Formula E London: Piquet Jr. clinches inaugural drivers title

Nelson Piquet won the inaugural FIA Formula E Championship's drivers title, having finished seventh at the season finale in London on Sunday.

Virgin Racing's Sam Bird won the second of two races at the season finale after Stephane Sarrazin was penalized 49 seconds for exceeding his energy allocation, which dropped the Frenchman from first to 15th in the race classification, allowing those behind him to move up a place.

A wet/dry four-part qualifying session meant a topsy turvy grid for the race, with championship contenders Nelson Piquet Jr and Lucas di Grassi starting well outside the top 10, and Buemi only sixth on the starting grid.

But a clever strategy by Piquet - and one aided by mid-race safety car - played into the hands of the Brazilian, allowing him to fight through the pack and take seventh at the chequered flag, enough to seal the title over Sebastien Buemi by a solitary point.

Buemi, in turn, arrived into Sunday’s race as the favourite to win the Formula E title - despite the five point deficit to Piquet - having dominated yesterday’s race from start to finish. But a spin after the mandatory pit stop ruined his chances and allowed Mahindra’s Bruno Senna to move up to fifth place.

The Swiss driver frantically tried to regain position - making light contact at multiple occasions - but was never able to make a move in the tight and twisty streets of London’s Battersea Park.

As a result, all drivers moved up one place up the final classifications, with Berlin winner Jerome D’Ambrosio and Loic Duval taking the remaining two spots on the podium. The double podium finish promoted Dragon Racing to second in the teams standings, ahead of Audi-backed ABT squad.

Senna secures best result for Mahindra

Amid the heat of the title showdown, Bruno Senna secured Mahindra’s best result of the season in form of a fourth place finish, elevating the Indian team to eighth in the standings. The Brazilian driver came under severe pressure from Buemi in the closing stages of the race, but was able to hold his position.

Karun Chandhok, meanwhile, rocketed from 19th on the grid to 14th by end of the first lap but failed to break into the the top ten.

Formula E London ePrix - Race two results (Top 10)

1. Sam Bird (Virgin Racing) 29 laps
2. Jerome D’Ambrosio (Dragon Racing) +6.793
3. Loic Duval (Dragon Racing) +9.430
4. Bruno Senna (Mahindra) +10.147
5. Sebastien Buemi (e.Dams Renault) +10.689
6. Lucas di Grassi (Audi Sport ABT) +11.204
7. Nelson Piquet Jr (Team China Racing) +11.561
8. Salvador Duran (Amlin Aguri) +12.402
9. Oliver Turvey (Team China Racing) +14.142
10. Nicolas Prost (e.Dams Renault) +14.535