Formula E Season 10 Tokyo E-Prix: Guenther snatches win from Nissan and Rowland

Just 2 weeks after the sao paulo e-prix, we were presented with another race, this time in the home of Nissan: Japan! This introduction of the Tokyo E-Prix saw a different layout, sometimes a mixture of the Rome and London circuits. However, none of this could stop the Maserati MSG of Maximilian Guenther from clinching the win away from the pole sitter and majority of the race leader Oliver Rowland.

Key Moments During The Race

Oliver Rowland lead the field away from pole position ahead of Edoardo Mortara in P2 and Maximilian Guenther in P3.
Jaguar Drivers Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy went to P11 and P18 respectfully after the start
The fastest lap was changing hands during lap 5 with Nato and Mueller touching
Jake Hughes crashed into the barrier at turn 15 on lap 6 due to a collision with Di Grassi. The British driver managed to get away on their own accord, however they fell to the back of the grid.
The Tag Hauer Porsche Team played the team game on lap 9 as Da Costa slowed up the grid behind them so Wehrlein could take attack mode.
A new race leader emerged on lap 13 as Oliver Rowland took attack mode with Maximilian Guenther inheriting P1.
Guenther fell down to P3 after taking attack mode.
Mitch Evans had front wing damage on lap 18 after contact.
The safety car was called out soon after to pick up debris.
De Vries and Di Grassi have both retired at this point.
Nick Cassidy managed to make his way up to P11 by lap 25.
Maximilian Guether takes the lead on lap 25.
2 additional laps were added near the end of the race due to the safety car.
Norman Nato and Robin Frijns made contact as Nato went off the racing line, received a 5 second penalty for this collision but it was later overturned.
Da Costa falls down to P4 after a three way battle for the podium positions.
Guenther wins, Rowland P2, Dennis P3.

Jake Hughes, NEOM McLaren Formula E Team, e-4ORCE 04, leads Lucas di Grassi, ABT CUPRA Formula E Team, M9Electro, and Jean-Eric Vergne, DS Penske, DS E-Tense FE23-Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

Formula E Season 10 Round 5 Tokyo E-Prix Results

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1st	Maximilian Guenther (fastest lap)	Maserati MSG Racing	26
2nd	Oliver Rowland (pole)	Nissan Formula E Team	21
3rd	Jake Dennis	Andretti Formula E	15
4th	Antonio Felix Da Costa	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	12
5th	Pascal Wehrlein	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	10
6th	Norman Nato	Andretti Formula E	8
7th	Nico Mueller	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	6
8th	Nick Cassidy	Jaguar TCS Racing	4
9th	Robin Frijns	Envision Racing	2
10th	Sergio Sette Camara	ERT Racing	1
11th	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan Formula E Team	0
12th	Jean-Eric Verge	DS Penske	0
13th	Sebastian Buemi	Envision Racing	0
14th	Jake Hughes	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	0
15th	Mitch Evans	Jaguar TCS Racing	0
16th	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS Penske	0
17th	Jehan Daruvala	Maserati MSG Racing	0
18th	Dan Ticktum	ERT Formula E Team	0
19th	Sam Bird	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	0
DNF	Lucas Di Grassi	Mahindra Racing	0
DSQ	Edoardo Mortara	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
DNF	Nyck De Veries	Mahindra Racing	0

Formula E Season 10 Championship After Round 5

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1.	Pascal Wehrlein	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	63
2.	Nick Cassidy	Jaguar TCS Racing	61
3.	Oliver Rowland	Nissan Formula E Team	54
4.	Jake Dennis	Andretti Formula E	53
5.	Maximilian Guenther	Maserati MSG Racing	48
6.	Mitch Evans	Jaguar TCS Racing	39
7.	Jean-Eric Vergne	DS Penske	39
8.	Sam Bird	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	37
9.	Robin Frijns	Envision Racing	21
10.	Sebastian Buemi	Envision Racing	20
11.	Antonio Felix Da Costa	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	20
12.	Jake Hughes	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	18
13.	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS Penske	18
14.	Norman Nato	Andretti Formula E	17
15.	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan Formula E Team	8
16.	Nico Mueller	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	6
17.	Sergio Sette Camara	ERT Formula E Team	3
18.	Edoardo Mortara	Mahindra Racing	0
19.	Lucas DiGrassi	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
20.	Nyck De Vries	Mahindra Racing	0
21.	Jehan Daruvala	Maserati MSG Racing	0
22.	Dan Ticktum	ERT Formula E Team	0

Most Impressive Race

The most impressive race for me has to be from Oliver Rowland. Leaving the sport mid season last year, eyebrows were raised over whether he would return to the sport. Now, at his new team’s home race, getting pole position and being able to maintain his energy for the majority of the race until he had to fall back to P2 in order to conserve energy to make it to the end is seriously impressive.

Driver who needs to improve the most after Tokyo

Now that we have finished just under one third of the season, I think Mitch Evans really needs to improve the most. Yes, his teammate did manage to qualify near the back due to a lap time deletion in qualifying, Evans should have made up spots on the start to try and bridge the gap to his felle Kiwi but instead, Cassidy finished P8 after the DSQ from Mortara which still made Evans not get any points from the weekend. Evans needs to get his head into the right space

17th March 2024

Formula E Sao Paulo E Prix: Sam Bird takes McLaren’s Maiden Win in Formula E

After a 7 WEEK break, Formula E returned to our screens on March 15th and 16th with a lot of storylines heading into this race weekend, it is safe to say that we got our bang for our buck in terms of excitement!

Race Recap

The race started off with Pascal Wehrlein starting from pole after beating Stoffel Vandoorne in the Final Duel by 0.002 of a second! It was absolutely blockbuster content before we even went racing in Sao Paulo. Once we went racing, there was a lot of chaos. Wehrlein lead the field from Vandoorne in P2 and Micth Evans managed to jump up to P3 after overtaking Jean-Eric Vergne who started in P3. Wehrlein managed to stay in the lead throughout the early parts before the attack mode came in with Bird managing to make his way up to P6. Da Costa then managed to make his way up to P3 before Guenther had to take a 10 second stop and go penalty due to exceeding his allocated components. This meant he had a 20 place grid penalty AND the 10 second stop-and-go penalty. Dennis attempted to make his way up the field with Bird then managing to make his way up to P1. Once Bird took his attack modes, he stayed in P1. There was quite a lot od debris due to collisions which happened earlier in the race which then led to a safety car coming out. This spelt disaster in terms of attack mode for drivers including Bird, Buemi and Daruvala whereas Wehrlein, Vergne and Guenther were pleased.

Mitch Evans, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6, leads Pascal Wehrlein, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3-Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

At the safety car restart, Bird managed to retake the lead from Evans with Da Costa in P3 and his teammate of Wehrlein in P4. Several laps on, Nico Mueller managed to get a black and orange flag due to his front wing going under his car. Before Nico pitted, the entire grid was seperated by under 9 seconds! The Andretti driver of Norman Nato then receieved a 5 second penalty for causing a collision. Dennis managed to get up to P1 after many overtakes and attack modes before we saw a yellow flag for the championship leader of Nick Cassidy crashing out due to his front wing hitting his car. He was okay after the crash but it was a nasty hit against the wall.

