Oliver Rowland has revealed that it was his "gut feeling" to go with a dry set-up for the second race of Formula E's Shanghai double-header, but he ultimately decided against it.
The reigning world champion endured a disappointing Shanghai E-Prix, with Nissan performing strongly in some sessions but struggling in others across a weekend featuring a variety of weather conditions.
In the opening race, Rowland started and finished 13th, while he excelled in the wet to qualify fourth for the second race. Unfortunately, he dropped to eighth in the race.
Like new championship leader Pascal Wehrlein, Rowland opted for a wet set-up, which cost him dearly in the closing stages when a dry line appeared.
The dry line allowed several drivers who started near the back and gambled on a dry set-up to charge through the field, including Lucas di Grassi, Jean-Eric Vergne and Joel Eriksson, who claimed podium finishes.
"FP2 was good, qualifying was bad, the race on Saturday in the dry was good, and then we were bad in the rain," Rowland told RacingNews365.
"Sunday morning we were probably better than expected in the wet, which was a good job by the team. Then we went with a full wet set-up for the race, but it just didn't work, and other people took a punt.
"I also think people were over-consuming a little bit, and they would've been in trouble if the full-course yellow hadn't come. But we managed to, I guess, salvage four points, which is better than nothing."
Shanghai saw Rowland slip to third in the standings, leaving him 27 points adrift of Wehrlein. However, had it not been for one decision, it could have been very different.
Rowland felt that a dry set-up was the way to go on Sunday but decided against it. Had he gone for it, victory would have been almost guaranteed.
Asked if he considered a dry set-up, Rowland revealed: "It was my gut feeling because I knew the quantity of rain, and I should have followed it up, to be honest. But it's easy to say in hindsight."
Get the latest F1 news from RacingNews365 directly in your Google feed! Click on the link below and you’ll see your favourite F1 website appearing even more often. That way, you’ll never miss any news, analyses, interviews, or exclusives.
Follow RacingNews365 on GoogleMost read
In this article
Never miss a thing from the Formula 1 season! Add the 2026 F1 schedule to your calendar at the touch of a button. Subscribe below and put the dates and times of every race directly on your PC or smartphone, so you don't miss a second from the new season.
Download the F1 calendar Download the F1 calendar
A variant with just the race and qualifying is also available.
Click here to download it..
Join the conversation!