Maserati MSG Racing’s Maximilian Günther has spoken to Motorsport Week ahead of the final weekend of the FIA Formula E season in London.
The German has seen much improvement from his Maserati team in Season 9, and whilst his win tally matches that of last year, Günther’s omnipresence in the points positions sees him currently in eighth spot in the Drivers’ standings.
When asked to sum-up is season, Günther, despite acknowledging the disappointing results along the way, has a glass-half-full approach.
“Yeah, I think obviously the first half of the season has been extremely strong; we had great weekends, lots of points scoring weekends,” he said.
“Obviously Tokyo has been the highlight with the win; the podium in Misano and lots of positives. Last few races, we scored points but not as many as we wanted to on the weekend, so I would say, yeah, good season. You always aim for more, for sure, and I think especially after the strong start we had, you always aim for more, but it’s where we have to see the competition we have.
“You’ve got Jaguar and Porsche who are doing a fantastic job this year, and that’s why they deserve to fight for the championship here in London.
“I think on our side, the last few weekends, on the performance side, we were not where we wanted to be for different reasons, but this is part of racing, you know, it’s such a tight competition that you just always have to keep going and maximise all your opportunities, and I really feel like it has been a good and consistent season.
“You can’t always be on top but I look really forward to giving my very best again in London and try to finish on a high this season.”
Looking ahead to this weekend’s curtain-closer at the ExCel Centre, Günther said that he and the Maserati team have been working hard to find a good result, particularly given the strengths the car has shown already on the streets this season.
“Yeah, it’s actually funny because last year, the first year of GEN3 for us, the permanent racetracks have been the strong ones and we struggled on the street circuits.
“We made quite a few changes in the off-season to make our package more complete, but actually, if you review this year, we’ve been very strong on the street circuits and maybe a bit less on the permanent ones, so yeah, I really look forward to London, I hope we can have a good weekend. I’m feeling good in the car, I have a clear idea of what we want to achieve here, how to put the car in a sweet spot. I’m ready for it.
“As I said, we ticked all the boxes in our preparation for this weekend, we constantly try to improve. I think we’ve got a good understanding of our package and how we need to adapt it to this track here.
“It’s very much going to be a qualifying track, so it’s a big focus for this weekend.”
Günther will naturally have hoped to have been within the shot of the title, which looked likely at the midway point, but when asked if the hectic nature of the title-deciding races in London and the potential team games that will be at play, is he happy to avoid the hustle and bustle knowing he cannot win the championship?
“Well, at the end, it’s always good when you’re in the spotlight because it means you’re doing well!
“No, to be fair, for me, the approach and everything surrounding the weekend doesn’t change. There’s obviously sometimes more, sometimes less noise around you, it’s natural, that’s our business, that’s our sport, but at the end, the job you do has always to be the same, and this is my approach about it.”
Formula E looks set for its biggest season yet next time around, with Season 11 boasting 17 races across 11 weekends, and Günther seems optimistic about the changes, the new circuits and the growth of FE as a result.
“Yeah, I think, first of all, on the calendar, as you mentioned, we’ve got great locations.
“I really look forward to Miami, which is going to be one big highlight of the year, but it’s great going back to Tokyo, to Shanghai, places I really enjoyed being this year.
“I think we’ve got a great car, it looks cool with the new bodywork. Four-wheel drive is something I hugely enjoy already when testing the new car for next year.
“It’s going to be even more complex with strategy, fast-charging pitstops, as I said, four-wheel drive in both qualifying and in the Attack Mode. New tyres, so a lot of things to get on top of, and, as a championship, absolutely, I think we’re going in a good direction.
“Our level is so incredibly high in general. I’ve got full trust in Formula E, in the leadership on all sides, on the media side, on all sides to keep pushing the boundaries.”
