Ahead of the season finale in New York, Jean-Eric Vergne insists that his “approach remains the same” in New York, as he battles with Sam Bird to become Formula E’s new champion.

The Frenchman has a 23 point lead in the championship and only has to beat Sam Bird by six points in the race to become champion if Bird takes pole position and the fastest lap.

If Bird fails to take pole position and the fastest lap in Saturday’s race, then Vergne only needs to score two more points than Bird to claim the title with a race to spare.

“Our approach remains the same as it has always been,” stated Vergne. “You don’t change a winning concept at this stage of the season. We head to New York with a positive frame of mind, we’re as prepared as we can be and now we’re ready to give it all we’ve got to bring home both titles.

“We have an incredible team and each and every team member should be proud of what we have achieved. No matter how this weekend goes, we have shown that a customer team can take on the manufacturers and be successful,” added Vergne.

Team Principal Mark Preston is confident that Techeetah will remain competitive at New York despite the minor track changes. Last season the Chinese team finished second and third on the Sunday race.

“The track layout in New York is slightly different from last year,” said Preston. “There are four additional slow-speed corners, which will make for interesting racing. We were very competitive in New York last year and have made some good progress since, so we’re expecting to be competitive and be able to bring it all.

“As we all know, anything can happen in Formula E. The tiniest little bit of bad luck or mistake and you’re finished, but we are as prepared as we can possibly be. Now, we just have to avoid unnecessary mistakes,” added Preston.