First 1-2 a long time coming for DS Penske

DS Penske has been a constant presence in Formula E. Through various guises, it’s been there since Season 1, but it wasn’t until the first race of the Shanghai E-Prix that it achieved a one-two finish.

Not only was it the team’s first such sweep of the top places, but it was the first for an American team in Formula E, with it and fellow day one classmate Andretti yet to achieve one. But going into Saturday’s race, it didn’t look likely.

Maximilian Guenther had started from pole, often a place that leaves you a sitting duck in Formula E – in fact, Guenther had already lost the lead by Turn 1. Teammate Jean-Eric Vergne, meanwhile, started outside the top 10 and quietly went about his race, barely being a thought until the final lap. The pair managed their strategies perfectly, however, leaving their final Attack Mode boosts late to charge forward and take the landmark result.

“What a day for us as a team, to get P1 and P2 is incredible,” said Guenther. “Very, very proud of what we've done today. “[It was a] really mega day already. Qualifying was super strong, [I] had a very good feeling in the car, we delivered really good laps, and that was the first milestone of the day.

“But in Formula E, these races are so complex and long, especially a race like today with the Pit Boost, and we just really managed well. Good execution, obviously good pace, but as well very, very good strategy.

“We waited quite long with our last Attack Mode just because we were able to be in front, and then having this overlap and good energy at the end. This then gave us the shot for the win. It was quite clear that then I needed to pass Oli [Rowland] and try to disappear in the distance and try to gap him as fast as I could. This worked out nicely, and then I saw the guys fighting for P2 and then I just did the most efficient laps I could.”

Guenther crossed the line over seven seconds clear of Vergne after dropping the hammer the moment he took the lead, and as a result he didn’t realize the magnitude of the team’s result until the race was over.

“I just realized that the moment I crossed the line,” he said. “The team told me and the cheer on the radio was massive. [It was an] incredible job by JEV to recover from the mid pack to the podium.”

Race winner Gunther and veteran DS Penske teammate Vergne had plenty to celebrate in Shanghaibut can't party too hard just yet. Simon Galloway/LAT Images

Vergne started the final lap in fifth, but as Taylor Barnard, Dan Ticktum, and Oliver Rowland squabbled over the final podium places, he saw an opportunity to pounce on all of them. As Ticktum made an attempt up the inside of Barnard going into the final chicane, there was still room up that inside – Vergne swept past both, with Barnard able to resist Ticktum in the scramble to finish third.

“Because I saw the guys fighting quite hard, I knew a few laps before that I had a tiny bit more energy,” said Vergne. “And when I was looking, they were lifting later and everything. So I assumed I was in a stronger position. So I just waited for the best moment to make the moves.”

Vergne credited Phil Charles, who joined the team as deputy team principal last season, with helping the race-winning team move forward. In a year that’s been dominated by Nissan, DS Penske is the only team aside from the Japanese brand’s works team with multiple victories.

“He's been very good,” Vergne said of Charles. “He has a huge amount of experience in Formula E – he used to be my race engineer in Formula 1, so it's great to work with him again. Obviously when you're not winning, you're going through some pressure and that feeling of relief, winning and having a one-two, is some weight off the shoulders.

“And I think that's what we've done all together. We put aside the bad races that we had and I think we can be very proud of the team, because it's an amazing result.”

The work isn’t done, though. There’s another race on Sunday so the celebrations are on hold, but the Stellantis powertrain under the skin of DS Penske’s black and gold machines has been strong in the wet this season – Vergne was a frontrunner in the first Monaco race before the track dried, while Stoffel Vandoorne won the first race in Tokyo for Maserati MSG Racing running the same powertrain.

“It's a shame tomorrow we have a race, because that certainly would be a day to celebrate together as a team,” said Vergne. “But hopefully we can have another strong race tomorrow [before] we take the plane, so [we] can celebrate later.”