Abt Motorsport has roped in Kelvin van der Linde for the Berlin Formula E weekend as a replacement to WEC-bound Nico Mueller.
Kelvin van der Linde makes his comeback in Formula E: At the home race of the ABT CUPRA team in Berlin (11 and 12 May) the South African-born driver will replace regular driver Nico Müller, who will compete in the WEC on the same weekend, for two races. Van der Linde competed in three Formula E races at the beginning of last season and made a strong impression; this year, he is again part of the team as a reserve and simulator driver and is involved in all preparations.
“Nico is in extremely strong form at the moment, so of course it hurts a bit to be without him for two races. However, we don’t want to put any obstacles in the way of his parallel commitment to the WEC and have therefore given him the official go-ahead,” says ABT CEO and Team Principal Thomas Biermaier. “With Kelvin we are in the fortunate position of having a driver who is familiar with Formula E, our team and the current generation of the racecar and who has already completed three races for us – we are all looking forward to another weekend together.”
After Kelvin van der Linde’s appearance in the ABT Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 on the Nordschleife of the Nürburgring last weekend, he will contest two weekends in the DTM before the Formula E event in Berlin. This means that within a month he will be competing in all three motorsport categories in which ABT Sportsline is involved.
“I am really looking forward to my comeback in Formula E, especially to the many fans and the special location in Berlin,” says van der Linde. “I’ve already spent many hours in the simulator with the team and been to the Formula E events, but of course it’s something completely different to drive myself.
“My goal is to play my part in the team’s upward trend. And maybe we’ll even pull off a little surprise.” He is relaxed about switching from one cockpit to another: “It’s exciting few weeks with commitments in a variety of cars and championships – but that’s exactly how I want it to be as a racer.”
Formula E has been coming to Berlin every year since its inception in 2014, and has not held more races in any other city. So far, ABT has achieved ten podium finishes and three victories in the German capital. Kelvin van der Linde will take over Nico Müller’s number 51 car and drive alongside Lucas di Grassi in both the Saturday and Sunday races.
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[Note: The story is as per press release]