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DS Techeetah

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China DS Techeetah
Founded2013[N 1]
Folded2022
BaseShanghai, China[2]
Former seriesFormula E
Teams'
Championships
FIA Formula E:
2018–19
2019–20
Drivers'
Championships
FIA Formula E:
2017–18: Jean-Éric Vergne
2018–19: Jean-Éric Vergne:
2019–20: António Félix da Costa
Websitehttp://www.dstecheetah.com

DS Techeetah (/təˈitə/, Chinese: DS钛麒; pinyin: DS tài qí) was a Sino-French[3][4][5] motor racing team under ownership of SECA - China Media Capital that competed in the electric racing series, Formula E.[6]

Formula E

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Team Aguri principal Aguri Suzuki announced he would leave the team in April 2016 as senior personnel entered "a period of consultation" over a future change in ownership.[7] In the week before the 2016 London ePrix, the Chinese public equity and venture capital firm China Media Capital announced its purchase of Team Aguri and established a new entity named Techeetah in its place.[8][9] Senior personnel from Team Aguri, including team principal Mark Preston, retained their jobs with Techeetah,[10] and the cars ran a custom Renault powertrain.[11]

2016–17 season

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Jean-Éric Vergne before the start of the 2017 Mexico City ePrix.

The team entered the sport following the acquisition of Team Aguri in 2016.[12] In July 2016, Jean-Éric Vergne and Qinghua Ma (who competed with Team Aguri in the final rounds of the previous season prior to CMC's takeover) were confirmed as the team's drivers.[13] With Renault providing powertrains for Techeetah's debut season, Vergne scored the team's maiden podium with a second place at the Buenos Aires ePrix. In March 2017, Techeetah announced former F1 driver Esteban Gutiérrez would replace Ma from round four onwards.[14] However, after Gutiérrez left the team after only three races after being given an opportunity with Dale Coyne Racing to compete in the IndyCar Series, the team then signed Stéphane Sarrazin to compete with the team for the remainder of the season.[15]

2017–18 season

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Techeetah signed André Lotterer to partner Vergne for its second season in the series.[16] Vergne was supremely consistent over the whole course of the season, finishing on points in every race, accumulating 198 points and winning the Drivers' Championship.[17][18] The team got overtaken by Audi at the last second, missing out on Teams' Championship by only two points.[19]

2018–19 season

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André Lotterer during the 2019 Hong Kong ePrix.

In July 2018, Peugeot Sport with DS Automobiles-rebadged partnered with Techeetah and the team renamed to DS Techeetah.[20] Techeetah switched powertrain from Renault to DS Automobiles powertrain,[21] which also makes Techeetah a manufacturer team with its own DS E-TENSE.[22] In October 2018, DS Techeetah introduced its new headquarters in Versailles. James Rossiter and Zhou Guanyu were announced as the development drivers for Techeetah the 2018/2019 season.[23]

Techeetah's other line-up remained unchanged for the 2018–19 season. After the first race in New York City, Jean-Éric Vergne secured enough points to become the Drivers' Champion, winning his second Formula E championship.[24][25] Techeetah won their first ever team championship in Formula E.[26] Lotterer subsequently left the team, switching to Porsche.[27]

2019–20 season

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In September 2019, it was announced that António Félix da Costa would replace Lotterer in the team (as he had departed for the new Porsche Formula E Team).[28] Vergne was set to continue with the team as he signed a long-term contract back in 2018.[29]

2021-2022

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António Félix da Costa testing his Spark SRT05e in Valencia

In the 2021-2022 season DS Techeetah was registered as a French team, though the ownership were still under SECA and China Media Capital.[citation needed]

Records

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DS Techeetah has earned various record results following the 2019/2020 season.

Team records

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Most pole positions in a row in one season
Driver Race Round
DAC Marrakesh S6RD5
DAC Berlin S6RD6
DAC Berlin S6RD7
JEV Berlin S6RD8
JEV Berlin S6RD9
First team to do two front row lock outs
Season Race Team
S2 Beijing Renault e.DAMS
S2 Punta del Este Dragon Racing
S3 Hong Kong NEXTEV NIO
S5 Paris Nissan e.DAMS
S6 Berlin RD6 DS Techeetah
S6 Berlin RD9 DS Techeetah
  • It's the first time a team get the most points on 5 consecutive races in a single season.
  • It’s the first time that team has led with more than 64 points
  • First team to score a 1-2 finish (Santiago 2018)
  • Second team to score all possible points in one race (Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler did previously in Berlin 2018)
  • Second team to win it twice
  • Second team to win it twice in a row
  • Only team to have two champions
  • First team to score 48pts in a single race
  • 5 poles in a row
  • Only team to have two 1-2 finishes / Santiago 18 (with Renault) and Berlin 20 (with DS)
  • Only team to win both championships twice
  • Only team to win both championships back to back
  • Third team to do 3 consecutive wins for a team/manufacturer (shared with Audi and Renault)
  • Only team to win Drivers and Teams championships before the last race (RD9 out of 11).
  • Team with the largest lead to 2nd in the championship: 77 points

Season six saw the largest end of season gap in both Drivers (71 points) and Teams (77 points).

