Di Grassi slams ‘stupid’ brake rule

Lucas di Grassi has called for the “very stupid” rule he broke in qualifying for FIA Formula E’s race in Santiago to be immediately revised.

The Audi driver originally claimed pole position for Saturday’s race by 0.526 seconds ahead of Nissan e.dams driver Sebastien Buemi, but was excluded and sent to the back of the grid for violating Article 27.9 offe’s sporting regulations.

This relates to an amendment filed by FE chassis supplier Spark ahead of the race in Santiago regarding brake usage on in-laps during qualifying.

Audi and di Grassi explained that the update requires all drivers to brake in exactly the same way on their in-laps as they do on their flying laps.

It has been introduced on safety grounds to avoid damage to the brakes.

“There are a lot of stupid rules [in motorsport], but this one is a very stupid one,” he said.

“I don’t know if it’s the most [stupid] one, but I think this rule should be revised immediately for the next race.

“Basically I got disqualified by not using my brake pedal in the right way on my in-lap during qualifying.

“I never saw a rule like that – for me it is a completely stupid rule.”

He started the race 22nd and was eventually classified 12th after he received a 34-second post-race penalty for contact.