Formula E London: Sam Bird targets home success once again as series poised for gripping finale

Bird hopes to back up last season's victory on the streets of Battersea Park in order to secure third place in the championship

Sam Bird is hoping to add to last season's London ePrix victory (Formula E)

Formula E returns to the streets of Battersea Park this weekend as the London ePrix brings the curtain down on the second season of the all-electric series, with a two-race shootout between Sebastien Buemi and Lucas do Grassi set to decide the drivers' championship.

With just a point between the pair, who recently went to battle atLe Mans in the Toyota and Audi respectively, and 60 points up for grabs in the weekend double-header, the title battle is set to go down to the wire.

While Buemi started the season in formidable form, taking two of the first three race wins, Di Grassi has clawed his way back into the fight and had he not been disqualified for a technical infringement in Mexico, would be clear in the championship standings.

In third place sits Sam Bird, the man who won here in London last season and hopes to do so once again to consolidate his top-three finish. Although Bird has a mathematical chance of winning the title, his chances are slim to none. Bird needs both Buemi and Di Grassi to fail to score any points across the weekend, something which the DS Virgin Racing driver doesn't expect to happen, and instead he hopes to see a thrilling battle unfold between the pair - albeit behind him.

"It’s so hard to say. I think on paper Seb’s maybe got the better car, but Lucas has been having a stronger season, Bird tells The Independent. "He’s made less mistakes than Sebastien and he’s been extremely strong. He’d be clear out in front had he not been disqualified from Mexico so to be honest it can come down to a mistake on the day, like last year with Sebastien spinning when he came out of the pits. I really don’t know, it’s too close to call. It’s very exciting, I look forward to hopefully seeing it develop in my mirrors!"

Sam Bird pictured with his DS Virgin Racing car in front of London's Marble Arch (Formula E)

Bird's target since the race in Mexico has been to seal third in the championship, as well as achieve the same feat in the constructors' standings.

But having tasted home victory last year in what was an exciting and emphatic victory, Bird has set his sights on at least one race win this weekend.

"It’s not safe at all, there’s 60 points at London and I’m only 18 ahead of my closest competitor. [Jerome D'Ambrosio]," Bird explains of his third-place standing. "What it means is I need to have a very strong Saturday so that I don’t need to worry on Sunday, it would be the perfect scenario really.

"To win on home soil again would be absolutely perfect and a great way to cap off what I think has been quite a strong year so that’s obviously the plan of attack.

"I will never rest on my laurels. Of course I want to get third for myself but there’s also a manufacturers’ title and we need to make sure that we as a team secure third place in that as well because we’ve just overtaken Dragon Racing so that’s another one of my targets to ensure that we come home with third in both championships, and that means me performing on both the Saturday and the Sunday, regardless of my situation in the drivers’ championship."

While a number of other series utilise street circuits across the globe, only Formula E can boast of going into the heart of a city to really connect with the fans.

Having the season finish off in London adds extra meaning for Bird, given that the 29-year-old will be competing in front of his own fans, and the prestige of racing at speeds up to 140mph is not lost on him.

"Everybody that I’ve spoken to says how much they enjoyed the London race last year, not only because it was in London but because it was a fantastic race event," he says. "The track was great, there was overtaking, it was exciting, there was things to play for in the championship and it was just the perfect send-off to what was a great first season of Formula E, and I believe the second season will be as good, if not better.

DS Virgin Racing teammates Bird and Jean Eric-Vergne compete in the Paris ePrix (Getty)

"We’ve got two drivers fighting for the championship, it’s my home race, I hope to try and bring home another home victory in London and it’s great. Everybody is based in England for Formula E, all the teams are based in the UK, it’s where the home of motorsport is and what an event in London. To race around the city of London is amazing, I have to say it’s the highlight of my year going there.

"There are some amazing events on the calendar now. I think that obviously the Paris ePrix was spectacular doing it on such an amazing backdrop and that was the home of DS, so that was great, but this is now the home of Virgin, the other part of our team that combine, and we need to do a great result on our home turf."

With practice, qualifying and race one all scheduled for Saturday before the same is repeated the following day, Bird could get arrive on the final day of the season with third place in the bag. However, Formula E has already proven that anything can happen, as is the old Motorsport mantra, and when you throw in the unpolished streets of London and 19 others high calibre drivers in identical cars, it won't be an easy task by any stretch of the imagination.

Sam Bird will be competing for DS Virgin Racing in the VISA London ePrix, taking place in London’s Battersea Park on 2-3 July. Fans can help Sam to a home victory and give him an extra 100KJ of energy to use during the race, by voting for him on Fanboost. Simply post the hashtags #Fanboost #SamBird on Twitter or visit http://fanboost.fiaformulae.com.