Driver records

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António Félix da Costa

  • Is the only driver to win a race for three different Formula E teams.
  • Is now the first driver to win the Formula E championship with two races remaining.
  • Is the only driver to have won the championship with two races to go
  • Is the driver with the largest lead to 2nd : 71 points
  • 3rd driver to do a hat-trick (Berlin RD 6 2020) shared with Sébastien Buemi and Daniel Abt
  • 3 consecutive pole positions in a single season
  • 3 consecutive wins (Season 6) shared with Sébastien Buemi
  • First driver to receive an Order of Merit as a result of winning a championship

About Antonio's 2019/2020 Formula E season

Wins: 4 (3 consecutive)

Podiums: 9 (7 consecutive)

Pole positions: 5 (consecutive)

Fastest in qualifying groups: 4

Lap lead: 174

Jean-Éric Vergne

  • First back to back champion
  • Only driver to win the championship twice
  • Was the only driver to have won the championship with one race to go before Jake Dennis achieved the feat in the 2022-23 Formula E season

Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy

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Techeetah became the first Formula E team to join the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy support series, fielding one car for the inaugural 2018–19 season with Stefan Rzadzinski behind the wheel. The team competed under the name TWR Techeetah and was part of the Pro class.[30] The eTrophy entry included an arrangement with Ryan Walkinshaw to return his late father Tom's TWR brand to international motorsport.

2018–19 season

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A plain white livery was used during the first round in Ad Diriyah. Before the second round in Mexico City, a retro Silk Cut-based livery was introduced, which has been in use ever since.[31] Rzadzinski's deal with the team came to end before the Berlin ePrix. Former Panasonic Jaguar Racing driver and 2008–09 A1GP champion Adam Carroll was announced as his replacement.[32] The team, however, completely withdrew from the following round held in New York City.[33]

The team's best result came at the Paris ePrix, where Rzadzinski finished second. For the majority of the season, the TWR Techeetah team was consistently behind the likes of Jaguar Brazil Racing and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, whose drivers were regularly competing for wins. It was also the only team in the Pro class to not win a race during the season.

Results

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Formula E

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2015–16: Team Aguri
Year Chassis Powertrain Tyres No. Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Points T.C.
China Techeetah
2016–17 Spark SRT01-e Renault Z.E. 16 M HKG MRK BUE MEX MCO PAR BER NYC MTL 156 5th
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne Ret 8 2 2 Ret Ret 8 6 2 8 2 1
33 China Ma Qinghua Ret 15 16
Mexico Esteban Gutiérrez 10 8 12
France Stéphane Sarrazin 11 14 3 12 3 8
2017–18 Spark SRT01-e Renault Z.E. 17 M HKG MRK SCL MEX PDE RME PAR BER ZUR NYC 262 2nd
18 Germany André Lotterer DSQ 13 Ret 2 13 12 3 6 9 4 7 9
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne 2 4 5 1 5 1 5 1 3 10 5 1
China DS Techeetah
2018–19 Spark SRT05e DS E-TENSE FE19 M ADR MRK SCL MEX HKG SYX RME PAR MCO BER BRN NYC 222 1st
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne 2 5 Ret 13 13 1 14 6 1 3 1 15 7
36 Germany André Lotterer 5 6 13 5 14 4 2 2 7 Ret 14 17 Ret
2019–20 Spark SRT05e DS E-TENSE FE20 M DIR SCL MEX MRK BER BER BER 244 1st
13 Portugal António Félix da Costa 14 10G 2 2 1 1G 1 4 2 Ret 9
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne Ret 8 Ret 4 3 Ret 10 3G 1G 18 7
2020–21 Spark SRT05e DS E-TENSE FE20
DS E-TENSE FE21
M DIR RME VLC MCO MEX NYC LDN BER 166 3rd
13 Portugal António Félix da Costa 11 3 Ret 7 DSQ 22 1 6 Ret 12 3 8 Ret 7 Ret
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne 15 12 1 11 9 7 4 Ret 8 2 Ret 12 12 6G 11
France DS Techeetah
2021–22 Spark SRT05e DS E-TENSE FE21 M DIR MEX RME MCO BER JAK MRK NYC LON SEO 266 3rd
13 Portugal António Félix da Costa Ret 12 4 6 13 5 8 6 4 2 Ret 1 7 5 9 10
25 France Jean-Éric Vergne 8 6 3 4 2 3 2 9 2 4 18 Ret 14 Ret 6 6
Notes
  • G – Driver was fastest in group qualifying stage and was given one championship point.
  • † – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy

