Maximilian Günther | |
Nationality: | German |
Birth Date: | 2 July 1997 |
Birth Place: | Oberstdorf, Germany |
Racing Licence: | FIA Platinum |
Current Series: | FIA Formula E Championship |
First Year: | 2018–19 |
Car Number: | 7 |
Former Teams: | GEOX Dragon, BMW i Andretti Motorsport, Nissan e.dams, Maserati MSG Racing |
Starts: | 72 |
Wins: | 5 |
Podiums: | 9 |
Poles: | 2 |
Fastest Laps: | 1 |
Best Finish: | 7th |
Year: | 2022–23 |
Last Finish: | 8th (73 pts) |
Prev Series: | ADAC Formel Masters Formula BMW |
Prev Series Years: | 2015–17 2013–14 2011 |
Maximilian Günther (born 2 July 1997) is a German-Austrian racing driver currently competing in Formula E for DS Penske. Günther has previously driven in Formula 2 with BWT Arden and for Dragon Racing, BMW i Andretti, Nissan e.dams and Maserati MSG Racing. in Formula E. He achieved his first win in Formula E at the 2020 Santiago ePrix.
Born in Oberstdorf, Günther began his racing career in karting in 2007. He remained in karting until 2010. In 2011, Günther competed in open-wheel racing, in Formula BMW Talent Cup.In 2013, Günther competed in ADAC Formel Masters from ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V., he ended the season second. In 2014, he also finished second.In 2015, Günther débuted in the European Formula 3 with kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport.
Günther made his Formula 2 debut in with Arden.,[1] partnering Nirei Fukuzumi, who graduated from GP3. He scored his maiden podium in only his second race and went on to claim his first F2 victory in the Silverstone sprint race. For the final round of the season in Abu Dhabi, he was replaced by Red Bull junior driver Dan Ticktum.
Günther joined the Dragon Racing team as test and reserve driver, participating in the Marrakesh rookie test in 2018 and pre-season testing for season five. After Jerome d'Ambrosio departed to move to Mahindra Racing,[2] Günther was promoted to a race seat and made his debut in the Ad Diriyah E-Prix in December 2018.[3] He was replaced by Felipe Nasr after the Santiago ePrix.[4] However, Günther returned to the team for the Rome ePrix, and he completed the season with the team.[5] He scored his first points in Formula E with a 5th-place finish at the Paris ePrix.[6] He finished 5th again at the Swiss ePrix, meaning that he finished his rookie season 17th in the Drivers' Championship.[7]
For the 2019–20 season, Günther was signed to race for BMW i Andretti Motorsport after Antonio Felix da Costa moved to reigning champion team DS Techeetah.[8] The second race of the season in Diriyah saw Günther take a maiden podium in second place behind teammate Alexander Sims, but was demoted to 11th after passing Lucas di Grassi under safety car conditions.[9] At the next race in Santiago, Günther claimed his maiden Formula E victory after a last lap pass on da Costa.[10] He finished second at the Marrakesh ePrix after starting second on the grid.[11] He won his home race at the Berlin ePrix after starting second.[12] He finished the season with three points finishes, all of which were podium finishes.
Günther was retained by BMW for the following season.[13] He won the New York City ePrix, taking advantage of a collision between Jean-Éric Vergne and Nick Cassidy.[14]
Günther moved to Nissan e.dams for the 2021–22 season.[15] His first points for the team at the Mexico City ePrix would prove to be a red herring, as the German struggled to finish close to teammate Sébastien Buemi throughout the races.[16] The second and final top-ten finish of his campaign would come at the London ePrix, during a weekend where a collision with Nick Cassidy earned Günther critical comments from the New Zealander.[17] Günther ended the season 19th in the standings, having scored just six points.[18]
Günther switched to Maserati MSG Racing for the 2022–23 season, partnering Edoardo Mortara in a seat vacated by Nyck de Vries' decision to switch to the AlphaTauri team in F1.[19] [20] His campaign started out disappointingly, as an eleventh place in Mexico City was followed by a crash in qualifying for the first race in Diriyah, after which the car could not be repaired in time for the race.[21] Günther failed to score points until the Berlin ePrix, where a last-corner overtake on Sébastien Buemi earned him a place on the rostrum.[22] He finished sixth the following day, having started from 21st, before retiring at Monaco as a result of a collision with Dan Ticktum.[23] [24] In Jakarta, the German experienced his best Formula E weekend to date, scoring pole for both races, finishing third on Saturday ahead of a dominant win on Sunday, Maserati's first in single-seater competition since the 1957 German Grand Prix.[25] [26] He took one further podium in Rome and ended the year seventh in the championship.[27]
Günther remained with Maserati MSG Racing for the 2023–24 season alongside a new teammate, Formula 2 driver Jehan Daruvala who replaces Edoardo Mortara who went over to Mahindra.[28] He scored a victory at the 2024 Tokyo ePrix.