By the time we got to lap 17 out of 31, before added laps, Bird was leading ahead of his old teammate Mitch Evans in P2, Wehrlein in P3, Dennis, Da Costa and Vergne rounding out the top 6 with Rosland, Vandoorne, Guenther and Buemi occupying the final places of the field. Once we went green, Bird held onto the lead with everyone in the top 10 apart from Buemi having used both of the attack modes. Drivers such as De Vries and Hughes had to take their second attack mode and, as a result, fell down the grid.

Nico Mueller then stopped on track which brought out a yellow flag but he managed to get the car started again. Towards the end of the race, Evans managed to take the lead before it was announced that there would be 3 added laps. Rowland managed to make his way up to P5 ahead of Da Costa before the final lap. On the final lap, Bird was chasing Evans down for the win. Bird managed to make a move stick in the final sector of the track to take McLaren’s first win in Formula E! That was not where the drama ended however, as we had retirements from Hughes, Mueller and Cassidy, Sette Camara was disqualified due to an overuse of power! All of the results are down below!

Sao Paulo E-Prix Race Results

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1st	Sam Bird	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	25
2nd	Mitch Evans	Jaguar TCS Racing	18
3rd	Oliver Rowland	Nissan Formula E Team	15
4th	Pascal Wehrlein	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	12
5th	Jake Dennis	Andretti Formula E	10
6th	Antonio Felix Da Costa	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	8
7th	Jean-Eric Vergne	DS Penske	6
8th	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS Penske	4
9th	Maximilian Guenther	Maserati MSG Racing	2
10th	SebastianBuemi	Envision Racing	1
11th	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan Formula E Team	0
12th	Edoardo Mortara	Mahindra Racing	0
13th	Lucas DiGrassi	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
14th	Nyck De Vries	Mahindra Racing	0
15th	Jehan Daruvala	Maserati MSG Racing	0
16th	Dan Ticktum	ERT Formula E Team	0
17th	Norman Nato	Andretti Formula E	0
18th	Robin Frijns	Envision Racing	0
DNF	Jake Hughes	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	0
DNF	Nick Cassidy	Jaguar TCS Racing	0
DNF	Nico Mueller	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
DSQ	Sergio Sette Camara	ERT Formula E Team	0

Formula E Season 10 Championship After Round 4

Position	Driver	Team	Points
1.	Nick Cassidy	Jaguar TCS Racing	57
2.	Pascal Wehrlein	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	53
3.	Mitch Evans	Jaguar TCS Racing	39
4.	Jean-Eric Vergne	DS Penske	39
5.	Jake Dennis	Andretti Formula E	38
6.	Sam Bird	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	37
7.	Oliver Rowland	Nissan Formula E Team	33
8.	Maximilian Guenther	Maserati MSG Racing	22
9.	Sebastian Buemi	Envision Racing	20
10.	Robin Frijns	Envision Racing	19
11.	Jake Hughes	Neom McLaren Formula E Team	18
12.	Stoffel Vandoorne	DS Penske	18
13.	Norman Nato	Andretti Formula E	9
14.	Sacha Fenestraz	Nissan Formula E	8
15.	Antonio Felix Da Costa	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	8
16.	Sergio Sette Camara	ERT Formula E Team	2
17.	Edoardo Mortara	Mahindra Racing	0
18.	Nico Mueller	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
19.	Lucas DiGrassi	Abt Cupra Formula E Team	0
20.	Nyck De Vries	Mahindra Racing	0
21.	Jehan Daruvala	Maserati MSG Racing	0
22.	Dan Ticktum	ERT Formula E Team	0

Most Impressive Race

I think there are a lot of candidates for this part of the article but I am going to go with Max Guenther. He started in P22, had a 10 second stop-and-go penalty and STILL managed to get 2 points in a competitive field. While yes, the safety cars caused by debris and Nick Cassidy did definately play to his advantage (apart from him using attack mode before the safety car came out), he still had to go through the field and battle many drivers.

Driver who needs to improve the most after Sao Paulo

After Sao Paulo, I feel like Norman Nato needs to step up a little bit. He had a few collisions which he was penalised for as well as starting further down the grid in comparison to his teammate. While his teammate may be a Formula E World Champion and embedded at that team, Norman needs to show that he can do his part to help the team and manufacturers in the championship, otherwise questions could be raised given the drivers who are not in as competitive machinery as the Frenchman.

28th January 2024

Formula E Season 10 Round 2 & 3: Cassidy Takes Control of the Championship with a Win in Diriyah

Round two of the Formula E championship kicked off this weekend in Diriyah, a firm favourite on the electric series calendar, and it certainly did not disappoint. Jean-Eric Vergne led the grid away, taking his first pole position in two seasons, ahead of Mitch Evans in P2. There was a bit of wheel bashing at the start with Vergne taking attack mode very early. This caused him to fall down to P3, as Evans was promoted to the race lead with current world champion Jake Dennis in the hunt in second position. However, in a race where stategy seemed to reign, Evans took attack mode, which allowed Dennis to swoop into the lead. However, the excitement for the world current did not last long – he soon lost the position to Vergne when taking his own attack mode on lap 7. Vergne copied Dennis’ actions the following lap, allowing Evans into contention for the win. Dennis was able to build up a lead in order to take his second attack mode and keep the lead. Evans managed to hold onto P2 while overtaking Vergne on the straight to turn 17. In the dying stages of the race, there was back and fourth battles between the top three – Evans, Vergne and Dennis. Evans tried to take the lead from Dennis but he overestimated the overtake, went deep into turn 17 and Dennis remained in the lead.

Vergne and Evans continued to battle one another, allowing Dennis to continue to pull clear. Title hopeful Nick Cassidy battled Max Gunther for one of the lower points paying positions, only for this late surge to be hindered by collision with Sam Bird’s McLaren. The Jaguars struggled in the race due to miscommunication with team orders having an adverse effect. On the last lap, Evans tried to overtake Vergne for second place, he overestimated the gap and fell behind Bird. Dennis claimed victory in the desert by over 10 seconds with Vergne P2 and Cassidy taking the final podium position. Bird finished ahead of Evans in P4 and P5 respectively, Norman Nato claimed P6 ahead of Guenther, Wehrlein claimed P8 whilst Sergio Sette Camara and Robin Frijns rounded out the top ten.

