Penultimate Event of Formula E Season Next for NIO in Switzerland
Switzerland’s capital city, Bern, welcomes the ABB FIA Formula E Championship for the first time this coming Saturday, 22nd June, where NIO drivers Oliver Turvey and Tom Dillmann will be hoping for a positive conclusion to the ‘European season’.
Although not readily associated with modern motorsport, due to the fact road racing circuits are banned in Switzerland, the country welcomed Formula E for the first time last year in Zurich thanks to special dispensation for EV racing.
For Season 5, the Formula E action has moved to Bern for the penultimate event of the 2018/2019 campaign – the Julius Baer Swiss E-Prix – which follows a break of almost a month from action since the previous race in neighbouring Germany.
Taking place around a specially created street circuit layout in Bern, the heart of which is actually a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Formula E competitors will be battling hard ahead of the double-header championship finale in the USA in July.
British racer Turvey goes into round 11 of the season with two points results to his credit so far, a best finish of eighth place from the Santiago E-Prix in Chile, while French team-mate Dillmann – who actually has Swiss heritage – has best results of 12th place from both the Hong Kong E-Prix and the Sanya E-Prix in China.
Oliver Turvey, Race Driver, NIO Formula E Team:
“It will be exciting to race in a new city for Formula E in Bern. The track looks like a lot of fun, with large gradient changes, some challenging corners and a number of straights for overtaking. The atmosphere last year in Switzerland was amazing so I’m looking forward to racing again in front of such passionate fans.”
Tom Dillmann, Race Driver, NIO Formula E Team:
“Bern can be considered my home race actually as I was born in Mulhouse, just over the border into France, and I live in Basel just an hour from the capital. I'm also 25% Swiss via my grandmother, so this is a race I’m really looking forward to. The track will be new to everyone so we will make sure we squeeze everything out of the car, try to score a result and keep improving and learning as a team.”
Gérry Hughes, Team Principal, NIO Formula E Team:
“Everyone at the NIO Formula E Team is looking forward to visiting Bern for the first time, and competing on a new track. It’s been a challenging season, but the hard work we are putting in to extract as much performance as we can each race weekend remains undiminished.
We have been working very hard over the last few weeks to prepare as well as possible for the final race of the European season. Hopefully we can push for a strong result with both cars, and it will be an important event for Tom in particular with his Swiss heritage.”
Rd 11 Schedule, Saturday, 22nd June: Bern E-Prix
(all times local)
08.55 – Free Practice 1
11.20 – Free Practice 2
13.30 – Qualifying
14.15 – Superpole (Top 6)
18.03 – Race (45mins +1 lap)
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