CUPRA KIRO shows promise in incident-filled Monaco E-Prix
CUPRA KIRO experienced a challenging afternoon in Monaco, navigating an incident-filled damp weather race on the streets of the Principality
CUPRA KIRO experienced a challenging yet promising damp second race in the double-header Monaco E-Prix, missing out on the top 10 following an incident-filled afternoon.
The American team carried its form from Saturday into Sunday to advance to the Qualifying duels with Dan Ticktum starting from seventh and David Beckmann lining up 18th.
After making a good start to move up to 15th, David picked up a puncture after being rear-ended by Jake Hughes on lap five and finished 19th.
Dan ran consistently inside the top 10 and briefly inside the top five but finished 15th with the fastest lap after tapping the barriers on lap 10 when defending from Nick Cassidy.
Quotes at a Glance
Alex Hui: “This has been our most competitive weekend of the season by far. That makes it all the more frustrating to fail to live up to our potential.”
Dan Ticktum: “We had a lot of pace this weekend but I just wasn’t rewarded in the races.”
David Beckmann: “I just need to pray that no one else crashes into me.”
Russell O'Hagan: "Our time will come."
Alex Hui, Team Principal, CUPRA KIRO
“Today has been very challenging. At the start of the day, Dan lost around one-quarter of FP3 due to a sensor issue on the car which compromised our preparation. Despite that, he did well to make it into the duels in some very tricky conditions in Qualifying. Unfortunately, we had an issue arming the 350kW mode in the Quarter-Finals which meant that he started from seventh. Both drivers got off the line well and made up ground, but before our race had really begun, it was effectively over, with David picking up a puncture and Dan running off and tapping the barriers after light contact with Cassidy. Ultimately, we’re leaving Monaco disappointed. From a pace perspective, this has been our most competitive weekend of the season by far. That makes it all the more frustrating to fail to live up to our potential. Knowing that we were strong here has given us a big source of confidence heading to Tokyo, which is another street circuit. We need to regroup from today, stay focused, and come back even stronger.”
Dan Ticktum, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“The plan at the start of the race was to go forward, be aggressive, and take Attack Mode early but I was caught up in a racing incident with [Nick] Cassidy. He hit me which caused me to lock up, I went off the track and that was the race done, really. We had a lot of pace this weekend, both in the wet and in the dry, but I just wasn’t rewarded in the races. I can’t seem to catch a break. I’m looking forward to Tokyo where things will hopefully get better.”
David Beckmann, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“It was a difficult race today. I started from 18th after a tough Qualifying, but without the Red Flag, I feel like we could have started higher because with each lap, I was getting a better feel for the car in the rain. The team pulled together a good strategy to fight forward with Attack Mode at the start of the race. I had a lot of my first Attack Mode left, but another driver locked up into Turn 1 and hit my left-rear which gave me a puncture. In both races this weekend, I was taken out and was very unlucky but without that, we could have been in the points. I’m looking forward to the next races in Tokyo, and now, I just need to pray that no one else crashes into me.”
Russell O’Hagan, Chief Operating Officer, CUPRA KIRO
“We had a very frustrating race today and ultimately, a weekend of two halves that left us with less than we deserved for our performance. We’ve had a real mix of some highs and lows across the two days, all of which provide us with feedback and lessons on how we can improve in the future. The team deserves a big thank you for their ongoing efforts because we are on a good path. I know that our time will come.”
