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Nyck de Vries wins Formula E drivers’ championship

Nyck de Vries finished seven points clear of his nearest rivals to win his first Formula E championship
Nyck de Vries finished seven points clear of his nearest rivals to win his first Formula E championship

Mercedes-EQ driver Nyck de Vries won his maiden Formula E world championship on Sunday after finishing eighth in the final race in Berlin.

De Vries benefited from three of his rivals failing to finish: Jaguar driver Mitch Evans experienced a technical failure on the grid, Rokit Venturi’s Edoardo crashed into him and later British driver Jake Dennis crashed out.

The Dutchman avoided the chaos to secure the title – also Mercedes-EQ’s first – in his second season in Formula E.

“I think we drove an incredible race,” said De Vries, who won races in Diriyah and Valencia earlier this year.

“It’s been such a tough season with highs and lows. Everything came down to the last race. We had a lot of fortune on our side today with everything that happened.

“I think we drove an incredible race, we had really good pace in the car, but at the same time, I felt like a target as well, it seemed like nobody was really respecting anything.”

Rokit Venturi’s Norman Nato took his first E-Prix victory, with British Nissan e.dams driver Oliver Rowland second and Mercedes-EQ’s Stoffel Vandoorne third.

De Vries finished on 99 points to beat Mortara (92), Dennis (91) and Evans (90).

The 2020-21 Formula E season was the electric racing series’ first as a full FIA world championship.