On the final testing day, there was only a Press Conference for the drivers, where the reigning champion, Antonio Felix da Costa of DS Techeetah, Stoffel Vandoorne of Mercedes-Benz EQ and Audi Sport's Rene Rast.

 

Reigning DTM champion Rast compared his Berlin outings to a job interview:

"It was all new. The first three races felt like a punching ball and learnt what Formula E was the hard way. Those races were crucial for me to be ready and take any useful learnings to the following season."

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We wanted to know how important was that Berlin appearance for him to approach preseason testing right now:

"The six races were very important, I gathered a lot of experience, and the most important one is how these guys race in Formula E. Those laps were vital for this year and it's good that I did those six races."

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Also, with Audi pulling out of Formula E after 2021, we wanted to know what is next for Rast:

"I just joined and it is obviously a pity for me that Audi leaves at the end of next year already. There are reasons for that, and I have to accept it. It is not the first time that the program stops during my time, so I am used to that. I committed to Formula E with Audi after Berlin, and at that point nobody knew what would happen, so I was hoping I could do more years than just one."

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Da Costa and DS Techeetah will be with last year's powertrain during the first part of the season and this is what he had to say on that topic and his impressions on pre-season testing:

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"There are pros and cons in starting the season with the old powertrain. We know what we have and we’re very confident we can still be competitive, but we are very maxed out on performance. Other teams coming with powertrains will have a steeper learning curve. After three days here we know we have a great car and we can fight next season. Formula E is so unpredictable with its format, everyone has a chance at being at the front. We were all pretty close here, it’s going to be very competitive this season. I am ready to work with the team and work to win another title again. It’ll be fun!"

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Vandoorne said that the testing was pretty solid for the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E team:

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"We wanted to run through our own programme and focusing on procedures and operations. Plenty of learning from last couple of days and feeling very positive in the car ahead of the season opener in Santiago. The win in Berlin brought confidence in the team since managed to finish strong after a tough couple of races. We want to continue that momentum. We have a new powertrain this season - Anything can happen!"

Two Drivers that started their stints in new teams and one rookie (with prior simulator experience) were present on the Second Press Conference of Pre-Season Testing. 

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Sam Bird changed teams and left Envision Virgin Racing after being their driver from the beginning of Formula E Championship, and will now drive Jaguar's Formula E Challenger. Sam's experience in Jaguar, so far so good:

"Everybody has been super at Jaguar Racing and welcomed me with open arms. I’m getting used to their philosophy and their way of thinking pretty quickly. We are making sure we do all our homework ready for the start of the season. I’ve been racing with Mitch for years now and he’s a very good guy - friendly and talented in the car, our working relationship has been spot on. This Championship has largely deserved the World Championship status, especially if you look at the drivers line-up and the teams and manufacturers involved as well as the partners. It is something very special and I think we have the capabilities to be competitive to lift that title at the end of the season. Jaguar have a rich history and I want to create new moments for the biggest and best British car manufacturer."

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Norman Nato was the chosen driver in ROKiT Venturi Racing, and he makes a jump from simulator work for the team to being their race driver this season, where he will partner Edoardo Mortara. Norman feels like the first day of testing served well in preparing him for the season-opener:

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"I’ve been working with the team for two years but being involved in the race car is completely different. Different conditions on track made Yesterday the perfect day for me to learn and get ready for the season opener in Santiago. The simulator is a key tool and being able to work in the simulator in Formula E is crucial especially with everything collided in one day during the race weekend. As a rookie I need to try avoid mistakes and it isn’t easy in Formula E. My goal is to show good performance this season, if you want to score points you need to avoid mistakes in this championship. We are simulating different conditions on track but most importantly I want to leave Valencia and feel ready for Santiago."

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Pascal Wehrlein makes his return in Formula E with TAG Heuer Porsche and will share the garage with Andre Lotterer. Ex-F1 star says it's good to be back:

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"I started to work with the team in August and plenty of preparation has gone into it and now we’re here for pre-season testing. It’s an honor to be representing Porsche and it’s a great opportunity for me to be here. We are determined to achieve big things here and hopefully we ca have a successful future together. I love the work ethic in Porsche, everyone shares the same goal and we all work hard to achieve it. Andre is very experienced and gives very good feedback - It’s good to have him as my teammate."