Jake Dennis, Andretti Global, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

Round 3:

Round three saw an unexected pole position from the returning Oliver Rowland at Nissan ahead of Robin Frijns in P2 and Nick Cassidy in P3. Frijns managed to take the lead away from Rowland at the start with Ticktum having to pit with front wing damage, this eventually caused the Brit to retire. Cassidy maintained P3 at the start with a huge train of cars following each other, but as the attack modes began to be taken, the Kiwi found himself at the front. And from there, he controlled the entire race, buiding up a gap to allow himself to remain in P1 when attack mode had been completed. However, despite this, Frijns was able to stay within about two seconds of Cassidy for the entire race, a constant threat lurking at the back of the Kiwi’s Jaguar. Sam Bird, who was having a quiet race, managed to make a move on Sette Camara for P9. In a tactical move by drivers, many did not take any attack mode so they could use it at the end of the race – however, this did not apply to the top five.

Rowland managed to get within a second of Frijns, who in turn was closing in on Cassidy. Bird attempted a a move on Sacha Fenestraz but he misjudged it, falling behind Wehrlein and eventually, the McLaren man was forced to retire. Jehan Daruvala had an issue with his brakes and was forced to stop at turn 18, causing a yellow flag. Cassidy began to worry about his consumption of energy in the latter part of the race. As the time ticked down, it emerged that Dennis, Evans, Da Costa, Nato and Sette Camara were all under investigation for overtaking under yellow flags. However, this didn’t stop Nick Cassidy from taking his first win at Jaguar. He held off Frijns who finished P2 in his return to Envision Racing ahead of Rowland who managed to secure a podium. Hughes finished just outside of the podium positions, ahead of Vandoorne. Fenestraz claimed P6 ahead of Wehrlein in P7, Vergne clinched P8 with Gunther taking P9 and Dennis taking the final point. The current world champion also took the fastest lap, however, after investigation, Dennis received a five second time penalty promoting Evans to P10 and Cassidy took the point for fastest lap, alongside the championship lead.

Formula E will return in March.

14th January 2024

Formula E Season 10 Round 1 Mexico City E-Prix: Wehrlein Takes A Commanding Win after Securing Pole

Pascal Wehrlein secured the victory after starting on pole position for the first round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship to kickstart his championship challenge earlier on.

The electric series, in its tenth year got off to an explosive start, with the opening taking place in Mexico, a venue that has been used since the series infancy. Before the action even started, there was already some pre-race drama as Sergio Sette Camara’s ERT was withdrawn from competition due to a technical issue. And the drama didn’t stop there. Stoffel Vandoorne, Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy all received a one place grid penalty due to not following red flag procedures in FP1.

After the drama, Formula E went green for the first time this year. It was a clean start for everyone through the first few corners with Dennis making his way up the grid after his disaster in qualifying. Di Grassi was the first victim in Mexico. Due to a brake issue, he hit the barrier and stopped on track, he managed to limp back to the pits and retire from the race.

Lucas di Grassi, ABT CUPRA Formula E Team, M9Electro Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

Da Costa and Mueller had an incident a few laps later which resulted in the Porsche driver retiring from the race as he ended up in the wall after an ambitious move on the Abt driver. The incident was investigated after the race and Da Costa received a three place grid penalty for the next race. Everyone seemed to settle into the race, until more drama reared up, but this time from the steward’s room. Race control stated that three drivers were under investigation: the Andretti pair of Jake Dennis and Norman Nato and more critically, race leader Pascal Wehrlein. There was no further investigation for Nato but Wehrlein and Dennis were investigated after the race but both also received no further investigation from the stewards.

Pascal Wehrlein, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

The returning Envision Racing driver of Robin Frijns crashed at turn thirteen, just at the exit of the stadium arena. This resulted in a full course yellow and the safety car made it’s first appearance this season. Frijns managed to walk away on his own accord. It then emerged that Frijns had an issue with his car before the race so this could have been a factor in his crash. Before the race was declared green again, man of the drivers had attack mode remaining, including Buemi who was currently sitting in P2. Behind him, Guenther, Evans, Hughes, Dennis, Bird, Fenestraz, De Vries and Daruvala all had one attack mode remaining . The Season 7 champion Nyck De Vries had fallen down the pack at this point and was holding up Ticktum, Daruvala and Mueller, whilst current champion Dennis had a relatively quiet race.

The highlight in the latter stages was certainly the battle between Jean-Eric Vergne and Mitch Evans. They were having a fight of their own, as the Jaguar driver had to hold off the constant attacks from the two time world champion. It was first blood to Evans as he managed to pull a consistent gap of five tenths as energy conservation began to bite. Ticktum also struggled, falling back dramatically due to his overspending of energy earlier on in the race. Two additional laps were added to the end of the race due to the safety car earlier for the Frijns shunt. However, these did not stop Wehrlein as he held onto the lead and claimed victory in the Mexico City E-Prix for the second time. Envision Racing’s Sebastian Buemi finished P2, with championship contender Nick Cassidy taking the final podium. Maximilian Guenther finished P4 with Mitch Evans just holding off Jean-Eric Vergne for P5, Jake Hughes took P7 ahead of Stoffel Vandoorne in P8, current world champion Jake Dennis had to settle for P9 whilst Norman Nato rounded out the top ten.

Formula E returns in a few weeks with a double header in Diriyah!

10th January 202410th January 2024

Formula E Driver Changes, Calendar and What to Watch For during Season 10

After several months since the conclusion of FIA Formula E Season 9, we are back with more electric racing! Well…later this week, we are. The FIA Formula E championship returns this Friday for it’s tenth season. Round 1 will kick off in Mexico City, a staple of the electric series since it’s second season. Since we last went green, there have been quite a lot of changes, primarily in the driver market.

Drivers and Teams for Season 10:

Envision Racing:

Drivers: Sebastian Buemi and Robin Frijns

Powertrain: Jaguar I-Type 6

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 1st Place (Champions)

There is a shake up at the current teams champion with Nick Cassidy departing for Jaguar. Robin Frijns rejoins Envision after a year of absence, eager to make the Jaguar powertrain which has been so dominant in the last few years a success of his own.

Jaguar TCS Racing:

Drivers: Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy

Powertrain: Jaguar I-Type 6

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 2nd Place

Jaguar has arguably the most anticipated pairing going into the tenth season of Formula E. The New Zealand duo of Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy, both in the title hunt and collecting race wins throughout the last few seasons, it will be all to play for this season.

Nick Cassidy, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6
Image Credit: Simon Galloway

Andretti Formula E:

Drivers: Jake Dennis and Norman Nato

Powertrain: Porsche 99X Electric Gen3

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 3rd Place

The current world champion will have a new livery design, helmet design, a new number and a new teammate. The Andretti duo will support a white livery as Nato joins the American team of the departing Andre Lotterer after a decent season last year where saw him scoop a podium.

Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team:

Drivers: Pascal Wehrlein and Antonio Felix Da Costa

Powertrain: Porsche 99X Electric Gen3

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 4th Place

One of three unchanged driver pairings from last season, Wehrlein and Da Costa both racked up race wins throughout their season 9 campaign and they will be wanting to aim to equal these stats or higher in season 10 as Porsche hopes to go from strength to strength.

