De Vries dominates Sunday Berlin E-Prix round

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Reigning Formula E champion Nyck de Vries won Sunday's round of electric racing at Berlin's reverse Tempelhof Airport Circuit.

The Mercedes EQ charger headed home Saturday's E-Prix winner Edoardo Mortara by 2.5s while teammate Stoffel Vandoorne finished third, claiming his third podium in succession.

From third on the grid, behind Venturi's Mortara and Envision Racing's Frijns, de Vries enjoyed the perfect getaway when the light went out, overhauling both front-row drivers into Turn 1.

In the warmer and less windy conditions compared to Saturday, the action in the opening laps was less frantic than the day before, although championship contender dropped from P8 to P10 as Mitch Evans and Oliver Roland gained an upper hand of the Frenchman.

De Vries was among the first runners to undertake the mandatory single Attack Mode, the Dutchman only briefly abandoning a lead that he would recoup from Mortara.

Antonio Felix da Costa took over the runner-up spot behind de Vries, the pair leading Mortara, Porsche's Andre Lotterer and a fast-moving Vandoorne.

On lap 17, the Belgian passed Lotterer for a provisional spot on the podium but Vandoorne's position was short lived as Mortara and teammate Lucas di Grassi made good use of their Attack Mode boost.

The Venturi pair then made minced meat of da Costa to take second and third, with Robin Frijns following suit while de Vries managed his advantage up ahead.

A timely Fan Boost allowed da Costa to repass Frijns at the hairpin, a move emulated by Vandoorne who then caught and passed the Portuguese on lap 26, making it four Mercedes powertrains in a row.

In the closing minutes of the race, an energy-low di Grassi succumbed to Vandoorne. But up front, de Vries kept Mortara at bay to claim a comfortable win.

"We've had a bit of a difficult ride the past three races," said de Vries. "So, honestly I'm just very pleased to be here and to be back.

"Obviously it's a bit of an emotional one for me. It was the perfect way to come back after a difficult day yesterday and the work put in with my engineers to find positives.

"Edo (Mortara) has been very strong all weekend so we definitely had to keep it clean, but the team managed very well on their side and I executed it, so I'm very pleased."

Vandoorne's final podium spot kept the Mercedes EQ driver ahaed in FE's Drivers' standings, with a 12-point buffer over Mortara and 16 points over Vergne.

In the Team's championship, Mercedes' double top-three result equated to 40 points that extended the outfit's lead to 28 points over Venturi Racing.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.