Stoffel Vandoorne has delivered his verdict on his and Maserati’s Season 11, as he aims for a strong result at the Berlin E-Prix.
Interview conducted by Fleur Rogerson
Entering the Berlin E-Prix weekend, Stoffel Vandoorne has endured a season of frustration, yielding mixed results.
Despite taking victory in Tokyo, the Belgian lies 13th in the standings, having struggled in the midfield for the majority of the season.
Speaking exclusively to Fastest Formula News on Thursday, Stoffel Vandoorne spoke of his and Maserati’s progress in Season 11.
“I would say it’s been a bit up and down this season, to be honest. I don’t think it’s necessarily only been for us, I think it’s been a little bit for everyone like that.
“We’ve had some highlights, some more difficult races as well.I think that’s the main thing for us to get better at, is to be more consistent, especially in qualifying. It used to be one of our strengths, and we’ve not really had many highlights in qualifying so far this year.
“That’s one to do better at, and to position ourselves in the right group to start the race.On the other side, I feel like we’ve been pretty good with the races, with strategy, executing on that.”
“We’ve always been able to make progress and to get ourselves back into the points. That’s definitely been a positive one.”
How can Stoffel Vandoorne recapture championship glory?
Since his race win, Vandoorne has scored just six points, also failing to score any last time out in Jakarta.
Asked how he can return to his title-winning form from 2022, the Belgian spoke of needing luck, and resilience.
“It’s not easy in Formula E,” he said. Every year is a bit different. We’ve seen the order changing quite a lot year to year as well.Obviously, there’s a little bit of being in the right place at the right time.“
“That’s motorsport in general, I would say. You need to have the right package, but also as an individual, you need to perform at the highest level.
“I think it’s not easy sometimes in motorsport. You go through the highs, but you also go through the lows.
“I think it’s more like how you deal with lows than dealing with the successful ones. Sometimes when a year goes well and you’re winning, that almost feels a lot easier than a year when you’re not quite in tune with the car or not everything is going your way.
“You have a few setbacks. That’s actually harder and mentally more draining than when a season goes very well.
How will Stoffel Vandoorne prepare for the Berlin E-Prix?
The unique layout of the Berlin Tempelhof Circuit creates added complexity for the teams, as tyre wear is a significant problem. Asked how he prepares for this scenario, he spoke of working ranges.
“It’s always been a bit different in Berlin because of the concrete that we have here. Tyres obviously are a bit different this year as well.
“Different compound, different working range. It’s always one of the key points to success during your weekend.
“We’ll have to make the right calls on that. I think that’s one of the key elements for us to have a good performance.
“It’s always tricky around here with the degradation through the race. On top of that, we have one race with the pit boost, the second race being very energy sensitive, so there’s a lot of factors coming into play.”
Vandoorne was quick to dispel any notion that his previous experience of the circuit would give him an advantage. Instead, he said expects the grid’s wide experience to cause challenges during races.
“Everyone has a lot of experience around here. During COVID, we did six races around here. They were all a little bit different layouts, but essentially similar in a sense.
“Everyone knows this place very well. I feel like when people know it very well, it makes it more challenging because everyone’s closer together.
“I always feel like there’s more opportunities on a brand new track that no one’s ever been to because then you can make a bit more of a difference.
“When you come here, everyone knows pretty much what they’re going to do on setup, what to expect from the tyres, and everyone optimises much more, so it makes it more challenging for everyone.
Could a strong Berlin E-Prix set up momentum for the season finale?
Asked what a strong result this weekend would mean to him, and the momentum for Maserati ahead of the season finale in two weeks’ time, Vandoorne said anything was possible.
“Anything is possible in Berlin. We’ve seen last year Nick [Cassidy] run from being last and then managed to get through and win the race.
“It’s a very energy-sensitive race, so that makes it very complex to decide what you’re going to do, especially during the opening part of the race.
“Attack mode is way more powerful than it used to be last year with four-wheel drive this year. It’s hard, I think.
“We want to do a good qualifying and hopefully get a podium, which would be a fantastic result for us. You never know, anything is possible around here.”
