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Envision Virgin Racing are confident of securing success in Season Six of Formula E (Image: GETTY) Formula E Season Six gets underway in Saudi Arabia this week with German giants Mercedes

and Porsche joining the likes of Audi, BMW, Nissan, Jaguar and reigning champions DS Techeetah on one of the most competitive grids in motorsport. But independent team Envision Virgin Racing

are not intimidated by the prestigious new arrivals and believe they are a match for any team in the paddock thanks to their state-of-the-art facilities and meticulous preparation. The

British outfit have recently installed a cutting-edge race simulator at their Silverstone headquarters and the Audi customer squad hope this will help them improve on consecutive third-place

finishes in the Teams’ Championship. When asked if Virgin felt pressured to expand in order to match the investment from motorsport powerhouses Mercedes and Porsche, long-term driver Sam

Bird countered by saying: “They have to match us. RELATED ARTICLES “Yes they’ve presumably got amazing facilities and they will have all the resources and tools, but we’ve got five years of

experience with some of the best engineers in Formula E, with one of the strongest driver line-ups in Formula E. “We’re a match for anybody throughout the whole series. At every single race

we will be a threat, so they have to gain that experience first. “I don’t think that Mercedes and Porsche can come in and expect to win the first five races. In two or three years’ time it

might be the case, but for now they will have to do a lot of homework, go through some hard races and learn from mistakes and bad experiences to build up a wealth of knowledge about this

series. It’s not like people can just come in and succeed.” Virgin have been a mainstay in Formula E since the inaugural 2014/15 championship but are yet to lift the Teams’ Championship

while Bird has a highest finish of third in the 2017/18 Drivers’ Standings. The British squad have finished third in three of the past four seasons (Image: GETTY) Sam Bird feels his team set

a good benchmark for Mercedes and Porsche to match (Image: GETTY) The British squad have notched 10 victories in the sustainable series, including three last season while Bird was also

stripped of another win following a collision with Andre Lotterer in Hong Kong. A third-place finish for the team in Season Six represents a decent return from their first year in

partnership with Audi, and the opening of their new Driver in the Loop Simulator means they expect to be challenging for top honours this time around. “The fact that we’ve got our own

simulator now means that we can do our own homework,” revealed Bird. “We can try and improve on our own, and we don’t need to rely on Audi’s sim. It proves that we’re pushing to try and

improve our position. A new simulator has been installed at the team's Silverstone base (Image: ENVISION VIRGIN RACING) Bird has been working hard over the summer to get the most out of

the equipment (Image: ENVISION VIRGIN RACING) “Over the last two, three, four seasons we’ve pretty much been the No 3 team in terms of points scored and we want to try and improve that to

try and progress up to be the best. And in order to be the best you need to push the boundaries.” Envision Virgin Racing Team Principal Sylvain Filippi echoed Bird’s comments, saying: “The

job isn’t finished, you can always do more, you can always push more. “Having the sim for me was important. We needed to have it for the short-term so we can practice for the next race, but

also longer-term because as a team we used to be a works team with DS and now we’re a customer team of Audi and who knows what we will be in five years’ time. I cannot tell you, so it’s

really important to be self-sufficient and be able to stand on our own two feet. “It’s also a nice reward for the team. We’ve spent the last five years working so hard, building this team

and all this knowledge. It will be a waste not to use that knowledge. Team Principal Sylvain Filippi believes Formula E boasts the most competitive grid in motorsport (Image: GETTY) Envision

Virgin Racing recently completed a new wing in their headquarters (Image: ENVISION VIRGIN RACING) “We are lucky to shareholders who are very supportive and invest in the team and

facilities, and it makes sense because the reward will not only be the next few races but also five years down the line.” The team moved into their 12,000 sq ft Silverstone base in 2017 and

have now put the finishing touches on a new wing at the premises with the installation of their VI-grade simulator. Both Bird and team-mate Robin Frijns will hope to reap the benefits of

this when the new season gets under way this week, although Filippi is under no illusions about the size of the challenge his drivers face in 2019/20. “The biggest possible players in the

world are joining, so we couldn’t imagine tougher opposition,” he said. A strong result in the final race of the 2018/19 campaign secured third in the Teams' Championship (Image: GETTY)

Envision Virgin Racing will hope to upset the major manufacturers once again (Image: GETTY) “The best guys are in the business now, so it’s about being clever. Formula E is not about being

an arms race in that way. “We cannot just stay at the same level forever, we have to keep improving. Hence the simulation, hence the build of the new wing, hence a few more engineers, and

then Sam being here every week. “All this goes in the right direction, and we have prepared for Season Six the best we ever have. “Last year was tough. We had to change to a new car, new

supplier, new software, new systems. Everything was new and even though we had four years of experience in racing there were a lot of new aspects to Formula E – and we did a brilliant job of

it. Bird finished ninth in the Drivers' standings last season but is expecting to bounce back (Image: GETTY) “Formula E is all about preparation. For me the strategy is clear. Do all

of these little things really, really well, and if we do that I’m sure we’ll be pretty strong. “We have two absolutely incredible drivers, and all of our engineers have been in Formula E for

a very long time now. We have a great relationship with Audi where we have exactly the same car as they do, so on paper we have everything.” Bird added: “What I think is quite impressive,

and what I don’t think people have realised yet, is that there were 12 races last year, and on the road we won a third of the races. That’s not bad.” Not bad indeed, although it remains to

be seen whether Envision Virgin Racing have what it takes to step up from perennial challengers to champions in the face of such tough opposition. Formula E is set for its most fiercely

contested season to date (Image: GETTY) _Experience the thrill of electric racing at Formula E’s season finale on the 25th and 26th July 2020 at ExCel London. Tickets on sale now at: 

WWW.FIAFORMULAE.COM/LONDON_