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We had an opportunity to put a question through to Pascal during the Press Conference and he answered what is his and his team's greatest challenge for this season:

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"I would say, for myself, at the moment is finding the right setup. Obviously, I have some references from the past, and it seems like they are a bit different with my team now. It's about finding the right balance and the ball park in which I want to have the car. For the team, for us overall, I guess it's the competition. Competition in Formula E is really high. Obviously we are confident that we have a strong car, but also that the others have made a step forward for this season. At the end, it's about the small things."

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As for the Team Principals, Dilbagh Gill of Mahindra was present, along with the Team Principals whose teams will be at the forefront in the title battle this year: Allan McNish from Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler and Mark Preston, the boss of the title-holding team, DS Techeetah.

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"Season six was a work in progress for the team, and that’s complete now. This season we need to perform well on track. We have two competitive drivers and our objective is to have them bringing the team forward. Mahindra Racing is the first Indian team across any sport to compete in a World Championship and It’s going to be taken quite seriously in the team. We are optimistic that we will get back to the top," said Dilbagh Gill.

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"‘In Berlin it was a baptism of fire for Rene but he got really hooked up towards the end. The real challenge in Formula E is to be consistently quick and we have very good balance of experience with Lucas, who has been here from the start and knows what it takes, at the same time Rene showed the potential to fight in Formula E. The team were proud of what they were able to do in terms of efficiency of the new powertrain in Formula E. Now it’s running well and it’s reliable. Formula E has had the competitiveness and the manufacturers to be a World Championship for quite some time. We always want to compete at the highest level and this status shows where we are as a Championship. It will be a hard fight for sure but whoever will be crowned a World Champion will deserve it," were the words of Allan McNish.

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"We have started reasonably well in Valencia. We aren’t bringing the new powertrain to the first event but we have started well with all the developments we’ve been doing since Berlin. We got a great group of people working diligently in the background, the pandemic delayed things but we are good at dealing with any situation that comes our way. We need to try to win the title again and there is a lot of competition. The new dynamic with the drivers all came together in Berlin. They know they will need to work together to win the team title. They are both super competitive and want to win the driver title, we’ll see how that plays out - I’m really looking forward to kick-off this season in Santiago," summarized Mark Preston.

First Press Conference of Pre-Season Testing saw some of the new Drivers on the grid take the microphones, as well as one who changed the team he is driving for between the two seasons. 

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Jake Dennis will be behind the steering-wheel of the BMW i Andretti Motorsport car this year, and this is what he had to say:

"It was nice to be on track with other cars today. It was good to compare yourself with the best and I have to say, so far so good! It’s day one and the car is performing well, the team is very professional. It’s very easy for me to come in and do my job and get along well with everyone. In Formula E it’s very difficult to jump in and stick it up to front against the most experienced drivers. My role and the team’s objectives for me is to be at the front and I definitely want to try and achieve this. This season is a bit easier for the rookies having a double-header for the first few races, we’ll see where we’re at when it comes to Santiago."

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Nick Cassidy is also more-less a new face in the paddock, after being successful in his previous test outings, he is happy to start his Formula E journey:

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"It’s been tough in the past few months, but I think myself and the team have made the most of it and I felt very prepared for today and this testing. I’m excited to be racing alongside Robin, he’s a natural talent and he is surely fast on track. With us it will be a constant evolution throughout the season and I will definitely be asking him more questions as the season develops."

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Alexander Sims substituted a blue-white race suit for a red-white one, and will be driving for Mahindra this year, and he feels that he is ready for the new season:

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"Living very close to the factory meant I’ve been able to do a lot of work with the team. This has been helpful to get to know the team at Mahindra and their systems. I feel very tuned in and ready. I get on well with Alex - he’s fast and very good to work. He’s more up to speed having done Berlin with Mahindra Racing but we’re already sharing information well in the team. I’ve come here in at the end of year’s development, and it seems there is a decent improvement from last season powertrain which was needed so far it seems that the hard work is finally paying off."

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As for the Team Principals, Ian James of Mercedes-Benz EQ was present, along with Christian Silk from NIO 333 and Susie Wolff, first lady of ROKiT Venturi Racing.