DS Penske:

Drivers: Stoffel Vandorrne and Jean-Eric Vergne

Powertrain: DS E-TENSE FE2

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 5th Place

The two former World Champions remain at DS Penske for a second season as they aim to go up the standings, it was a very subdued season for them last season with double champion Vergne the only bright light with a handful of podium appearances, but this could change.

Maserati MSG Racing:

Drivers: Maximilian Guenther and Jehan Daruvala

Powertrain: Maserati Tipo Folgore

Season 9 Team Championship Position: 6th

At the Trident team, Guenther remains at the team after picking up a victory in 2023, he has proven to be a consistent driver throughout his time in the series. He is partnered by the only rookie in this season as Jehan Daruvala takes the slot. Replacing veteran Edo Mortara, Daruvala raced in Formula 2 last season.

Nissan Formula E Team:

Drivers: Sacha Fenestraz and Oliver Rowland

Powertrain: Nissan e-4ORCE 04

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 7th

Nissan will be hoping to reignite some of the old magic, they retain 2023 rookie Sacha Fenestraz which was excellent last year, and the departing Norman Nato is replaced by familar face Oliver Rowland, who had some success with the manufacturer a few seasons ago.

NEOM McLaren Formula E Team:

Drivers: Sam Bird and Jake Hughes

Powertrain: Nissan e-4ORCE 04

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 8th Place

The Papaya team retain Jake Hughes for 2024, who had a stellar season. Rene Rast departs, leaving Sam Bird, arguably one of the most talented and experienced drivers at the helm.

ERT Racing:

Drivers: Dan Ticktum and Sergio Sette Camara

Powertrain: ERT X24

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 9th Place

The team formally known as NIO 333 have had a branding change to ERT. The lineup of Ticktum and Sette Camara remains unchanged and they will be eager to go up the standings and pick up some points.

Mahindra Racing:

Drivers: Nyck De Vries and Eduardo Mortara

Powertrain: Mahindra M9Electro

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 10th Place

Mahindra, on the other hand, have completely revamped their line up. Nyck De Vrie,s the former world champion rejoins the Indian outfit after his stint at Alpha Tauri in Formula 1 and studying at Harvard. He will be joined by Eduardo Mortara, a stalwart of the series.

Nyck de Vries, Mahindra Racing, Mahindra M9Electro
Image Credit: Simon Galloway

Abt Cupra Formula E Team:

Drivers: Lucas Di Grassi and Nico Muller

Powertrain: Mahindra M9 Electro

Season 9 Teams Championship Position: 11th Place

Abt Cupra retains Nico Muller while Lucas Di Grassi joins the team after departing Mahindra. The German team will be wanting to put an end to its podium draught after ending Season 9 with zero podiums, the first in the team’s history while competing in Formula E.

Calendar for Season 10:

There are some major changes from Season 9 in terms of the Calendar, the Jakarta ePrix is scrapped, and the inaugeral India ePrix has also been cancelled, the iconic Rome ePrix has been replaced by a race in Misano.

Round Number	Race	Date	Previous Winner
1	Mexico City ePrix	13th January 2024	Jake Dennis
2	Diryah ePrix	26th January 2024	Pascal Wehrlein
3	Diryah ePrix	27th January 2024	Pascal Wehrlein
4	Sao Paulo ePrix	16th March 2024	Mitch Evans
5	Tokyo ePrix	30th March 2024	Debut Event in Season 10
6	Misano ePrix	13th April 2024	Debut Event in Season 10
7	Misano ePrix	14th April 2024	Debut Event in Season 10
8	Monaco ePrix	27th April 2024	Nick Cassidy
9	Berlin ePrix	11th May 2024	Mitch Evans
10	Berlin ePrix	12th May 2024	Nick Cassidy
11	Shanghai ePrix	25th May 2024	Debut Event in Season 10
12	Shanghai ePrix	26th May 2024	Debut Event in Season 10
13	Portland ePrix	29th June 2024	Nick Cassidy
14	Portland ePrix*	30th June 2024	Nick Cassidy
15	London ePrix	20th July 2024	Mitch Evans
16	London ePrix	21st July 2024	Nick Cassidy

What to look out for in 2024 for Formula E:

As the number of Formula E seasons enters the double digits (they grow up so fast!) here are some highlights which will be on the radar of many people throughout the entire season:

The Battle For The Top Spot at Jaguar:

As mentioned, Jaguar TCS Racing will have a duo of Kiwi drivers this season: Mitch Evans and Nick Cassidy. Although Cassidy is the new guy on the block, he shone brightly last year and came close to claming the championship title. Their inter team battle will be one to watch throughout the entire season as Evans will want to hold onto top dog status while Cassidy will want to prove himself in his new team.

Champion Comeback:

With Jake Dennis signing a multi year contract with Andretti and the Season 7 champion Nyck De Vries returning to Formula E, there will be 7 champions on the grid who will want to reclaim the title crown of electric motorsport with Dennis certain to want to equal Vergne’s back to back title wins.

Nyck de Vries, Mahindra Racing and Jake Dennis, Andretti Global
Image Credit: Simon Galloway

New Venue Debuts:

With season 10 of Formula E, there will be 3 new venues: Tokyo, Misano and Shanghai. With only the Tokyo ePrix circuit layout being unveiled (as of right now), it will be fascinating to see how each of these new venues play into the championship.

What do you think about Formula E Season 10? Do you have any predictions ahead of the Mexico City ePrix?

2nd August 2023

Formula E London E-Prix Round 15 and 16 Race Report: Dennis Appears the Home Hero with Title Win

Round 15 and 16 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship drew to a close in the British capital of London. The track certainly delivered as Jake Dennis became world champion, the first British world champion and the first world champion to win it at their home track. At the finale, it was Envision that picked up the prize, sealing the teams championship.

In the first race, it was an Envision front row lockout in the first lap with Nick Cassidy leading the way from Sebastien Buemi. Championship hopeful Dennis informed his team early on of his issues with contact in the opening laps, dropping down the pack. Mitch Evans battled Rene Rast after his 5 place grid penalty but the McLaren driver held position. The NIO 333 of Dan Ticktum had a home race to forget as he lost positions in the early stages, allowing Rast and Pascal Wehrlein past him. In the early stages, drivers began to take their attack mode as Dennis closed up on the rear wing of Buemi. Race leader Cassidy proceeded to take his first attack mode and remained in the lead as Buemi held off Dennis. Mortara and Vandoorne collided with one another, which brought out a yellow flag but no penalty was given to either driver.

Everything seemed to be going the way of Jake Dennis to claim his first championship title. But then…disaster struck for the championship leader. He started to fall down down the grid, with championship rival Evans overtaking him. Di Grassi and Frijns found themselves under investigation for their collision with the Abt Cupra driver pitting for a new front wing. Things continued to get worse for Dennis as he missed one of the activation zones, and wasn’t able to take attack mode when prompted. A yellow flag was brought out for a slippery surface with Vergne having to pit too as Evans held the lead from Buemi in P2 and Cassidy in P3.

