Stoffel Vandoorne on clinching long-awaited Tokyo E-Prix Round 8 victory: “I’m just super happy our plan paid off”

Maserati MSG Racing's Stoffel Vandoorne returned to the spotlight after three years by securing victory in the rain-affected Tokyo E-Prix Round 8 this weekend. He completed the Pit Boost at just the right time during an incident-packed race to clinch his first win since the Monaco E-Prix in Season 8, 2022. He comfortably surpassed reigning Formula E champion Oliver Rowland to cross the finish line first. The Belgian driver crossed the finish line to win Maserati MSG Racing’s first race of the season after building a lead of over 30 seconds on Oliver Rowland of Nissan after exiting the Pit Boost pit stops on Nissan’s homeground. The team's plan was to jump for their mandatory Pit Boost stop early by burning through their usable energy quick-fast, hoping for a subsequent stoppage to the race - made more likely in tricky, soaking conditions at Big Sight.Sharing the details of his strategy, Vandoorne said after the win, “Super happy that our plan actually worked! It was a very bold and aggressive strategy decision to burn a lot of energy at the beginning so we could open our pit window early. Then obviously we were the first ones to pit and we got a bit lucky with the red flag, and the field got bunched up again. After the restart, it was very difficult to bring the car home - a lot of management to do, giving comms to the team and making sure I had enough energy to make it to the flag.”“I knew exactly what was going on, I knew that I would inherit the lead at some point and I just had to bring it home. I was probably a little bit too safe at some points, and made a couple of mistakes that shouldn’t have happened. In the end we brought it home and I’m just super happy our plan paid off,” he added. Also Read: Tokyo E-Prix Round 8 results: Stoffel Vandoorne clinches long-awaited win in wet conditions; Oliver Rowland finishes secondSharing pictures of the winning moment, Vandoorne wrote on Instagram, “VICTORY in Tokyo!! We ran an aggressive strategy to offset ourselves to the others and today it paid off! Great teamwork to bring this one home.”