On the high seas. For three days (24, 25 and 27 October), the 11 participating teams will be able to observe each other and evaluate the work each of them has done during the off-season.
The driver market has been quite active, but DS Penske is one of the teams that has managed to keep the line-up unchanged. And what a lineup!
On the one hand Jean-Éric Vergne, historic protagonist of the series and the only driver to have won the championship twice in nine seasons (2018 and 2019), and on the other Stoffel Vandoorne, world champion in 2022 (with Mercedes) before joining to DS Automobiles in its electric adventure.
This year’s testing days in Valencia will also be an opportunity for DS Penske to put its new reserve driver, Robert Shwartzman, to the test.
The twenty-four-year-old Russian-Israeli, reserve driver for Scuderia Ferrari for the 2023 Formula 1 season, will once again get behind the wheel of the DS E-TENSE FE 23, after finishing fifth in the rookie test in Berlin last April.
“I am happy to have the opportunity to drive for DS Penske again,” said Shwartzman.
“I like the team, where everyone is friendly and welcoming. My first contact with Formula E was really special in Berlin, where I felt at ease throughout the day. I’m very curious and can’t wait to get back behind the wheel here in Valencia”.
Photo by: Mattia Negrini / DPPI
DS Automobiles DS E-TENSE FE 23
Performances to be confirmed
Since the end of the ninth season, last July, all the teams have worked tirelessly to improve the new Gen 3, the electric single-seaters introduced at the beginning of the ninth season.
The performance gap lies mainly in the electronic and IT management of the car, which was put to the test during the various test sessions held in recent months.
These were moments of intense work, which led to a series of changes, the effectiveness of which will be known better at the end of the week.
“For the moment I don’t know exactly what all the changes we have put in place will bring,” Vergne said.
“The big unknown is also the level of performance achieved by other teams in recent months, and how we will compare with them.”
The various tests on the Valencia circuit will provide the beginnings of an answer, but will not allow us to establish a clear hierarchy, since the Iberian track does not correspond to the standards of a city E-Prix.
What is certain is that season 10 – the ninth for DS Automobiles – will be hard-fought and challenging, with the third generation electric single-seaters in full form.
#Penske #ready #prepared #Season