As the time ticked on, Dennis overtook Cassidy for P4 with Rast fighting his way into the final podium position, then into second place as attack mode began to be taken with Evans still maintaining the lead. Drama unfolded as Cassidy, who was hoping to fight for the title, picked up damage on his front wing after contact with his teammate, leaving the Kiwi furious. Cassidy had to pit for a new front wing as a safety car came out. Evans still continued to lead ahead of Buemi and Rast. Wehrlein was holding off a visibly frustrated Dennis for P4, a position he required to keep hold of his championship.

Mitch Evans, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6, leads Sebastien Buemi, Envision Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6 Credit: Formula E’s Media

At the start, Evans BOLTED away. Dennis and Wehrlein had not taken ANY attack mode and as it stood at that moment, Dennis was only 5 points ahead of Mitch Evans in the championship standings. Dennis attempted to take his attack mode again but missed again, with the Brit complaining to his team that it didn’t work, leaving the Andretti man in P5 as Sam Bird took over the lead of the race. Cassidy never recovered from his damage, having to retire from the race due to his collision with Buemi, leaving his championship hopes in tatters. Lotterer received a 5 second penalty for causing a collision as a safety car was brought out for Fenestraz who collided into the barriers due to a break failure going into turn 16. Wehrlein hit the barrier before the safety car and dropped down to P13. Race Control brought out a red flag for barrier repairs as Rast, who was in P3, had to drop to the back of the field due to breaking parc ferme conditions.

The race restarted with Evans holding the lead ahead of Buemi and Da Costa. Dennis held P4, but required P3 to seal the title. Shortly after the race resumed however, Hughes called it to a stop, going into the barriers before a red flag was called with a multi car pileup after turn 16. Nato went for a lunge on a flagging Buemi, causing a collision with Bird and Sette Camara caught in the crossfire. The cars were called back to the pits with Scot Elkins instructing all cars except the top three of Evans, Da Costa and Dennis to do an extra lap. With two laps to go, the racing resumed with Dennis closing in on Da Costa for P2. However, as the time ticked down, it was declared that Da Costa had a 3 MINUTE time penalty for a technical infringement, allowing Dennis to seal P2 and subsquently, the title. Jake Dennis was crownd the ABB FIA Formula E World Champion of season 9, finishing P2 with title rival Evans winning the race.

Round 16

The final race of ABB FIA Formula E Season 9 started behind a safety car due to the amount of rain on the track. Three laps were performed behind the car before a red flag was declared by race control. Drivers then got into their cars at 5:45pm London time before doing two more laps behind the safety car before another red flag was declared. The race then got underway at 6:30pm London time before having two laps behind the safety car and a rolling start.

Norman Nato, Nissan Formula E Team, Nissan e-4ORCE 04 Image Credit: Formula E’s Media Bank

There was a huge amount of less grip on the track today due to the rain and many drivers immediately went for attack mode. By lap 10, Cassidy and Evans had a gap of over 2 seconds to champion Dennis in P3. As the time ticked down, Cassidy held the lead and took attack mode with Dennis following him close behind. At the half way point before added laps, Wehrlein and Rast both had 1 attack mode remaining. Fenestraz and Vergne were fighting with Fenestraz getting ahead of the DS Penske. The gaps began to open up in the latter half of the race, as Cassidy held a two second lead over Evans. The top two kept trading the fastest lap point as they battled for the teams championship.

Bird tried to attack Buemi but Buemi held onto the position. Ticktum also tried to get past Muller for the teams championship between NIO 333 and Mahindra. 4 added laps was added onto the race. Frijns had managed to get ahead of Di Grassi as we entered the final lap of the season. Cassidy managed to take victory over the rest of the field to seal the team championship for Envision. with Evans finished P2 and Dennis P3. Norman Nato finished P4, ahead of Vandoorne and Buemi, Bird took a P7 in his final race with Jaguar with Muller in P8 and Ticktum and Wehrlein rounding out the top ten.

The top 10 in the championship were:

1st – Jake Dennis (Champion) (Andretti)
2nd – Nick Cassidy (Envision)
3rd – Mitch Evans (Jaguar)
4th – Pascal Wehrlein (Porsche)
5th – Jean-Eric Vergne (Penske)
6th – Sebastian Buemi (Envision)
7th – Maximilian Guenther (Maserati)
8th – Sam Bird (Jaguar)
9th – Antonio Felix-Da Costa (Porsche)
10th – Norman Nato (Nissan)

The Teams Championship went as follows:

1st – Envision Racing (Champions)
2nd – Jaguar TCS Racing
3rd – Avalanche Andretti Formula E
4th – Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team
5th – DS Penske
6th – Maserati MSG Racing
7th – Nissan Formula E Team
8th – Neom McLaren Formula E Team
9th – Nio 333 Racing
10th – Mahindra Racing
11th – Abt Cupra Formula E Team

17th July 2023

Formula E-Rome EPrix Round 13 and 14 Race Reports: Evans Goes From Hero To Zero As Dennis Takes Championship Lead

Round 13 and Round 14 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship took place in the Italian capital of Rome. As the heat in the air and the track heated up, the championship battle reached new levels with chaos on Saturday and Sunday.

Round 13:

The first round kicked off with a Jaguar front row; Sam Bird overtook his teammate Mitch Evans off of the line at the start. Sacha Fenestraz maintained P3 withSebastien Buemi falling down the order after contact with Rene Rast. Edo Mortara went for a dive and held up Nick Cassidy in the opening stages, but he fell down the order as championship leader Jake Dennis made his way up to P5. It was a poor race for Pascal Wehrlein, he started in the top ten – however, the title contender fell down to P13 due to damage. Evans tried to battle for P1 but was unsuccessful as Andre Lotterer’s Andretti collided with the barrier, bringing out the safety car for a couple of laps.

The pair of Jaguars battled again after the safety car restart and ended up swapping positions, with Evans taking the lead. Bird soon began to falter, he was overtaken by the Nissan rookie of Fenestraz as Rene Rast tried to pounce on the British driver. Rast was able to make a move on Sam Bird a lap later as Da Costa also moved up . Evans went for attack mode in the opening stages, ended up dropping behind Fenestraz as the rookie took control and the lead of the race. He was able to keep the lead as the first glut of drivers began to take the attack mode.

Mitch Evans, Jaguar TCS Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6, leads Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti Formula E, Porsche 99 X Electric Gen3
Image Credit: Formula E’s Media

After a brief yellow flag, the race was red flagged for a MONUMENTAL crash. Sam Bird lost the rear end of his car on a blind corner and crashed into the wall, ended up stranded in the middle of the track Buemi was the first car to pass but ended up being collected by the rear end of Bird’s car. Meanwhile, Mortara crashed into Bird’s stranded car. As replays show, the Mahindra of Di Grassi was also collected at the same place as Buemi on Bird’s car and he ended up crashing out too. After about 40 minutes, the cars lined up again after the red flag to resume the race with 13 drivers left in the race.

