Alexander Sims has said that he didn’t expect to be so competitive in Diriyah after wining his maiden Formula E race in the second race of the weekend.

Sims was in strong from over both Friday and Saturday, securing pole position in qualifying for both races, before winning Saturday’s eventful race, 2.8s ahead of the Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler of Lucas Di Grassi.

Although Sims was confident his BMW i Andretti Motorsport car had strong pace, he didn’t expect to be so competitive this early in the season.

“The feeling I had as I crossed the finish line was indescribable. It was a fantastic day.” commented Sims after Saturday’s race.

“We had a smooth race today, and the BMW iFE.20 felt really great.

“Many thanks to the team, who were with me through the difficult times last season.

“After the tests we knew that we had a strong car, but we never expected things to go as well here in Diriyah as they have.”

BMW Group Motorsport Director, Jens Marquardt echoed Sims’ comments, stating he knew his team would be competitive and that he was “proud” of their performance, despite missing out on a one-two after Sims’ team-mate Max Gunther was given a 24 second penalty for overtaking under the safety car, demoting Gunther to 13th.

“After the pole position on Saturday, we knew that our BMW iFE.20 and our drivers were definitely competitive at the start of Season 6 but we had no idea that another pole position and our second win in Formula E would follow.” added Marquardt

“Congratulations to Alexander and everyone at BMW i Andretti Motorsport and BMW i, in the drivetrain department, and at BMW Motorsport in Munich – a great team effort.

“Congratulations to Maximilian as well, who can be proud of his performance, despite the penalty. He drove a perfect race, but then overtook slightly too early.

“After our experience from last season, we know that it’s now all about confirming our performance in the coming races.”