Pepe Marti secures another podium finish amid Formula E chaos in Sanya: "Andretti played right into our hands"

Formula E rookie Pepe Marti once again achieved the unbelievable amidst the chaos at Sanya, finishing on the podium yet again despite starting from 18th on the grid. This was despite a repair during the race interruption, which meant he had to start from the back of the grid once again. The reason for the repair to his car was a collision with his team-mate Dan Ticktum. After the race, he was understandably delighted and praised his team for their strategy.

The eleventh race of the current Formula E season in Sanya had plenty to offer: one incident followed another. Virtually all the drivers are likely to have been involved in at least one collision during the turbulent race. This fate also befell Pepe Marti, who was rear-ended by his team-mate Dan Ticktum.

Marti stages a comeback after race interruption

During the race interruption, triggered by a collision between Mitch Evans and Zane Maloney which even briefly blocked the track, the Spaniard’s Cupra Kiro had to be repaired to make matters worse. This meant he was relegated to the back of the field once again, having already started the race from 18th place.

When the race resumed, the young rookie kept his cool from 19th place and, with a strong final sprint using his Attack Mode, fought his way up to third place. "Andretti played right into our hands with their strategy," he said in a post-race interview. "I was able to build up an energy advantage over the top 10. After the restart, I went all out on the attack in the final laps."

"We also made the right decision with Attack Mode," he continued. "We discussed over the radio when the right time was to use it, until I decided to go for it. If we'd activated it a lap later, I probably wouldn’t be standing here now."

The drivers won't have much time to recover from the chaos in Sanya. The next double-header is already coming up on 4 and 5 July. The next stop in Season 12 is the Shanghai International Circuit.