Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing
Round 3 of 10 in the Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY
Hong Kong E-Prix – Hong Kong, China
Race Notes and Quotes
SELLERS BECAME THE FIRST AMERICAN TO WIN A PROFESSIONAL ELECTRIC CAR RACE WHEN HE LED THE TEAM’S SECOND CONSECUTIVE 1-2 FINISH IN THE HONG KONG E-PRIX OVER LEGGE TO TAKE THE POINTS LEAD
KATHERINE LEGGE, No. 3 Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY entry: “The race couldn’t have gone any better really. There was no way I was going to have a go at Bryan. He protected me in Mexico so we just kind of chilled out. We didn’t have a very eventful race until the last lap when I thought someone might have a go at (passing) me so I braked really early and stacked them up. It’s a team 1-2 so Bobby will be happy. Brian and I have been friends for a lot of years and there is a lot of mutual respect there. I remember 10 years ago or more and we were racing against each other in lower formula cars. When you know what someone else is capable of and they are your teammate, you try and make the most of that and learn as much as you can from them. (On race leader Caca Bueno making a mistake:) I couldn’t believe it. It’s tough when you’re under pressure. That’s why I kind of hung back from Bryan a little bit because I wanted him to know that there was no pressure because in these conditions it’s so easy to make a mistake and I made one or two. It’s easy just to lock an inside brake up or do something like that. When I saw that happen, I was thinking ‘Oh wow.’ And then when I managed to go around the inside as well, I was just thinking ‘Oh wow, okay, 1-2. Don’t crash Katherine, just don’t throw it off.”
•FAST FACTS: Changing weather and track conditions led to a challenging qualifying session and a fifth place starting spot for Legge. In the race, she passed fourth place Stefan Rzadzinski and third place Simon Evans on the outside of the first turn on the opening lap and held her position behind teammate Sellers and race leader Caca Bueno. A few laps into the race, Bueno made a mistake and drove into the Turn 1 wall when he misjudged the corner which allowed the teammates to take over first and second. There were some challenges from behind but Legge held on to complete the second consecutive 1-2 finish for the team. It was discovered after the race that she had two slow leak punctures but fortunately was able to finish before that kept her from doing so.… In Round 2 at Mexico City, she became the first female to win a professional electric racing event. It was her fourth overall electric car race and second in the Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY. She competed in the first two Formula E races with Amlin Aguri in the 2014/2015 season. Her previous win was at Laguna Seca on 9-9-18 with Meyer Shank Racing in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD class… She is currently ranked second in series standings with 42 points to leader Sellers’ 46.
BRYAN SELLERS, No. 6 Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY entry: “It’s a great day for everybody at Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing. I was a little bit jealous of Kat in Mexico City because she drove such a great race but it (finishing order) was able to be flipped this time. We just need to keep building and continuing this way. (On Caca Bueno:) For sure he pushed hard. For me, in the beginning I thought ‘Man, if he can continue the race with this pace, the race is his.’ I personally wasn’t willing to push that hard, that fast, and it looks like it caught him out just a little bit. The difficulty in these conditions, the difference between a half of a car length on the brakes, is significant. And he didn’t go in that hot. He just got in there a little too late, a little too damp and was just wide and couldn’t get it turned in the corner. Sometimes it’s your day I guess. I honestly doubt I would have been able to pass him. I’d like to say yes but the cars are so evenly matched and when you get up to the top three, it becomes very difficult. He’s had pace all weekend and basically led every session and I was right behind him every session. It would have taken a mistake like that for me to get around. I say that but you never know what’s going to happen in a race. It definitely would have been a different race from my perspective. I could sit back knowing Kat was there and know she wasn’t going to make a dive-bomb move on me and could control the pace a little bit.”
•FAST FACTS: In challenging track conditions due to varying amounts of rain, Sellers qualified second for the third consecutive time for Round 3. In the race, he held his position until Caca Bueno made a mistake a few laps into the race and drove into the wall off of the front straight in the tight turn which moved Sellers and Legge into first and second. Sellers held the position for the rest of the race and took the checkered flag 3.369-seconds ahead of Legge to become the first American to win on an ABB Formula E weekend. In the first three rounds, Sellers finished third, second and now earned his first series win. He is the first American to win an electric car race. It is the third electric race for the reigning IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD champion who started second in Saudi Arabia and finished third… Sellers leads the standings with 46 points to second place Legge, who has 42. Third place Sergio Jimenez has 37.
NEXT UP: Round 4 of 10 in the Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY will take place in Sanya, China on March 23, 2019.