Buemi leads after first practice in Monaco

Sebastian Buemi got his weekend off to the best possible start, as the Swiss driver set the fastest time in the first practice session in Monaco. He all-electric series returns to the short and narrow streets that have seen some iconic motorsports moments in years gone by.

Buemi's fastest time was a 52.795s, a full four tenths ahead of Renault e.dams teammate Nicolas Prost. Buemi is hoping to re-tighten his prowess at the top of the driver standings after seeing Lucas di Grassi close the gap to just five points in Mexico.

There was trouble near the end of the session when Felix Rosenqvist and Oliver Turvey came to blows at the turn 3 hairpin. Turvey was advancing with caution due to yellow flags, only to have Swede Rosenqvist slam into the back of his NextEv NIO.   

"I was coming up, there was a car slowing down on the inside," Turvey said. "I slowed down for the yellow flag and just got hit from the rear. It was just a complete surprise. A shame to end practice like that."

"I was coming down the straight, just before I hit the brakes I saw the yellow flag," added Rosenqvist. "I think [Turvey] was afraid to overtake the slow car so he basically stopped. I had nowhere to go."

Mahindra and NextEV will have a lot of work on their hands if they wish to get the respected cars out for qualifying, while Jose Maria Lopez is currently being inspected to determine whether or not he is fit to race for the rest of the day after only been cleared for one practice session yesterday.

The aforementioned drivers Rosenqvist and Lopez finished the session fourth and fifth respectively. Lucas di Grassi, who will be hoping to jump ahead of Buemi in the standings in Monaco, could only manage tenth.

Fergal Walsh