Nissan e.dams drivers Sebastien Buemi and Oliver Rowland both finished inside the top 10 during round four of the ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge, helping raise funds for the global UNICEF Covid-19 appeal.

Qualifying on the Hong Kong street circuit took place in the rain and conditions were extremely slippery, however Rowland put his #22 car fifth on the grid. Buemi managed 18th in car #23. Rowland was hit from the rear and unavoidably tangled in a large incident at turn one of the first lap of the race, which put him down the order. However, he battled his way back up to 10th at the finish.

Buemi fared better in the first lap incident, avoiding most of the trouble and moving into 12th. From there he raced hard into ninth at the end, despite the tight layout of the track making passing difficult. Of all the Formula E champions, Buemi is only one to take points in the new esports series.

A steward’s decision after the race saw Buemi and Rowland move up one place each to eighth and ninth respectively.

The ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge is split into two grids and two races; the Driver Grid made up of Formula E racers, and the Challenge Grid of sim racers.

In today’s Challenge Grid event, sim racers Jan von Der Heyde and Niek Jacobs returned for the team, qualifying in eighth and ninth. In the race, the pair finished seventh and ninth respectively, taking another double top 10 team result.

The ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge raises funds for UNICEF’s global coronavirus appeal, helping keep children safe, healthy and learning in the face of the pandemic.

Sebastien Buemi: “P8 is my best result in the ABB Formula E Race at Home Challenge so far. I was a little faster than the drivers in front but couldn’t pass them on this tight track. I’m looking forward to the next track as I think it will be easier to pass on. But, in general, a much better performance today and I’m happy that I scored some points for the team.”

Oliver Rowland: “A pretty tough race today. We were quite fast in qualifying, but in the race there was a big incident in turn one and I had nowhere to go. A little disappointing not to finish higher, but good to get a double top 10 overall for the team.”

Photo: Spacesuit Media