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Year Car Class Tyres No. Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Points D.C.
TWR Techeetah
2018–19 Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY P M ADR MEX HKG SYX RME PAR MCO BER NYC
18 Canada Stefan Rzadzinski 126 Ret Ret 33 55 22 105 WD WD 43 6th
77 United Kingdom Adam Carroll 55 WD WD 6 7th
Notes
  • † – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Techeetah took over Team Aguri prior to the 2016–17 season rather than entering the sport as a new entity.[1]

References

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  1. ^ Klein, Jamie (28 June 2016). "Team Aguri concludes Chinese takeover deal". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  2. ^ "About DS Techeetah". DS Techeetah. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
  3. ^ "OME PREVIEW: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW AS FORMULA E MAKES ROME RETURN FOR ROUNDS 3 AND 4 OF THE SEASON". FIA Formula E. 9 April 2021.[permanent dead link]
  4. ^ "DS Techeetah". FIA Formula E. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  5. ^ Smith, Sam (4 January 2022). "DS TECHEETAH'S FORMULA E FUTURE IN FLUX AS GEN3 DECISION LOOMS". The Race. Archived from the original on 4 February 2022. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  6. ^ "Techeetah: The inside line on Formula E's newest team". 27 July 2016. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  7. ^ Smith, Luke (20 April 2016). "Aguri in takeover talks". Current E. Archived from the original on 22 July 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  8. ^ Klein, Jamie (28 June 2016). "Team Aguri concludes Chinese takeover deal". motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  9. ^ Kane, Mark (7 July 2016). "Formula E Accepts 10 Teams For Third Season 2016–17 And Adds 5 New Cities". Inside EVs. Archived from the original on 12 January 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  10. ^ Waring, Bethonie (27 July 2016). "Experience a focus for new kids on the block Techeetah". e-racing.net. Archived from the original on 1 October 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  11. ^ Mitchell, Scott (24 August 2016). "New Formula E outfit Techeetah to run Renault powertrain". Autosport. Archived from the original on 27 August 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  12. ^ "Formula E Accepts 10 Teams For Third Season 2016-17 And Adds 5 New Cities". 9 July 2016. Archived from the original on 12 January 2017. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  13. ^ "Vergne, Qinghau form Techeetah Formula E line-up". 7 July 2016. Archived from the original on 10 July 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  14. ^ "Gutierrez to Techeetah". 9 March 2017. Archived from the original on 12 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  15. ^ Mitchell, Scott (3 June 2017). "Sarrazin joins Techeetah from Venturi, replaces Gutierrez". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 15 June 2017.
  16. ^ Smith, Sam (26 September 2017). "Lotterer Signs for Techeetah". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  17. ^ Dagys, John (14 July 2018). "Di Grassi Leads Audi 1-2; Vergne Clinches Title in Race 1". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 10 September 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  18. ^ "Jean-Éric Vergne Crowned Formula E Champion in New York City". DS Techeetah. 14 July 2018. Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  19. ^ Dagys, John (15 July 2018). "Vergne Wins Race 2; Audi Claims Teams' Title in New York". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 12 April 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  20. ^ "DS汽车将与钛麒车队合作,征战电动方程式赛事". DS Automobile. 24 July 2018. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
  21. ^ "Vergne, Lotterer to Test DS Performance Gen 2 Car". Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  22. ^ "'Only a good thing' for Techeetah to supply customer team, boss says". autosport. 18 March 2021. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
  23. ^ "DS Techeetah Opens its Doors to New Factory in Versailles and Announces Jean-Éric Vergne and André Lotterer as Drivers". DS Techeetah. 1 October 2018. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
  24. ^ Dagys, John (14 July 2019). "Frijns Wins Race 2; Vergne Crowned Champion in NYC". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 13 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  25. ^ Jerry Perez. "Jean-Eric Vergne Clinches Formula E World Championship in New York City". The Drive. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  26. ^ "Da Costa joins championship-winning team DS Techeetah". Formula E. Archived from the original on 30 October 2020. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  27. ^ Smith, Topher. "Lotterer joins Jani at Porsche for season six". e-racing.net. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
  28. ^ Smith, Sam (17 September 2019). "Da Costa's Move to DS Techeetah Confirmed". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 20 September 2019. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  29. ^ Kalinauckas, Alex (14 December 2018). "Formula E champion Jean-Eric Vergne's Techeetah contract extended". Autosport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  30. ^ Kalinauckas, Alex (14 December 2018). "TWR name revived as Techeetah enters Jaguar I-PACE eTrophy". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2019.
  31. ^ Smith, Sam (11 February 2019). "TWR Techeetah Launches Retro Livery". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 13 February 2019. Retrieved 12 February 2019.
  32. ^ Smith, Sam (23 May 2019). "Carroll to Replace Rzadzinski at TWR Techeetah in Berlin". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 29 May 2019. Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  33. ^ Smith, Sam (12 July 2019). "New York City Friday Notebook". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 13 July 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
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