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Nick Cassidy took victory in Berlin. Now he’s on track to take the Drivers’ Championship too.
Cassidy now sits second in the Drivers’ Championship. (Image credit: Envision Racing)Cassidy’s win in the German capital pushed the Envision driver over the line and into the title fight. Now nestled only four points behind Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein, Cassidy is well within consideration for the Formula E World Driver’s Championship.
Claiming victory in the second race of last weekend’s double-header was no small feat. Starting P8 after having his duel-winning lap in qualifying deleted meant that Cassidy began the race on the backfoot, with no choice but to fight his way to the front. Add into the mix the fact that Saturday’s race had seen eight different race leaders, and it begins to become clear quite how mighty a task winning the Berlin E-Prix was set to be.
Battling his way to the front of the pack was one thing; actually holding onto the lead, on top of conserving energy, was another deal entirely. Despite the game of hot potato that was played with the race lead on Saturday, once Cassidy made his way to the front on Sunday he never let the lead slip from his grasp. Cassidy’s win was a masterful display: it was a win characterised by carefully planned decisions and meticulous energy saving.
Porsche beware: Envision are on the up
As Cassidy closes the gap to Wehrlein, so does Envision to Porsche. The Silverstone-based team sits second in the teams standings, 15 points back from Porsche. With Cassidy on terrific form – and with Porsche’s somewhat mediocre string of recent results – Envision looks set to take on the German team.
Is Envision ready to take the battle to Porsche? When asked by FormulaNerds how prepared the team feels, Cassidy said:
“The team feels prepared for sure. I would say last year, maybe, we had our ups and downs, but season 7 we went to the last round leading the Team’s Championship. Season 5, 6, and before were always strong as well.” He added:
“This team is used to winning.”
“It’s one of the reasons I wanted to join here, back in season 7,” Cassidy elaborated. “I knew it was a top team.”
Cassidy’s taking a measured approach to the season, though. “The season’s very young,” he said. “There’s still eight races to go, I think it’s a long way. As we’ve seen, I think, other manufacturers are closing the gap as well.”
“For example, our factory team, Jaguar, are very, very strong, and they’re close on points,” said Cassidy. “I think even though we’re close to the lead right now, a lot can change. The next races will be very interesting.”
Happy families?
Winning mentality aside, you’d be forgiven for thinking things aren’t all sunshine and roses over at Envision. Cassidy made headlines on Sunday after a rather heated radio message was broadcast. The source of Cassidy’s apparent ire? His teammate.
“What is he doing?” Cassidy asked of Season 2 Champion Sébastien Buemi, before continuing on: “Oh, that was really kind of Seb. Wow, what a good teammate. Ahh, what is he doing, man? Seriously.”
🤬 'WHAT IS HE DOING, MAN!?' 🤬
Nick Cassidy wasn't best pleased with teammate Sébastien Buemi yesterday 😬@SABIC #BerlinEPrix pic.twitter.com/18LtSPq4R5
— ABB FIA Formula E World Championship (@FIAFormulaE) April 23, 2023
When asked about the radio message, Cassidy was quick to put to bed any rumours of discontent between the pair.
“Half of it was meant to be sarcastic and funny, and it doesn’t come across that way, I think the people who know me get that,” Cassidy said, clarifying the meaning behind his radio message. “But obviously, when it’s transcripted and you don’t know a personality, and you see some words as strong or harsh, it looks bad on my part, and I must say sorry for that.”
“But we’re good,” Cassidy said. “And it makes it look like there’s an issue where it’s not.”
Cassidy later added that he’s “really lucky” to have Buemi alongside him as a teammate. “I think he’s a good reference on speed, professionalism, so a lot of respect there,” said Cassidy.
Staying grounded
Cassidy’s victory at the Tempelhof circuit is a continuation of the New Zealander’s incredible form as of late. Of the past five races, four of them have seen Cassidy place on the podium. In fact, Cassidy’s most notable wobble was at the first of the Berlin races.
Early damage sustained to the front of his car forced Cassidy into a recovery drive on Saturday. A trip to the pits meant that Cassidy rejoined at the back of the pack, ruling him out of podium contention. But even this was a show of Cassidy’s remarkable fighting spirit. The Envision driver was able to claw his way back up the order, securing a P5 finish and a decent haul of points.
Whilst Saturday didn’t go to plan for Cassidy, there’s no greater an example of ‘coming back stronger’ than going on to win the race the very next day. It’s safe to say that Nick Cassidy is on excellent form. But the question remains: can Cassidy carry this consistency into Monaco?
A victory in the Principality is a career goal for most racing drivers. But for Cassidy the Monaco E-Prix could spell a turning point in the championship. With only four points separating him and Wehrlein, Monaco is an opportunity for Cassidy to take hold of the championship lead.
As exciting as Cassidy’s situation is – and Cassidy admits its “super cool” to be in this position – the Envision driver says that he’s remaining “grounded”. Speaking to members of the press, including FormulaNerds, Cassidy said: “I think I’ve been sensible with the way I’ve been racing, I’ve not been taking too much risk. So far it’s been clean.”
“But I want to stay grounded,” stressed Cassidy. “Anything can happen now.”
Featured Image Credit: @Envision_Racing on Twitter
