Robin Frijns – Syndication Server

Envision continues with Buemi and Frijns in Formula E

Envision Racing has opted for continuity with its driver lineup for the upcoming Formula E season, with Sebastien Buemi and Robin Frijns both being retained by the Jaguar customer team. Envision entered last season as reigning champions, but endured …

Envision Racing has opted for continuity with its driver lineup for the upcoming Formula E season, with Sebastien Buemi and Robin Frijns both being retained by the Jaguar customer team.

Envision entered last season as reigning champions, but endured a difficult campaign as the team failed to replicate itssuccess from the previous year. It did end the year on a high, however, with the duo combining for three podiums in the last four races, a total of five overall for the season.

“It’s great to have continuity in our driver line-up as Sebastien and Robin lead us into Season 11,” said Sylvain Filippi, managing director and CTO of Envision Racing. “Despite Season 10 not being our strongest year, we are confident that the momentum we gained in the closing rounds can be taken into next season and put us back where we want to be.”

Just four of the 11 teams are set to field unchanged lineups, with Jaguar, TAG Heuer Porsche and Mahindra all joining Envision in continuing with their Season 10 driver pairings. Envision’s driver duo is among the most experienced, with the pair competing a combined 229 races in the championship.

Frijns has been a fixture at Envision for some time, first joining during the 2018-19 season. He left ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, being replaced by Buemi, but returned after a year to partner the Swiss driver as former driver Nick Cassidy moved onto the factory Jaguar team. Both missed the Berlin E-Prix doubleheader last season though, owing to World Endurance Championship commitments, with Joel Eriksson and Paul Aron taking their places.

“I started off Season 10 relatively strong, with a podium in Round 3; however, it took some time to adjust to the new car and style of racing,” said Frijns. “We worked extremely hard to make that adjustment and by the end were fighting at the front again, so our focus now is on continuing that into next season.”

Buemi echoed his teammate’s sentiments, adding that the team is looking to carry its momentum from a strong end to 2023-24 into the upcoming season.

“As a team, we improved significantly towards the end of last season to get back to the front of the grid, and the results showed this,” he said. “We will continue to push to ensure that we head to Sao Paulo with the same level of competitiveness.”

Frijns fastest in second London E-Prix practice

Robin Frijns was fastest in second practice for Formula E’s London E-Prix, with three of the seven championship contenders also in the top five. The Envision Racing driver set a best time of 1m10.544s, 0.118s ahead of Oliver Rowland, who spun in the …

Robin Frijns was fastest in second practice for Formula E’s London E-Prix, with three of the seven championship contenders also in the top five.

The Envision Racing driver set a best time of 1m10.544s, 0.118s ahead of Oliver Rowland, who spun in the right-hander back into the ExCel building with eight minutes of the session to go.

The top five was covered by 0.225s, a stark contrast to Friday evening’s first session where less than a tenth covered the same positions.

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Frijns’ Envision teammate Sebastien Buemi was third, ahead of fellow Jaguar-powered runner Nick Cassidy, with Pascal Wehrlein fifth for TAG Heuer Porsche. Cassidy was once again the fastest driver who didn’t run on full power.

Reigning champion Jake Dennis was sixth for Andretti, 0.033s adrift of Wehrlein, while Mitch Evans was seventh in the second factory Jaguar.

Sacha Fenestraz ensured both Nissans finished the session in the top-10 in eighth, with Dan Ticktum and Jean-Eric Vergne completing the top-10 for ERT and DS Pesnke respectively. The 10 quickest drivers were covered by 0.387s.

Sam Bird was 11th for NEOM McLaren, ahead of Maximilian Guenther (Maserati MSG Racing), Lucas di Grassi (Abt Cupra), and Stoffel Vandoorne (DS Penske), with Norman Nato (Andretti), Edoardo Mortara (Mahindra), Nico Mueller (Abt Cupra), and Jake Hughes (McLaren) 15th through 18th.