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"It was a fascinating inaugural year for us. We had a strong start in Saudi which was brilliant, then we allowed some operational errors to creep in and the next few races didn’t go as we had planned. Then the COVID pandemic hit and it put everything on hold. Then we went back racing in Berlin and I think both Formula E and FIA did a fantastic job to get us back racing. It that instance fortunately we felt confident that we had the right ingredients to do well but it wasn’t until that final race that everything came together for us. This shows once again the eccentricity and competitiveness of this series. We now need to carry this momentum through season seven. We now go into this season with more confidence within the team and we want to be challenging in those podiums. We need to control the controllable internally and if we can make that work, we have a good chance to get some decent points. The whole ecosystem here makes sure we minimize the risk as much as possible and it’s allowing us to focus on the job and hopefully we get back to some sense of normality next season," said Ian James.

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"We had a very productive summer period. We had a lot going on last season in terms of development and we’ve been playing catch-up. During testing we had very few problems with the new car, we made good progress on performance side. Tom Blomqvist has a lot of experience in Formula E and his pace in unquestionable. We believed he fit very well in the team and he understands the car very well and this is what we need in order to develop the car in the best way possible. Tom and Oliver get on very well and share very similar driving styles and he us undeniably quick. I’m sure that all the team principles are watching all the lap times with interest so we will be doing that and looking at where we are. We just want to set a good benchmark here in Valencia and make sure everything is working consistently and do the basic background work. Once that’s been done hopefully we will know where we are at," were the words of Christian Silk.

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"As a team we are always evolving and we wanted a bold new design for our car so we dropped the red colour and for our title partner ROKiT it was a good direction to take. It’s great to be back at a race track and it does feel like a long time since Berlin, particularly for us because it ended in quite a negative way. It’s great to see that both Formula E and FIA are committed to make this testing and the first two rounds in Santiago happen in the current circumstances. The World Championship status is a testament to the growth of the championship and to the hard work that has gone into building Formula E to what it is today. It was a big decision for us to take in terms of who would sit next to Edo. Last season we had one car scoring all our points and that was something we had to correct for season seven. In Formula E there is limited testing but Norman had over-delivered at every opportunity he had with us as a team whether at the Rookie test or in development work in the factory and we saw in him the right choice but time will tell," summarized Susie Wolff.

After the Race 5 of the Berlin Finale, we had the opportunity to put some questions forward to the drivers. First one was the Audi driver, Rene Rast, who scored his first Formula E podium yesterday, and we wanted to know what was going through his mind through the final lap when he overtook Andre Lotterer for third place with some Touring Car-like contact and can he repeat the same results tomorrow:

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"In the end we were a bit quicker today, saved a bit of energy, and had half percent more than Andre in the last lap, and knew I had to try something. I dived in turn 12, he didn't expect that there, so he opened up the door, I was on the inside, we had a bit of contact. In Formula E you have a lot of contacts, I learned that in the past four races, I was the "punching ball" for everyone."

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"For tomorrow it all depends on the qualifying, if you nail a lap, and you are upfront in qualifying, within the first six, the race is going to be much smoother and easier. Qualifying is the key, we had a good car today, hopefully same for tomorrow."

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Next, Sebastien Buemi shared if the pace shown gives him confidence ahead of the today's race, and what will his approach be in qualifying:

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"I think this was my best race of the year definitely, because I had the pace and I feel like, we have beaten Antonio, and Techeetah fair and square so that shows that we've made a massive improvement throughout the week in Berlin. I was a bit disappointed with what happened this morning. On the other hand really happy for the team. Tomorrow I will be in group two, so hopefully I can qualify well. I like the circuit layout, I am looking forward to tomorrow, and now that the new section if full of rubber, so the evolution might be slower tomorrow."

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We also wanted to know that did Tom Blomqvist take away from being back in Formula E with the pace he has shown yesterday:

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"Firstly we have to look at the day as a whole, and we have to be happy. If you would have told me that I would be in Super Pole and finish 12th I would have taken it, but obviously, when starting sixth, and dropping back to twelfth there is some slight disappointment but I always knew that going into the race that it would be the most challenging part - it was a decent race. I dropped back, but it was kinda expected on my side, and ultimately I am really happy how the day unfolded I have got another night to sleep on it, and hopefully come back tomorrow, and see what we can do."

