"We have to take greater risks" - Lucas di Grassi explains bizarre Formula E accident in Monaco

Lola Yamaha ABT was the only team not to score a single point in the double-header in Monaco. In addition to a lack of speed, Lucas di Grassi also crashed on Sunday - an unnecessary mistake caused by desperation. The disappointment of the former ABT team is huge, especially for the Brazilian, who had surprisingly celebrated his first podium with Lola Yamaha in Miami.

The dilemma began in free practice already. Neither of the two Lola drivers finished even one of the three practice sessions in the top 10. The best the team managed was their performance in the rain qualifying on Sunday. However, a ninth and an eleventh place are no reason to celebrate according to di Grassi: "We were in the middle of nowhere here, ever since free practice. Only in the rain were we not so slow, but at least mediocre", says the Formula E veteran to e-Formula.news.

Lucas di Grassi takes too much risk

The starting phase of Sunday's race did not go badly. Di Grassi was able to make up a few places. On the first lap, he made important overtaking manoeuvres on the inside of the hairpin. In this promising position, Attack Mode became important for di Grassi: "We lack the pace, so we have to take greater risks. In Attack Mode, I wanted to make up as much ground as possible on the leaders because I knew we didn't have a good car."

In order to make up for the poor performance of his car, the former champion took the aforementioned big risk. He was determined to get past Jake Dennis in the corners before the approach to the tunnel. He overconfidently shot alongside the Andretti and straight into the barrier. What he expected from the car was simply not there, he had to admit to himself: "I took too much risk between turn 7 and turn 8. I locked my brakes and went straight into the wall. It was my own mistake."

The moment di Grassi's race came to an end. pic.twitter.com/wZLwiF3JRK

- Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) May 4, 2025

Under normal circumstances, the race could nevertheless have continued for di Grassi. However, the technology on the car prevented this: "Actually, I only had wing damage, so I could have come back into the pit lane", he explains. "However, the car switched off, we have to investigate that." So di Grassi had to get out of his Lola Yamaha ABT that was pushed off the track. Maloney also failed to score any points in the race after qualifying well.

"Learned this weekend that we have no pace"

So, it was another race weekend without points on the newly merged team's tally. So far, Lola only scored points in Miami with di Grassi's second place. He draws a frustrated lesson from the performance in Monaco: "I learnt this weekend that we have no pace. We still have a lot to improve."

In two weeks in Tokyo, more than half of the races in season 11 will already be completed. Di Grassi appeals to his team: "We will be in the points again this season, but not regularly if we don't improve." At the moment, the battle for the penultimate teams' standings position is tight, but while Cupra Kiro is improving noticeably, Lola Yamaha ABT is stagnating apart from the podium in Miami.

The team's next chance to score points will be in Japan at the home race for powertrain manufacturer Yamaha: A double-header will take place in Tokyo on 17 and 18 May.