Maximilian Günther wins first championship race in ‘ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge’.

Munich. BMW i Andretti Motorsport driver Maximilian Günther (GER) picked up from where he left off after the test round in the ‘ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge’ in today’s first championship race. Günther won on the virtual track in Hong Kong (CHN) in his BMW iFE.20, and in doing so secured the first 25 points of the season. Alexander Sims (GBR) finished in tenth place after a strong come-back in his second ever sim race. In the Challenge Race, in which two sim racers competed for BMW i Andretti Motorsport, Team Redline driver Kevin Siggy (SLO) made it onto the podium in third place.

Günther qualified in third place for the Formula E drivers’ 15-lap race, and moved up to second early on in the race. He took the lead after Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL) made a driving error and held position to the finish. With 25 points Günther leads the driver standings after one of eight races of the season. Sims only qualified in 22^nd place in the second BMW iFE.20, but moved up into tenth place and picked up a point.

In the Challenge Race, in which top sim racers are battling for a starting spot in BMW SIM LIVE 2020 among other things, Team Redline driver Siggy, in BMW i Andretti Motorsport colours, finished third to pick up 15 points in the overall standings. In the second BMW iFE.20, Charlie Martin (GBR) finished in 18^th place.

Reactions to Round 1:

Maximilian Günther (#28 BMW iFE.20, 1^st place, 25 points): “It was another fantastic race and I’m delighted with the first 25 points of the season. Stoffel Vandoorne ahead of me obviously made a mistake so I was able to take the lead and bring it home safely. As racers, we always want to win when we are competing. It’s no different in sim racing to real racing. I think as drivers we are having a lot of fun in these events during this time when we’re unable to be at the racetrack. I hope it’s the same for the fans.”

Alexander Sims (#27 BMW iFE.20, 10^th place, 1 point): “It’s a lot of fun to get an adrenaline rush again from the pressure of being embroiled in head-to-head duels with other racing drivers. I was really excited. Unfortunately I’m still lacking a fair bit of speed compared with the top drivers to get a fast lap in qualifying, but in the race I tried to stay out of everything, so I was able to move up the field quickly on the first lap. Obviously, I was a bit lucky that I didn’t get caught up in any of the accidents. It was still a good feeling finishing in tenth place. Congratulations to Maximilian on another win. He really is as strong as an ox in the simulator.”