In today's press conference, Team Principals of DS Techeetah, Mark Preston, Nissan e.dams, Tomasso Volpe and BMW i Andretti Motorsport, Roger Griffiths talked about the expectations ahead of the finale, as well as the goals ahead of the last double-header.

 

After them, the drivers of DS Techeetah, 2020 Champion, Antonio Felix da Costa and winner of race 4, Jean-Eric Vergne and the BMW driver, Maximilian Guenther were present to talk what they are looking for ahead of the final double-header.

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Mark Preston said that the team was worried someone was going to do what they’ve done and that they can't wait to see what happens next:

 

"Our main goal was delivered in the second double - header, with a one-two for the team. We tried to do it in the first two rounds but it didn’t work out so we tried again and succeeded. We want to get JEV second in the championship and that’s the focus for the next few races and then definitely get some more points for the team. I’m quite impressed with how much Antonio has managed to dominate the end of the season. Being at one track has its pros and cons, but the surface seems to fit his driving style perfectly and he’s been very successful in the past few races"

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We put a question to Mark Preston, with the momentum that was built up during the last couple of races, how will the team approach it - is it a track where the momentum can be kept going or does it mean that the team starts from scratch, and this is what he said:

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"I think that we can keep the momentum going, the biggest change that was made was the tire pressures for the second event, and for us that changed the balance of the car which we weren't really for, but I think that happened in F1 last week as well, the tire pressures. Much of the track is the same, it would be fairly easy to do with that, and as Roger said, the new section, we will be going on a track walk this afternoon, so we will see how difficult it is. We've already got the track layouts, so the guys have got some experience of what's coming up, so it won't be a dramatic change."

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Tomasso Volpe says that he is pleased with the team performance so far:

 

"This is my first race. At the beginning of the season we were the only team having to change the powertrain, this has led us to struggle at the beginning but the position where we are now is amazing and I think it really shows how talented our drivers are and the determination of the team to achieve great results. We want to keep fighting for this position for the next two races. On Sunday we witnessed a great team performance. We managed the race in a way that we were looking for the best time to attack DS TECHEETAH, probably it was a bit awkward when we decided to make our move, but overall the performance was really good."

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Roger Griffiths said that the first four races have been quite disappointing for the team, apart from Guenther’s win on Saturday: 

 

"As Mark has demonstrated, what you need to win the ABB FIA Formula E Championship is consistency in point scoring for both drivers and that’s what will be our focus for the next few races to make sure that both Alexander and Maximilian are scoring the maximum number of points that they can, whether that’s from wins or placing in the top-five or ten and see where we end up on Thursday night. I think the third layout will be the most interesting, we are going to see more changes to the cars for the new layout. It’s a bit tighter and I think the race might get a bit more frantic in that area while the traditional Berlin circuit is quite open which has led some of the brave moves that we’ve seen on occasion. I’d put a bit more focus on the energy management and we’ll need to wait and see what the weather does in terms of batteries and their temperature but I think it’ll be potentially more challenging."

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After winning the title, Antonio Felix da Costa spent the last 48 hours full of joy and relief but is, as he says, overall hungry for more races: 

 

"It’s been such an incredible experience to come back to track with with no pressure at all,  just pure joy of being in a race car and driving as fast as I possibily can. I also feel very grateful for what I am living and the people around me. Watching JEV racing last year in a similar position to mine, I learn to always be aggressive and always be offensive - this time around I had the confidence in the car to be offensive and I told myself I was never going to change that. There was pressure, but I am glad there was because it shows it is an important thing as if there wasn’t, it would’ve meant no one cared about it. I know how lucky I am to call this a job, so I am only trying to enjoy it because I don’t know when I am going to live it again, hopefully soon, next year!"

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Jean-Eric Vergne shared that the 3rd layout is the one he drove most comfortably on the simulator:

 

"This season has been a bit of a nightmare for me due to DNFs, technical issues and in all fairness I am quite lucky to be second in the standings despite it all and it shows there is still something good. I am looking forward to racing in the new track since from what I can remember in the simulator, that is the layout I drive most comfortably in."