Rast lost positions at the start of the race to P4 with Dennis making his way to the podium positions, battling with Evans. Gunther and Rast went side by side after turn 4 but Cassidy managed to overtake the Maserati. Nico Muller also had a terrible race, colliding with Dan Ticktum and Jean-Eric Vergne, the former picked up damage. As the time ticked down, Dennis and Cassidy remained towards the front with their attack mode still intact. Fenestraz lead from Evans in P2 and Dennis in P3 but Fenestraz began to struggle in the closing stages. Dennis began to make moves, overtaking Evans to take P3 and then dispatching of Fenestraz to take control and lead the Rome E-Prix.

Sacha Fenestraz, Nissan Formula E Team, Nissan e-4ORCE 04. Image Credit: Formula E Media.

Fenestraz continued to falter, with Evans sweeping through on lap 16 and Cassidy following a few laps later to snatch the final podium positions. Dennis took his attack mode after building a sizable gap, managing to maintain the lead. Dennis and Cassidy began to exchange fastest laps – until Evans joined the fray setting the fastest lap on Lap 19. Evans and Dennis managed to pull a lead from Cassidy in the final podium position. Evans missed his attack mode in the latter stages, and had to retake it again as Cassidy made his way up into P2. Two laps were added to the end of the race, as Gunther slipped past a struggling Dennis to take the final spot on the podium.

Evans won the Rome E-Prix ahead of Cassidy making it a Kiwi 1-2 with Gunther in P3 and a home podium for Maserati. Dennis held onto P4, Vergne in P5, Muller took P6 with Wehrlein in P7, dropping down to P9 due to a 5 second time penalty. Nato and Sergio Sette Camara took P7 and P8 respectfullywith Fenestraz rounding out the top ten.

Mitch Evans, Jaguar TCS Racing, 1st position, with his trophy on the podium. Image Credit: Formula E Media

With Cassidy’s P2 finish, he took the lead of the championship by 5 points ahead of Dennis in P2. Mitch Evans leapfrogged Wehrlein to go to P3 in the championship.

Round 14:

Round 14 started off with the championship leader Nick Cassidy starting P2 with his closest championship competitor Jake Dennis on pole. Dennis held off the lead from the Envision Driver while Norman Nato held P3. However, Bird looked impressive, slipping past the Nissan man to slot into the podium positions. Jake Hughes, missing from the previous round due to injury, and Ticktum both managed to have excellent starts, picking their way through the field. Title contender Mitch Evans managed to get up amongst the action to take P3 in the early stages. He began to battle with Cassidy, but the Envision man held off the Jaguar. However, a lap later, Evans tried to make a move that failed, sending him out of contention and damaged his car which brought out a safety car and caused collisions behind them including Hughes, Rast and Vergne having a broken wing, forcing them all into the pits.

After the drama, it was a clean restart with many drivers immediately going for attack mode. Evans returned to the pits to retire his car after his collision with Cassidy, a major blow to his championship hopes. Nato tried to overtake Dennis shortly after but he got some damage after this attempt. Dennis wf the leaders to take attack mode, keeping his lead as Bird moved up to P2. Antonio Felix Da Costa locked up and ended up going off the track, ruining any chances of points as Buemi began to climb the order to P4.

Nick Cassidy, Envision Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6.
Image Credit: Formula E Media

Dennis managed to hold onto the lead after pressure from Bird, as Di Grassi was forced to retire after contact with the barrier. Both Mahindras retired on lap 13 as Bird activated his attack mode, dropping down to P4. Dennis and Nato went for their attack mode in the final stages, both keeping their positions. Buemi moved down to P6 as he took attack mode and both Maseratis took attack mode, retaining their positions which disrupted Buemi’s progress.

Cassidy never managed to get back onto solid ground after his incident with Evans, circulating near the back of the field, he was collected by Lotterer in the dying stages, a blow to his championship hopes. It was a quiet end to the race, as the pole sitter Jake Dennis claimed victory, ahead of Nato and Bird clinging on for a crucial P3. Mortara claimed P4 ahead of Buemi and previous podium winner Gunther. Wehrlein hung on for P7 ahead of Vandoorne and Ticktum, with Muller taking the final point.

Jake Dennis managed to extend his championship lead up to 24 points from Nick Cassidy in P2. Mitch Evans is 20 points behind his rumoured teammate in P3 and Pascal Wehrlein is arguably out of the title race.

What did you think of these last 2 races? Do you think Dennis can clinch the title in London or can someone mount a comeback?

25th June 2023

Formula E: Title Fight Heats Up In Portland As Dennis Takes The Championship Lead

The very first Portland E-Prix for Formula E saw drama in both qualifying and the race.

Qualifying:

Groups:

This session kicked off with Group A going out. 2 of the 4 chamionship contenders participating in this session: Pascal Wehrlein and Nick Cassidy. Gunther, Fenestraz, Ticktum and Vergne were quickest in the early parts of the session. As the timer ticked down, drivers kept on going faster and faster. Fenestraz, Vergne, Nato and Gunther were the top 4 as we entered the latter staged of the first group session. Mitch Evans, although he was not in this session, was under investigation for pit land procedures. 2 championship contenders Cassidy and Wehrlein both did NOT improve and were due to start on the 6th and 10th rows of the grid. Fenestraz, Vergne, Nato and Gunther(who made an error on his final lap) managed to make it through to the duels. Group A was finished and Group B was just getting underway.

As the light went green for Group B, another championship contender Mitch Evans was out of his car before the session even got underway. It appeared he had an issue with his car so he was unable to even participate in the session which was big for his championship hopes. It emerged that both DS Penskes were under investigation for a technical infringement which then meant both drivers of Stoffel Vandoorne and Jean-Eric Vergne would be forced to do a pitlane start. Roberto Mehri had a big lockup going into turn 1 but he managed to go into the run off area and rejoin the track. Mortara did something similar to his teammate and went onto the grass. He then pitted while Jake Dennis went fastest with a 1:09:856. It was then understood that a DC fault was the reason for the Mitch Evans not taking part in qualifying. Mortara managed to jump up to P2 which dropped Andre Lotterer out of the top 4. Both Sam Bird and Antonio Felix Da Costa managed to finish laps but only got up to P7 and P8 respectfully. The top 4 then went from Dennis, Mortara, Lotterer and Rast to Rast, Dennis, Hughes and Da Costa. They all went through to the duels.

Duels:
It was Nato and Vergne up first with Nato managing to beat the 2 time champion.

Fenestraz and Gunther were up next with Fenestraz having an advantage over the Maserati driver. Fenestraz then has a moment after the final corner and he managed to tap the wall and have a wiggle. He manages to beat Gunther by 0.100.

Hughes and Dennis went up against eachother for the third qualifying. Hughes first ahead by 0.056 but then Dennis managed to get a jump by 0.126. Dennis managed to keep that lead and beat the McLaren driver.