Porsche’s Antonio Felix da Costa was the lowest-placed championship contender in 19th, with Mahindra’s Nyck de Vries, Maserati’s Jehan Daruvala, and Sergio Sette Camara of ERT completing the field.

RESULTS

Frijns makes breakthrough with Envision as he races for his future

Robin Frijns left Portland with a smile on his face after securing back-to-back podiums, ending a barren run for he and the Envision Racing team. The two-time race winner returned to Envision Racing this season after a year with Abt Cupra, but aside …

Robin Frijns left Portland with a smile on his face after securing back-to-back podiums, ending a barren run for he and the Envision Racing team.

The two-time race winner returned to Envision Racing this season after a year with Abt Cupra, but aside from a second place in the third round of the season in Diriyah, it’s been a challenging campaign for the Dutchman.

“Yesterday was a bit, I wouldn’t say ‘a relief,’ but it showed that we can still do it and today we showed it again, so it gives a better feeling,” he said on Sunday after finishing second behind Antonio Felix da Costa for the second consecutive day. “The team did a good job, we prepared well for these races and we made a huge step forward as we showed with the double podium.”

Despite the breakthrough weekend in Portland, Frijns doesn’t think the his and the team’s turnaround has been circuit-specific, instead crediting a wholesale change in the Jaguar customer team’s overall approach to events, and avoiding bad luck.

“It’s hard to say because we always had the pace during the season and we’re always quick, or quickish in practice … but I was always at the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said. “Looking at other drivers, both Jags were always in front so we changed the way we approached the race and the team’s helping me a lot with this now.

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“I sat down with them before Shanghai and we do understand it way better and it’s come our way now because I think we’ve put ourselves in a better position all the time.”

Frijns’ podiums come at a crucial time as speculation regarding his future is a paddock hot topic. Frijns only has a one year deal with Envision, and he knows he’s racing for his future now.

“I’m trying to prove a point, for sure,” he admitted. “It’s not nice seeing those rumors but I came back to Envision from Abt last year to be successful, but coming for one year, that’s been clear.

“It’s been a struggle and I do think we were not really prepared for some occasions at some races, which we have [been] today, but we learn from it and I think we showed this weekend that we can be competitive.”

Frijns tops eventful opening FE practice in Tokyo

Robin Frijns topped an eventful opening practice as Formula E made its debut on the streets of Tokyo. The Envision Racing driver’s best time of 1m20.865 came late in the session after a red flag and five-minute extension following an incident …

Robin Frijns topped an eventful opening practice as Formula E made its debut on the streets of Tokyo.

The Envision Racing driver’s best time of 1m20.865 came late in the session after a red flag and five-minute extension following an incident between Sacha Fenestraz and Sam Bird.

A heavy downpour occurred earlier in the day, and while most of the track had dried before the session, there were still wet patches – most notably Turn 1 which caught out a number of drivers.

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Lucas di Grassi, Dan Ticktum, Oliver Rowland, and Pascal Wehrlein were among the drivers that went off in the wet T1, but it was the incident between Fenestraz and Bird which was the most notable. With five minutes of the session remaining, Nissan driver Fenestraz was exiting the pitlane while NEOM McLaren’s Bird was approaching T1. He subsequently locked up on the wet patch and collected Fenestraz as he headed towards the run-off.

That wasn’t the only red flag of the session, with Stoffel Vandoorne bringing one out in the first seven minutes after he stopped at Turn 4 with a battery fault.

Finishing behind Frijns on the timesheets was Mahindra’s Edoardo Mortara, who was 0.217s off the top spot, with Maserati MSG’s Maximillian Guenther a further 0.058s back.

Wehrlein was fourth quickest, ahead of TAG Heuer Porsche teammate Antonio Felix da Costa as the German team finished the session as the only team, and manufacturer, with two cars in the top-five. Both factory Jaguars finished just outside, with Nick Cassidy – a veteran of racing in Japan – and Mitch Evans sixth and seventh respectively.

