with the Cop 22 Summit: a meeting of the world’s leaders on sustainability and climate change. In tandem, DS Virgin Racing will be hosting an Innovation Summit in front of our garage on November 10th, featuring international panellists discussing EVs and sustainable tech.
“We’ve gone to space, we’ve done biofuel flight and we were the first to go non-stop solo around the world. Virgin is all about making sustainability fast. states Team Principal Alex Tai.
To play a part in DS Virgin Racing’s success as the new season gets under way, fans can cast their FanBoost vote in favour of either Sam Bird or José María López. This can be done using the championship’s official app, its website (www.fiaformulae.com/fanboost), Twitter or Instagram by sending the hashtag #Fanboost, followed by #SamBird or #JoseMariaLopez! Last season, DS Virgin Racing was the team that received the highest number of #Fanboost votes!