The final quarter final saw Rene Rast and Antonio Felix DaCosta go against eachother. Rast was 3 tenths down on the 2020 champion and it didn’t seem to go well. But then as they crossed the line, Rast managed to get through by other 1 tenth!

It was an all Nissan semi final 1 with Nato against Fenestraz. Nato managed to go a bit wide in turn 1 while Fenestraz managed to keep it tighter and be over 3 tenths up. Fenestraz then managed to get through to the final.

Rast and Dennis went uo against eachother with Dennis maintaining an early lead as they crossed the line to go into the final.

Dennis and Fenestraz went against eachother for the final with Dennis first being up by 0.011 tenths and then Fenestraz being up by 0.022 tenths. Fenestraz then tapped the wall at the final corner which costs him pole position. Jake Dennis took pole position and the championship lead.

Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti Formula E
Pole Position-Image Credit to Sam Bloxham

Race:
The lights went out in Portland and the McLarens managed to make a good start as well as Nick Cassidy who already made his way up to P5. Many moves happened in the early parts of this race with Mehri up to P15 and the Nissans still in 2nd and 3rd. Da Costa also managed to overtake Cassidy for P5. Muller managed to have broken front nose on his car. Cassidy then managed to get up to the lead from Dennis and Rast. A yellow flag then came out due to Mehri having a loss of power and stopping on track which brought out a safety car. At the safety car restart, Nato lead from Da Costa and Dennis. At that point, Da Costa managed to make 12 overtakes in the race so far. When the safety car came in, Fenestraz had to pit for a new front nose. The top 3 remained the same after the restart until Nato and Gunther managed to jump Cassidy with Mortara and Da Costa in P4 and P5.

The Safety Car was then deployed for a second time as the Abt Cupra of Nico Muller crashed at the walls of turn 9 and 10. His wing came off and went under the car. Thankfully, he is safe and got out of the car. The DS Penskes of Vergne and Vandoorne managed to get up to P13 and P15 after starting from the pitlane. Wehrlein also managed to get up to P1. The Safety Car remained out for many laps as we passed lap 15 out of 28. Then, Nato passed Cassidy while under the safety car. This was more than likely due to the race stewards reviewing the footage when the safety car came out.

Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti Formula E, Porsche 99 X Electric Gen3-Image Credit: Simon Galloway

We then went green again and MANY drivers decided to go for attack mode including Nato, Gunther, Mortara, Rast, Frijns, Hughes and Bird. While having attack mode, Gunther goes for an overtake on Dennis and managed to hold onto it. Every car was still stuck together on lap 18/28 while Vandoorne and Lotterer went through attack mode. Vergne then had a moment on the grass at the same place Muller went off but he managed to keep it on track. Wehrlein was then under investigation for a turn 1 incident. Both Vergne and Wehrlein then fell down the order as they took attack mode. Muller then got a 5 second penalty for leaving the track but he already retired from the race. Da Costa managed to overtake Cassidy for the lead of the race!

The race then became a matter of energy saving to get them to the end. This involved a lot of weaving from many drivers. Vergne managed to get his way up to P4 after a pit lane start but he was overusing on power and had to drop back to conserve in order to get to the end. As we entered the letter staged of the race, Evans, Wehrlein, Buemi and Sette Camara all had 1 attac mode remaining. 4 additional laps were then added due to the amount of laps we spent behind the safety car. In terms of energy at this point, Vergne has 24% while Cassidy had 28% and Da Costa 29%. Dennis then goes for a move around the outside and he gets Da Costa but not Cassidy as Da Costa fights back. Gunther manages to touch the grass and drop down to P8. With 3 laps remaining, Da Costa takes the lead of the E-Prix! Dennis lines up a move into turn 1 on Da Costa but he stays behind the Porsche driver.

Cassidy manages to hold onto the lead and he wins the Portland E-Prix! Jake Dennis finishes P2 and Antonio Felix Da Costa finished the podium positions in P3. Mitch Evans managed to go from P20 to P4, Sebastian Buemi finished in P5 with Maximilian Gunther in P6. Sam Bird crossed the line in P7 but he got a penalty for a collision and dropped down to P17. Lucas DiGrassi, Pascal Wehrlein and Normal Nato crossed the line P8, P9 and P10 but got points for P7, P8 and P9. Robin Frijns managed to get P10.

Formula E returns in a few weeks with the Rome E-Prix on the 15th and 16th of July with the season finale a few weeks after that in London for the London E-Prix on the 29th and 30th of July.

Who is your favourite to win the title?

21st June 2023

Formula E: Season 10 Provisional Calendar Announced with Tokyo Occupying a Slot

Tokyo has been confirmed to be hosting the 7th round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in 2024. It will be the first time the capital of Japan will have hosted an official FIA World Championship round.

The race will be held on March 30th and the track will feature the Tokyo Big Bay convention centre in the city.

Confirming the news today, the Governer of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike said “I am delighted by the official decision that Tokyo will host a Formula E race in March 2024.” They later went onto say “This race will be held around Tokyo Big Sight in Tokyo’s bay area, where developments are underway to become a sustainable next generaction city.”

Provisional Calendar

The provisional calendar is similar the season 9 calandar with pre season testing later this year in October with the cars hitting the track in Valencia from October 23rd to October 27th. There is then a 2 and a half month wait until we official get racing in January where the first race of the season will be in Mexico City on 13th January followed by a double header in Diriyah on January 26th and 27th. There will be a race on the February 10th and February 24th but these are locations have not been confirmed yet.

We return to Sao Paulo in Brazil for the season Sao Paulo E-Prix on March 16th with the teams then flying to Tokyo on March 30th. We then have a 2 week break before a double header in Rome on April 13th and April 14th before returning to Monaco on April 27th. We return to Berlin for a double header on May 11th and May 12th. Round 13 takes place on May 25th but a location is still to be determined.

Jakarta and Portland are rounds 14 and 15 and taking place on June 8th nd June 29th respectfully. We then round off Season 10 of Formula E with a double header in London taking place on July 20th and Jult 21st.

Speaking about Tokyo and the Season 10 Calendar, the Co Founder and Chief Championship Officer of Formula E Alberto Longo said “We are excited to take Formula E to the streets of Tokyo next season.” “The Season 10 Calendar represents our ongoing mission to create a dynamic schedule of new cities hosting eces for the first or second time like Tokyo, Sao Paulo and Portland alongside established hosts like Berlin, Rome, London, Monaco, Diriyah and now Jakarta.”

The Chief Executive Officer of Formula E Jeff Dodds said “Tokyo will be a highlight of our historic 10th season.” “We are also in advanced discussions with many more iconic world cities who are keen to host a Formula E race and create blocker world championship motorsport events with us.” Mr. Dodds confirms that he expects the new calendar to be updated later this year.

The Director of FIA Circuit Sport Department Marek Nawarecki said “This calendar is an illustration of Formula E’s continuing growth and promises to treat fans to another season of superb racing with the new GEN3 car, which has already produced countless crowd-pleasing battles.”

