The Nissan Formula E Team celebrated a successful weekend at the 2023/24 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship’s maiden visit to the Shanghai International Circuit, securing top-10 finishes in both Rounds 11 and 12. Driver Oliver Rowland clinched points in both races, showcasing the team’s competitive edge.
The return to China for the first time since 2019 saw two days of closely matched action. In Saturday’s Round 11 qualifying, Rowland progressed to the Duels, earning a spot on the front row in second. Despite a tight session, Sacha Fenestraz qualified 22nd, missing out by just over two-tenths of a second. Rowland’s strong performance during the race, including a decisive last-lap move, earned him a fourth-place finish and 12 valuable points. Fenestraz impressively climbed 11 places to finish 11th, narrowly missing the points.
In Sunday’s Round 12, Rowland once again advanced to the Duels, topping Group A. Fenestraz, just a tenth behind, qualified sixth. Starting eighth and 12th, respectively, Rowland and Fenestraz fought hard in the midfield, with Rowland finishing 10th to secure another point, while Fenestraz ended in 14th.
Tommaso Volpe, Managing Director and Team Principal of the Nissan Formula E Team, commented on the weekend’s performance: “It’s not the weekend we were expecting after a strong result in Berlin. It was really tight and hard-fought throughout, so we’re pleased to come out with points in both races. Oli performed well on Saturday to take P4, while Sacha did a great job to make so many overtakes and was unfortunate not to finish in the points. Today it was more difficult to pass, which made it tough. Neither driver got the best start and it was hard to recover. We’ve got a break now to see where we can improve, as we’ve been doing all season, and to consolidate third place in the Teams’ Championship next month in Portland.”
Oliver Rowland reflected on his performance: “I’m satisfied with the finish on Saturday, qualifying was strong to be on the front row and then we battled hard in the lead group throughout the race. P4 was a solid result and a good haul of points, even if a podium was definitely possible. Today was a bit more difficult, I made it into the Duels but I think we could’ve done more. The race was also tough, it was harder to overtake today but we still managed to take a point. Overall a decent event, and now it’s time to work hard in the break before Portland.”
Sacha Fenestraz expressed his thoughts on the weekend: “I hoped for more this weekend, the race pace was very strong yesterday but unfortunately the qualifying caused a difficult day. I felt competitive and think we have made a step forward on one-lap pace, we just didn’t get the laps together. It was fun to overtake several cars, but a shame to narrowly miss out on points. Today, qualifying was better but we had to deal with the battery temperatures, which made it tough in the race. We’re improving step-by-step, and now it’s time for a short break and to disconnect before turning our full focus to Portland and London.”
Formula E now enters a four-week break, with the series resuming in Portland, USA, for the penultimate race weekend of the season on June 29-30.
