Will Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler rally to win the 2017-2018 Formula E team championship after their disastrous start to the season?
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler finished in second place in the Formula E team championship standings last season behind Renault e.dams, and one of their two drivers, Lucas di Grassi, won last season’s driver championship. They also finished in second in the standings in the 2015-2016 season, and they finished in third in the 2014-2015 season.
After their disastrous start to the 2017-2018 season, it looked very unlikely that Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler would come even relatively close to finishing in second place for the third consecutive season or even in the top three for the fourth consecutive season.
But with one race to go this season, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler have a chance to become the first team other than Renault e.dams to win a Formula E team championship, as they trail Techeetah by just five points (235 to 230) in the team championship standings. Techeetah have led the team championship standings for the overwhelming majority of the season thus far.
In the first four races of the 2017-2018 season, the highest finish by an Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler driver was fifth place, as Daniel Abt finished the season opener, the first race of the Hong Kong ePrix, in fifth.
More from Formula E
- 5 ways the McLaren Formula 1, IndyCar situations could play out
- Formula E champion responds to comical social media mix-up
- NASCAR not the only series with devastating sim consequences
- Formula E: 5 things we learned upon return in Saudi Arabia
- Change to Beyond the Flag power rankings for 2020
However, Abt was disqualified in the second race of the Hong Kong ePrix before he finished in 10th place in the Marrakesh ePrix. He was then forced to retire in the Santiago ePrix.
The start of the season for di Grassi was even worse than the start for Abt. The reigning Formula E champion finished in 17th and 14th place, respectively, in the first and second races of the Hong Kong ePrix before he was forced to retire in both the Marrakesh ePrix and the Santiago ePrix.
However, after the fourth race of the season, none of the seven races that have been contested have finished without at least one Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler driver in the top two, which has allowed them to get back into the 2017-2018 team championship hunt.
Abt proceeded to win the fifth race of the season, which was the Mexico City ePrix, and di Grassi finished in ninth place. Since then, di Grassi has not finished outside of the top two. He racked up four consecutive second place finishes before starting the two-race winning streak that he is currently on, as he won the Zürich ePrix and the first race of the New York City ePrix.
In the six races since he won the Mexico City ePrix, Abt has earned four top seven finishes, including a seventh place finish in the Paris ePrix, a fourth place finish in the Rome ePrix, a second place finish in the first race of the New York City ePrix and a win in the Berlin ePrix. Abt’s only two non-top seven finishes during this six race span were a 13th place finish in the Zürich ePrix and a 14th place finish in the Punta del Este ePrix.
With the recent success of both of Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler drivers, will they complete their rally to win their first team championship in the second race of the New York City ePrix after a disastrous start to the 2017-2018 Formula E season?
Next: The greatest lie ever told about open-wheel racing
Tune in to Fox Sports 1 tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. ET to watch the live broadcast of the second race of the 2018 New York City ePrix. The 2017-2018 Formula E team championship is set to be won in that race, so be sure not to miss the action. Will Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler pull it off, or will Techeetah hold on?