5th June 2023

Formula E Jakarta E-Prix: Gunther Takes Victory After Scoring Back to Back Poles

Round 10 and Round 11 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship brought many turns, drama and unexpected events.

Round 10:

Qualifying:

Qualifying for round 10 saw Dennis, Vandoorne, Vergne and Frijns get through from group A and Gunther, Wehrlein, Rast and Mortara go through from group B.

Quarter Final 1 saw the DS Penskes go head to head with Vergne taking victory over Vandoorne. It was Frijns and Dennis in quarter final 2 with Dennis winning over the Abt Cupra driver. Rene Rast went against Pascal Wehrlein in quarter final 3 with Wehrlein beating his fellow German. Both the Maserati drivers went against eachother for quarter final 4 with Gunther winning.

Vergne and Dennis went head to head for Semi final 1 and Jake Dennis won over the 2 time champion. Wehrlein and Gunther went to battle and Gunther won over the championship leader.

It was Jake Dennis vs Maximilian Gunther for the final and Gunther took his first pole position!

Race:

Round 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in 2023 took off with a clean getaway for the majority of drivers. Vandoorne managed to get ahead of Jake Dennis on the opening lap with the Envision of Sebastian Buemi falling down the order to P21.

Further on, David Beckmann (the stand in rookie for Andre Lotterer for this weekend) had a collision with Buemi and lost his front wing with Buemi suspecting he had a puncture. Wehrlein then took the lead of the race with DiGrassi, Mehri and Buemi taking their first attack mode. Attack mode was very different for this weekend. Drivers could go for 2 minutes then 6 minutes, 4 minutes in both stints or 6 minutes then 2 minutes. It was up to the drivers and teams whichever one they went with. Gunther and Dennis then joined the other drivers by taking attack mode.

Sebastien Buemi, Envision Racing, Jaguar I-TYPE 6 Image Credit: Simon Galloway.

When Wehrlein took attack mode for the second time, he dropped down to P3 with Gunther in P1 and Vandoorne in P2 respectively. When Vandoorne went for his second attack mode on lap 12, he rejoined at P4, ahead of Jean-Eric Vergne but far behind Dennis. Wehrlein then takes back the lead after Gunther goes for his attack mode. Dennis eventually takes his 6 minute attack mode and Muller joined him while Mortara went for 2 minutes. Dennis passed Vandoorne with 4 minutes remaining.

Towards the latter stages of the race, the championship leader Nick Cassidy nearly spins his car. He collided with Vergne in turn 1. Dennis also got ahead of Gunther for P2. Gunther tries to line up a move into turn 1 but he didn’t manage to make it stick. Cassidy had to take his final attack mode but he dropped to P7 with no one having attack mode ahead of him. Rene Rast had a spin at turn 16. Near the end of the race, Evans got hit by his teammate Sam Bird in turn 1. Bird then ended up bringing out another yellow flag on the final lap. Wehrlein then crossed the line as the winner! Jake Dennis finished in P2 with Maximilian Gunther in P3. Stoffel Vandoorne and Jean-Eric Vergne made it a DS Penske P4-P5 respectfully. Educardo Mortara finished P6, Championship leader Nick Cassidy finishes P7, Antonio Felix Da Costa finished P8 with Robin Frijns and Jake Hughes filling the final 2 points positions.

Pascal Wehrlein, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, 1st position, celebrates on the podium. Image Credit: LAT Images

Round 11:

Qualifying:

Qualifying for round 11 consisted of Dennis, Fenestraz, Evans and Hughes getting through from Group A and Gunther, Mortara, Wehrlein and Vandoorne through from group B.

Evans came out victorious over Fenestraz, Dennis beat Hughes in a Jake Vs Jake quarter final, both the Maserati drivers beat both Wehrlein and Vandoorne in the final 2 quarter finals.

Dennis and Mitch went head to head for semi final 1 and Dennis got through by 0.001 of a second. Mortara and Gunther went against eachother in semi final 2 with Gunther winning out.

It was Dennis vs Gunther in the final(the exact same as Round 10 Qualifying) and the result as the same as Gunther won pole position.

Race:

The race for Round 11 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in 2023 started off with 2 drivers being wheeled to the pitlane before the formation sequence even began. Sacha Fenestraz and Sam Bird had an issue on the grid which was not able to be fixed intime for the race. Gunther kept the lead as the lights went out. Gunther managed to keep the lead as the race went on, he took attackmode after his engineer told him to gain 4 tenths. This meant the German driver dropped down to P3.

Dennis then took attack mode after Gunther but he stayed ahead the Maserati driver. Evans was then leading the race but when he took attack mode, he fell behind both Dennis and Gunther. Behind Gunther and Evans was Vandoorne and Mortara in P4 and P5. Soon after, David Beckmann had to retire due to an incident with Di Grassi. Both Evans and Mortara managed to make p a place to P2 and P4 respectfully. Gunther then makes a move to go up to P2 which he manages to make stick. It was then revealed that Roberto Mehri was down to 65% energy while everyone else was down to about 70%. Gunther looks to go around the outside of Dennis.

Jake Dennis, Avalanche Andretti Formula E, Porsche 99 X Electric Gen3, leads Maximilian Gunther, Maserati MSG Racing, Maserati Tipo Folgore. Image Credit: Simon Galloway

Buemi then pits for a new front wing after getting damage. Jean Eric-Vergne follows him after a seperate incident. Dennis then takes attack mode but drops down to P3. Gunther takes his attack mode soon after Dennis but Gunther stays ahead of Dennis. Following this, Mortara, Da Costa, Nato and Vergne (who rejoined after pitting a few laps back). Further on, Gunther lead the race by over 2 seconds to Dennis. Vandoorne was hot on the heels of Evans for the final podium spot. Gunther’s teammate Educardo Mortara locked up going into turn 1 and fell down a few places.

Towards the final stages of the race, Wehrlein took attack mode and dropped back to P8. He then managed to get past Da Costa. Vandoorne then got overtaken by Fenestraz while Fenestraz’ teammate Norman Nato tries to make 2 overtakes at once but he doesn’t manage to make it stick. Wehrlein overtook Vandoorne to make it up to P6. Wehrlein started to struggle to catch up to the rest of the pack at the front of the field. There was no added laps to the race. Dennis tried to get past Gunther but it did not work as Maximilian Gunther won the Jakarta E-Prix! Jake Dennis finished P2 and Mitch Evans in P3. Sacha Fenestraz finished P4 with his teammate Norman Nato in p5. Pascal Wehrlein was in P6, Antonio Felix Da Costa in P7, Eduardo Mortara in P8, Stoffel Vandorne in P9 with Sebastian Buemi finishing the points positions.

In the championship standings, Pascal Wehrlein leads the way by 1 point to Jake Dennis in P2 with Nick Cassidy behind by 5 points to Dennis. Mitch Evans is 19 points behind Cassidy with Jean-Eric Vergen 12 points back from Evans with 97.