”Yes, I was starting to miss it. The last cup was in Seoul in August 2022 at the time of my title with Mercedes. It always feels good. This is a first with my new employer Mercedes.”
Have you even been in the lead and dreamed of a new success in the Principality after that of 2022?
”Yes, it's a bit frustrating to finish third when we were leading the race. But the strategy was not perfect. I was made to take my 2nd attack mode too soon. The two Jaguars passed and then played the team game, each time leaving a gap between them to be able to take their fashion attack without losing place. It was fucked up for me.”
The DS still consumes too much energy compared to Jaguars or Porsches. We still have to work on this.
We have already seen you do good qualifying this season, but you often fall back in the race. For what ?
”Quite simply because we are not the best in terms of Power Train, the electric motor. We consume more energy than Jaguar and Porsche. We're not the most efficient. We still have work to do. But we are making progress. We are on the right path. I hope that from now on we will be able to play more and more often in front, the podium or even a first victory with DS. This is my objective for the end of the season because I am no longer thinking about the championship where I am in 9th place, very far from the leaders.”
Where are you in terms of your contract with DS Penske?
”My lease expires at the end of this season. The intention is to renew it, although it becomes more and more complicated to combine with the World Endurance Championship because this year, for the first time, there is a competition of dates, in two weeks between Spa and Berlin. This is regrettable and if it happens again we may have to choose. We don’t know the timetables yet, so we have to wait.”
A driver will always want to give priority to the championship in which he is best classified…
”Correct, or at least the championship in which the package is most competitive. Today it’s Formula E as far as I’m concerned.”
So you think you have a better chance of getting on the podium in Berlin than if you had driven the 9×8 Hypercar at Spa on May 11?
”Clearly, yes.”
