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Erstwhile Formula E title contender Mitch Evans has called for the championship to impose sterner penalties for late defensive moves in braking areas.
The Race understands the topic has been a major focus for race director Scot Elkins at drivers’ briefings during the season finale week at Berlin Tempelhof, and has led to several drivers receiving standards warnings.
“It’s going to become worse and worse in the next two races” :: Mitch Evans
Nyck de Vries and Alex Lynn received the warning in races two and three respectively, while on Sunday Rene Rast was issued with one for causing Jaguar driver Evans to take avoiding action.
But Evans thinks Formula E should consider stronger penalties for late moves while in the braking phase.
“I would say some of the moves I’ve seen recently have been pretty much the limit and it needs to be controlled and maybe harsher penalties need to be applied,” he told The Race.
“It’s going to become worse and worse in the next two races, because we’re starting to really fight out for the final positions of the championship.
“Let’s hope we can get it under control.”
Formula E works to the same rules as many professional circuit championships under which more than one change of direction to defend a position is not permitted.
The FIA Formula E sporting regulations also dictate under article 20.4 that ‘any driver moving back towards the racing line, having earlier defended his position off-line, should leave at least one car width between his own car and the edge of the track on the approach to the corner’.
Regarding the defensive moves he had experienced, Evans said he was “completely against it, I just don’t really agree with it”.
“It’s not how I was brought up in racing to defend that aggressively,” he said.
“Look, I’m all about hard racing, but there is a limit as well.
“I think some of the defensive moves are very reactive to what guys are doing behind in the coasting phases, and it’s just too aggressive.
“I was caught up a bit with it with Rast and it’s just a little bit unnecessary sometimes because not only does it sort of hurt you, it hurts them as well in terms of energy consumption.
“Those are the frustrating ones.”
Evans started the Tempelhof week as eventual champion Antonio Felix da Costa’s main title rival, just 11 points behind the DS Techeetah driver.
But as Jaguar struggled and Techeetah dominated, Evans has now fallen back to sixth in the standings – 91 points behind da Costa – having not finished above seventh in Berlin yet.
