Following the New York ePrix two weeks ago, the Formula E grid heads to Montreal this weekend for what will be the conclusion of a thrilling season of racing. This weekend’s Montreal ePrix marks the third double header of the 2016-17 Season, meaning that there are 58 points still available. Because of the huge amount of points still on offer this weekend, four drivers remain in contention for the title. These drivers are Sebastien Buemi, Lucas di Grassi, Felix Rosenqvist, and Sam Bird, with 57 points separating the top four in the championship.
Buemi vs Di Grassi vs Rosenqvist vs Bird: How the Formula E Season 3 title can be won
How Sam Bird can win:
Of these four drivers, Sam Bird is the furthest adrift from Buemi who currently leads the championship. If Bird wants to win the championship, everything will have to swing into his favour. Not only does the Brit need to win on Saturday and Sunday, but also has to claim pole position in both qualifying sessions and set the fastest lap in both races. On top of this, Buemi will have to fail to secure a single point this weekend. With all of this against Bird, it looks very unlikely that the Briton will stand a chance of taking the championship this weekend, despite coming off a strong showing of performance in New York.
How Felix Rosenqvist can win:
Like Bird, a championship win for Felix Rosenqvist is also unlikely. Despite having a four point lead over Bird, Rosenqvist will still need to win both races this weekend from pole – a mighty task bearing in mind that only two drivers have been able to win both events in a double header weekend since the series started in 2014. Rosenqvist will also only stand a chance if Buemi fails to score a single point this weekend which is unlikely when looking back at the driver’s impressive set of results so far this season.
How Lucas di Grassi can win:
Unlike Bird and Rosenqvist, Lucas di Grassi is much closer to Buemi than any other driver on the grid, with only ten points separating the pair. If he wants to win the championship, di Grassi will have to out score Buemi by 11 points, and with 58 points on offer, this is very doable.
Buemi has been on a fantastic run this season however, and has averaged at 19.6 points per a race. If this is anything to go by, a win and another podium for di Grassi would not be enough to snatch the title from Buemi’s current grip. Also, if Buemi did win one of the races this weekend, di Grassi would have to finish inside the top five to keep his championship hopes alive.
How Sebastien Buemi can win:
Of these four drivers, Sebastien Buemi is in the best position to secure the championship title, holding a ten point lead over his nearest challenger going into this weekend. There are a number of different scenarios that would see Buemi claim a second Formula E title, the most simple of which would be to finish ahead of di Grassi in both races. Alternatively, Buemi could afford to finish behind di Grassi in both races, providing that he is directly behind.
If di Grassi is to beat Buemi outright, he will have to score 47 points in total in Montreal. This means that he will need to win one of the races, secure pole position once, finish in second place in the other race, and set a fastest lap. The chances of this happening are very slim, bearing in mind that no driver that has finished inside the top ten has set the fastest lap this season.
Regardless of what happens this weekend, the finale of the 2016-17 Season of Formula E is set to be another battle to the very end. As the past two seasons have shown, the championship is not over until everyone has crossed the line, and the championship winner of this season is far from decided.