After two successful seasons with the team, Günther departed Maserati at the end of the season.[29]
In 2022 Günther drove an endurance racing car for the first time, driving the Peugeot 9X8 Le Mans Hypercar during the post-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit.[30]
Günther currently resides in Monaco. He holds dual German and Austrian nationality. In addition to his native German, Günther also speaks English, French, and Spanish.[31]
Season | Series | Team | Position |
---|---|---|---|
2007 | Southern German ADAC Kart Cup — Bambini A | Ebert Motorsport | 2nd |
ADAC Kart Masters — Bambini A | 2nd | ||
2008 | ADAC Kart Masters — Bambini A | Ebert Motorsport | 7th |
2009 | ADAC Kart Masters — Bambini A | Valier Racing | 11th |
2010 | ADAC Kart Masters — KF3 | 1st | |
Werner-Grossevollmer-Memory-Throphy | RS Motorsport | 10th | |
German Karting Championship — Junior | 6th | ||
Monaco Kart Cup — KF3 | 16th |
Season | Series | Team | Races | Wins | Poles | F/Laps | Podiums | Points | Position | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | Formula BMW Talent Cup | BMW Motorsport | 17 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 | ? | 2nd | |
2013 | ADAC Formel Masters | ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. | 24 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 11 | 240 | 2nd | |
2014 | ADAC Formel Masters | ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. | 24 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 10 | 262 | 2nd | |
2015 | FIA Formula 3 European Championship | Mücke Motorsport | 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 150 | 8th | |
Prema Powerteam | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||
2016 | FIA Formula 3 European Championship | Prema Powerteam | 30 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 13 | 320 | 2nd | |
Macau Grand Prix | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | DNF | |||
Formula One | Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team | Simulator driver | ||||||||
2017 | FIA Formula 3 European Championship | Prema Powerteam | 30 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 383 | 3rd | |
Macau Grand Prix | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A | 5th | |||
Formula One | Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport | Simulator driver | ||||||||
2018 | FIA Formula 2 Championship | BWT Arden | 22 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 41 | 14th | |
2018–19 | Formula E | GEOX Dragon | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 17th | |
2019–20 | Formula E | BMW i Andretti Motorsport | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 69 | 9th | |
2020–21 | Formula E | BMW i Andretti Motorsport | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 66 | 16th | |
2021–22 | Formula E | Nissan e.dams | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 19th | |
2022–23 | Formula E | Maserati MSG Racing | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 101 | 7th | |
2023–24 | Formula E | Maserati MSG Racing | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 73 | 8th |
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | DC | Points | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2013 | nowrap | ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. | OSC 1 | OSC 2 | OSC 3 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | SPA 3 | SAC 1 | SAC 2 | SAC 3 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | NÜR 3 | RBR 1 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 | LAU 1 | LAU 2 | LAU 3 | SVK 1 | SVK 2 | SVK 3 | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | 2nd | 240 | |