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Maximilian Guenther said that Formula E is such a competitive championship so that everything needs to fit together, but in case of BMW, they as a team didn’t manage to achieve that unity:

 

"We didn’t manage to find the qualifying pace we had expected, apart from Saturday when we qualified in the front row. We’re in good shape and the atmosphere in the team is good overall, we need to be able to trust our abilities and put our package together. I never put too much pressure on what to expect ahead of the season, I always try to do the best I can and take it step-by-step whilst improving every day and if the results are good that’s even better! Our main focus ahead of the final double-header will be to fight to seal P2 in the championship"

After Round 8, first we had the opportunity to talk to the TAG Heuer Porsche racing drivers, where Andre Lotterer shared with us if with his good pace, knowledge of the circuit and translating the momentum he could achieve a podium today:

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"Yeah, I believe so. We are putting more and more things together, also the qualifying performance today, in the last sector was promising, in race one we had a very good race pace and efficiency. In race 2 something wasn't right, and it didn't show our true potential. We proved that today, with a better result, for us as a new team it's good that we are making steps forward, which is the most important thing. Podium was on the cards today, it's a tough business out there sometimes, but it is good to know that the potential is there."

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With good pace shown in Free Practice 2 yesterday and also in the race, we asked Neel Jani if he could achieve his first points today:

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"Looking at FP1 and FP2 the posibilities were there to be in the top 10 all the time today, that's why I am a little bit dissapointed how the day went because today was really the first time I saw consistent pace and that we can be up there."

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Jerome d'Ambrosio qualified 3rd but ended the race in 7th place for Mahindra, and we wanted to know what caused that - was it the bad strategy or something else.

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"No, in terms of strategy I don't think so, we seem to be as efficient as others, we left less and use more energy, there is also the question of how much you can recover and it seems that we don't do that efficiently enough, that is what we need to work on."

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Lastly we spoke to Mercedes-Benz EQ driver, Nyck de Vries, who managed to get up to 16th in the race yesterday, and we wanted to know if he will change his approach to qualifying in order to achieve better results on the first layout:

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"I think that today's qualifying wasn't that bad I was a little bit disappointed with my sector one because that kind of put me out of Super Pole. Nevertheless, we were P8, we were kind of in the mix, but obviously due to the grid penalty, that put us in the middle of the mid pack and it was tough to get out, because everyone was fighting very hard and I missed the ATTACK MODE activation zone and that compromised the race."

After yesterdays second of six races of Berlin Season Finale we had a chance to pass some questions to the drivers in the organized press conferences ahead of the second double-header, so this is what we found out.

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We asked the Audi driver, Rene Rast, what was the main thing he took away from his first Formula E double header, and this is what he said:

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"Lots of things going on at the same time! In other racing categories, in DTM, you are not allowed to talk to the team, I mean I can talk, but they cannot answer. Here I am communicating with the team all the time, and I always have to monitor my energy, the traffic around me, there are a lot of things that I need to keep my eye on, and also on the other end you also have to race your competition and keep the car within the racing line. There is a lot of things and it keeps it very very difficult for someone like me who is new to the series, but again I learned a lot and hopefully I can progress."

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After that we got an opportunity to talk to the Nissan e.dams driver, Oliver Rowland, since he was closer to the fights at the top in the second race, we wanted to know how have these first two races prepared him for the second two that are driven on the main layout, that is known to him:

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"I was really quick on this layout, and I think that the performance will translate from one layout to all the others. The team has done a good job and I am really happy with the progress we've made, and I expect for both cars to be in Super Pole and both to be battling for positions in top six for the rest of the races. The last couple of races have been about building confidence for qualifying and understanding the car a bit better. I need that one percent to be there."

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The Mercedes-Benz EQ driver and ex-F1 racer, Stoffel Vandoorne made a great double overtake yesterday passing Rowland and Sam Bird who were fighting for position, and we wanted to know what was going through his head while he executed the overtake. This is what Stoffel had to say:

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"Not much (laugh). I think that it looked more impressive than it actually was, because both of them were fighting in front of me, and I was kind of pushing behind them with attack mode. They exited the corner quite badly, while I had extra power and came out quite well so I managed to drag alongside them and make it stick into turn six. Still it takes all the commitment from other drivers as well, you've got to trust them that they are going to keep their lines and not out-brake themselves, because Oliver told me after the race that he didn't even see me completely on the right and he was a little bit surprised when I turned up there as well. It was good."