Mahindra’s Nyck de Vries, Rowland of Nissan, and Abt Cupra’s di Grassi rounded out the top-10, ahead of Andretti’s Norman Nato, Buemi in the other Envision, Bird, Nico Mueller in the second Abt Cupra, and Jean-Eric Vergne, the highest placed DS Penske driver.

Jehan Daruvala (Maserati), Sergio Sette Camara (ERT), Fenestraz, Jake Hughes (McLaren), Ticktum (ERT), and Andretti driver Jake Dennis, who made contact with the wall at Turn 15 with around 10 minutes of the session to go, completed the runners, with Vandoorne classified 22nd and last after his early stoppage.

RESULTS

WRT completes driver lineup for multiclass WEC program with BMW

At its annual winter party in Spa, Belgium Friday, Team WRT revealed the remaining names in its driver roster for its upcoming FIA WEC campaign with BMW, which will see it run cars in both Hypercar and LMGT3. Longstanding BMW factory driver Augusto …

Longstanding BMW factory driver Augusto Farfus, Sean Gelael (who drove with WRT in LMP2 the past two seasons) and reigning British GT3 champion Darren Leung will drive the No. 31 M4 GT3.

“It’s my third year with Team WRT and it is an honor to be part of this great family and also the BMW M family,” Gelael said.

“I am super-excited. I have been LMP2 vice-champion twice in the WEC. I hope I can get over the hump, and there is one clear goal this year — to get the championship and Le Mans. There are no better team and teammates to go for it.”

Meanwhile, MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi headlines the No. 46, with experienced GT racer Ahmad Al Harthy and works driver Maxime Martin.

“I am extremely delighted to be part of an amazing team such as WRT, at such an exciting time for the WEC,” said Al Harthy, who made his FIA WEC debut last season with TF Sport, who he will now compete against in LMGT3 this season.

“I look forward to working closely with my teammates and achieving great results with them. I have worked with Maxime in the past and he’ll definitely help me improve my driving. Sharing the seat with a legend such as Vale…who would have said that a kid from Oman watching MotoGP on TV would end up racing with such an iconic sportsman? I’m pleased to be working with the entire WRT family.”

It will be Rossi’s first WEC campaign and follows his successful 2023 campaign with WRT in the Intercontinental GT Challenge, World Challenge Europe and Road To Le Mans, which saw him win his first races in a GT3 car.

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“The WEC will be new for me. I’ll be with Maxime and Ahmad, and I’m eager to race in the main event at Le Mans, and at places like Austin and Sao Paulo,” said Rossi, who was confirmed for the full WEC season last November. “A brand-new experience for me and hopefully we will be competitive.”

This adds to the previous confirmation of its full Hypercar driver lineup for the M Hybrid V8’s first season in the FIA WEC. The No. 15 will see newly minted BMW factory driver Raffaele Marciello share driving duties with Dries Vanthoor and Marco Wittmann. The No. 20 will be driven by Robin Frijns, Rene Rast and Sheldon van der Linde.

Vincent Vosse, WRT co-CEO, says the upcoming season in the FIA WEC marks a significant milestone for the Belgian team, which is doubling the size of its WEC effort to four cars in the championship after winning the LMP2 title last season.

“As we embark on this exciting journey, many thoughts are coming to my mind,” he said. “Contesting the WEC and Le Mans for overall honors has always been our objective, as a team and mine, personally. Now the dream comes true.

“To be participating with a Hypercar, in what is probably the most competitive era of endurance racing, to defend the colors of a mythical brand [like] BMW, is already an achievement in itself, but of course we want to be successful in this new challenge.

“The entire team has prepared for months for that and we all will give everything to succeed. It won’t be easy, we know, but we have an extraordinary team, incredible driver lineups, a great car and the support of BMW M Motorsport, where we have found many old friends and made new ones.”

Adding to its 2024 commitments with BMW, WRT revealed its plans to contest the World Challenge Europe Endurance and Sprint Cups with the M4 GT3. It will campaign multiple cars in both series.