Subscribe

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe

Evans wanted Bird to leave more room before Diriyah Formula E clash

Jaguar driver Mitch Evans reckons Sam Bird should have left more room in their Turn 4 clash during the second Formula E race in Diriyah

Evans attempted to make a lunge on Bird after the Envision Virgin driver was caught off-line trying to pass Lucas di Grassi, who had just been cleared by Antonio Felix da Costa.

But Bird and Evans then clashed, with Bird drifting into the outside wall.

Pascal Wehrlein then collected Bird shortly after, putting the Briton out of the race and triggering the first safety car of the race.

Evans received a drivethrough penalty as the FIA deemed he was to blame for the incident.

Suggesting that Bird was equally at fault, Evans disagreed with the punishment as he felt he was sufficiently alongside.

"When Antonio attacked Lucas, things kicked off massively," recounted Evans.

"Sam opted to go for trying to get the sort of switchback on Lucas at [Turn] 1 for [Turn] 2, which is never really going to work, there was a hole there so I went for it.

"I felt like I was far enough alongside him and into Turn 4, OK it's that awkward corner and it's not a normal passing opportunity, but I had overlap.

"I don't think he gave me enough room, and then probably both of us would got through there fine.

"It'd have been tight, but he knew that if he gave me too much room he would have been in the dust.

"So he opted to go for the, let's say the more aggressive sort of approach, expecting me to back out of it, but I thought I was I thought I was alongside enough to stay there."

Bird, who won Friday's opening race, suggested that while nobody was ultimately to blame, he felt that Evans could have backed out of the move at Turn 4.

"I haven't watched it back," he said.

"We've had a chat. We agree on some things, we disagree on some things - I think that you can argue it probably both ways.

"I feel like I was ahead into a corner where you can't overtake, I was right behind Lucas literally on Lucas's gearbox.

"I get that he was down the inside a little bit, but I feel like he had the opportunity to back out of it whereas I didn't.

"Anyway, I don't think you can really put blame on anybody, it's just unfortunate."

Be part of the Autosport community

Join the conversation
Previous article BMW loses Diriyah Formula E 1-2 as Guenther penalised for overtake
Next article How Vergne went from "mega harsh" penalty to “miracle” points

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

Sign up for free

  • Get quick access to your favorite articles

  • Manage alerts on breaking news and favorite drivers

  • Make your voice heard with article commenting.

Autosport Plus

Discover premium content
Subscribe