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Vandoorne's team-mate, Nyck de Vries opened up on the technical problems he had yesterday and was it heavy to push the car away from the circuit:

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"I lost everything, radio comms, the car, everything, and I wanted to drag the car just in a safe spot, but I didn't have enough rolling speed to get there, and as I didn't have any radio comms I just wanted to escape out quickly. I was anyway going to jump put, and I thought might as well take my car with me rather than leaving it in the middle of the track.", and when asked if the car is heavy, he just replied "I am a strong guy".

First batch of quotes came from Envision Virgin Racing Drivers.

Sam Bird, said: “I’ve had quite a mixed season so far but winning in Diriyah proved we’ve got the capabilities to fight at the top and I’m looking forward to getting back out in the car again. I’ve continued to work hard on my fitness in the break and have spent a lot of time working with the team on the simulator and learning the new configurations. I think the final track could pose some different challenges, as it looks to be a more technical, so I think they could be very interesting races to watch!”

Robin Frijns added: “For sure, it’s definitely going to be challenging but I’m really excited to see what happens in Berlin. There are 180 points up for grabs across the six races, and we’ve seen time and time again that anyone can win in Formula E, so I think we’re going to see some really exciting racing! Competing behind closed doors will definitely add another element to the event but as a team we’re doing all we can to continue to interact with our loyal fans at home.”

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We also got some quotes from the NIO 333 FE Team.

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Oliver Turvey: “I am really excited to go back racing! It is going to be intense competing in six races over nine days especially with three different layouts, but I feel well prepared and ready for the challenge having spent a lot of time training in the past months as well as preparing with the team in the simulator. I know the team have been working hard with the engineers making a number of updates since the beginning of the season so I can’t wait to get back out on track. I aim to maximize the potential in qualifying and to achieve the best result possible in the race so I will be giving my best to score points for the team.”

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Daniel Abt: “Going back to racing is making me extremely excited after all these months. At the same time, doing six races in this short amount of period is a huge challenge, which I have never experienced in my career. I think the team and I have done a good preparation, our aim is clear, and that is to perform at our best. If we can reach that target, good results will soon come. I hope my wishes will come true at my favourite circuit!”

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There were three more press conferences held today - first one featured Team Principals of Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler Team, BMW i Andretti Autosport and Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team, and what was interesting to us was which drivers were in contention for the second seat in the Audi team following Daniel Abt's suspension and this is what Allan McNish said:

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"We were very lucky that we have got quite a group of drivers in the Audi racing stable at the moment, becuase if we look at the drivers that we had at the rookie test we had Kelvin van der Linde and Mattia Drudi. However, Kelvin and Mattia have their racing calendar and that took them out of the Berlin Weekend. Rene was available and really keen to do it, and we could plug him in to do some testing in advance. We always prefer to look into our stable than looking outside and therefore we have a loyal company, and I think I am a product of that through my racing career as well. We are pleased that Rene was able to help us out."

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After that, the championship leader, Antonio Felix da Costa, new driver of NIO 333 Team, Daniel Abt and already mentioned new Audi driver, Rene Rast were in the press conference together. After already racing in DTM last weekend, we wanted to know if that helped him to get into the racing mindset and find pace ahead of Berlin. This is what Rene said:

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"Not sure if it's helping, it's two different kind of cars. I am already used to the racing experience from last weekend, I already did two races in my head. I am experienced with some fights and maybe I am better prepared, but Formula E is a different animal and really need to learn how racing is at Formula E. It's not an advantage, but at least I did some racing."

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Last press conference of the day was with the Nissan e.dams drivers, Sebastian Buemi and Oliver Rowland, and what was interesting to us is to ask Buemi if we could maybe expect him to get back into the title fight since he had great results in Berlin in the past. The Swiss driver told us this:

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"I'd love to say yes, i am a realistic guy. I want to wait and see where we are. Something that is clear is that in Formula E, once you start having good rhythm like I did last year, you can be 13th in the Championship in Paris, and two races later you are P2 in the championship. Every year is not the same, first we need to see where we are. Five months is a long time and people have maybe worked better than us and we are further back, or, hopefully, we will be a lot closer to the top guys, and the objective will change as we go into the races."

 

Drivers were talking about how in qualifying, the groups make least of an impact on results here, and also with six races being driven at this track the grip will be better and better with each double-header so the qualifying performance also won't vary that much when looking at the groups either.