Prost triumphs in Miami ePrix

Formula E made its US debut on 14th March. Twenty drivers competed over 39 laps of a 2.17km street circuit with eight corners. The result was a maiden victory for Nicolas Prost, son of former Formula One World Champion Alain Prost. The win also took him to the top of the standings.

After a thrilling race, the Frenchman was joined on the podium by Scott Speed and Daniel Abt. Meanwhile, Lucas di Grassi, who had arrived in Miami as overall leader, had to settle for a P9 finish and is now seven points adrift of Prost in the championship table. “I had problems with my battery temperature, which meant that my performance tailed off over the last few laps,” said di Grassi. “Otherwise, a podium would have been achievable. As it stands, ninth place is just damage limitation. But we’re looking ahead rather than back.” 

"Otherwise, a podium would have been achievable. As it stands, ninth place is just damage limitation." (Lucas di Grassi)

Once again, the mandatory vehicle switch halfway through the race upset the running order. Whereas Sam Bird, Jean-Eric Vergne and Prost had led the field before the changeover, the leading trio were now Abt, Prost and di Grassi. But then, in the last third of the race,  Scott Speed making his Formula E debut in Miami forced his way into the group of front-runners. 

The local favourite was cheered on by his home crowd as he set about chasing down race leaders Abt and Prost. 

The local favourite was cheered on by his home crowd as he set about chasing down race leaders Abt and Prost. With two laps to go, the top trio were separated by only 0.7 seconds. Speed and Prost managed their battery supplies better than Abt, and within the space of two corners, they demoted him from P1 to P3. Ultimately, Abt was to fall 5.5 seconds short of a maiden victory. 

On the final lap, Prost clipped the barrier under severe pressure from Speed, but the Frenchman recovered his composure to bring home his first Formula E victory in five races. Just how competitive it is in this series is borne out by the fact that there have been different winners in each of the five races so far. As Official Logistics Partner, DHL will now transport the cars and equipment from the East Coast to the West Coast where the sixth round of the 2015 Formula E Championship is due to be contested on 4th April in Long Beach, California.