2014 | nowrap | ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V. | OSC 1 | OSC 2 | OSC 3 | ZAN 1 | ZAN 2 | ZAN 3 | LAU 1 | LAU 2 | LAU 3 | RBR 1 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 | SVK 1 | SVK 2 | SVK 3 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | NÜR 3 | SAC 1 | SAC 2 | SAC 3 | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | 2nd | 262 |
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year | Entrant | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | DC | Points | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | nowrap | kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport | Mercedes | SIL 1 | SIL 2 | SIL 3 | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | PAU 1 | PAU 2 | PAU 3 | MNZ 1 | MNZ 2 | MNZ 3 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | SPA 3 | NOR 1 | NOR 2 | NOR 3 | ZAN 1 | ZAN 2 | ZAN 3 | RBR 1 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 | ALG 1 | ALG 2 | ALG 3 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | NÜR 3 | 8th | 150 | ||||
nowrap | Prema Powerteam | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2016 | nowrap | Prema Powerteam | Mercedes | LEC 1 | LEC 2 | LEC 3 | HUN 1 | HUN 2 | HUN 3 | PAU 1 | PAU 2 | PAU 3 | RBR 1 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 | NOR 1 | NOR 2 | NOR 3 | ZAN 1 | ZAN 2 | ZAN 3 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | SPA 3 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | NÜR 3 | IMO 1 | IMO 2 | IMO 3 | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | 2nd | 320 | ||||
2017 | nowrap | Prema Powerteam | Mercedes | SIL 1 | SIL 2 | SIL 3 | MNZ 1 | MNZ 2 | MNZ 3 | PAU 1 | PAU 2 | PAU 3 | HUN 1 | HUN 2 | HUN 3 | NOR 1 | NOR 2 | NOR 3 | SPA 1 | SPA 2 | SPA 3 | ZAN 1 | ZAN 2 | ZAN 3 | NÜR 1 | NÜR 2 | NÜR 3 | RBR 1 | RBR 2 | RBR 3 | HOC 1 | HOC 2 | HOC 3 | 3rd | 383 |
Year | Team | Car | Qualifying | Quali Race | Main race | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | Prema Powerteam | Dallara F312 | 7th | DNF | DNF | |
2017 | Prema Powerteam | Dallara F317 | 4th | 4th | 5th |
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate points for the fastest lap of top ten finishers)
† Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Year | Team | Chassis | Powertrain | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Pos | Points | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
nowrap | 2018–19 | nowrap | GEOX Dragon | nowrap | Spark SRT05e | nowrap | Penske EV-3 | ADR | MRK | SCL | MEX | HKG | SYX | RME | PAR | MCO | BER | BRN | NYC | NYC | 17th | 20 | ||||
nowrap | 2019–20 | nowrap | BMW i Andretti Motorsport | nowrap | Spark SRT05e | nowrap | BMW iFE.20 | DIR | DIR | SCL | MEX | MRK | BER | BER | BER | BER | BER | BER | 9th | 69 | ||||||
nowrap | 2020–21 | nowrap | BMW i Andretti Motorsport | nowrap | Spark SRT05e | nowrap | BMW iFE.21 | DIR | DIR | RME | RME | VLC | VLC | MCO | PUE | PUE | NYC | NYC | LDN | LDN | BER | BER | 16th | 66 | ||
nowrap | 2021–22 | nowrap | Nissan e.dams | nowrap | Spark SRT05e | nowrap | Nissan IM03 | DRH | DRH | MEX | RME | RME | MCO | BER | BER | JAK | MRK | NYC | NYC | LDN | LDN | SEO | SEO | 19th | 6 | |
nowrap | 2022–23 | nowrap | Maserati MSG Racing | nowrap | Formula E Gen3 | nowrap | Maserati Tipo Folgore | MEX | DRH | DRH | HYD | CAP | SAP | BER | BER | MCO | JAK | JAK | POR | RME | RME | LDN | LDN | 7th | 101 | |
nowrap | 2023–24 | nowrap | Maserati MSG Racing | nowrap | Formula E Gen3 | nowrap | Maserati Tipo Folgore | MEX | DRH | DRH | SAP | TOK | MIS | MIS | MCO | BER | BER | SHA | SHA | POR | POR | LDN | LDN | 8th | 73 |