After the unpredictable season opener back in December, Formula E kicked off in 2025 with a race that was almost certainly going to be full of plot twists for our drivers. Coming into the New Year, NEOM McLaren sat at the top of the team standings, followed by Jaguar and Porsche, with top contending teams Nissan and Andretti on nil points alongside Lola Yamaha ABT after misfortune struck them all in Brazil. At the top of the drivers standings after the first round was Mitch Evans, after a spectacular drive from last to first.
But, as any returning Formula E fan will know, these standings can – and will – change in the blink of an eye.
The morning’s qualifying session went in favor of Porsche, with both their drivers making it through to the final duel. It was Pascal Wehrlein who came out on top, securing pole position ahead of his teammate, Antonio Felix da Costa, and after Wehrlein’s terrifying crash last month bringing his first race of the season to an abrupt and premature end, the defending World Champion would certainly be looking to hold on to his starting position and bring as many points home as he could.
Unlike the season opener, the start of this race went off without a hitch. Wehrlein led the first lap, with Da Costa and Vergne hot on his tail. However, at the other end of the pack, those watching at home saw Dan Ticktum drop right down to the bottom of the field on the side graphic, leaving everyone wondering what had happened to the British driver.
Before we were shown the replay of what had happened to Ticktum, we saw Oliver Rowland, another British driver, climb up into P3 with Vergne and then Dennis behind him. It was then shown that one of the Lola Yamaha ABT’s had caused the chain reaction which had led to Ticktum’s misfortune – Maloney had tapped the Maserati of Jake Hughes, which then in turn led to Ticktum’s Cupra Kiro spinning around and facing in entirely the wrong direction.
Lap 4 saw the first attack mode commence from Taylor Barnard, who you might remember as being the driver who now holds the record for the youngest person to stand on the podium in Formula E history. The following lap saw several more attack modes being used, and Rowland came very close to making a move on Da Costa but was unsuccessful – for now.
During lap 6, both Mahindras were showing promising pace, defending against the two McLarens behind them, however Sam Bird’s attack mode saw him make contact with the Mahindra of Edo Mortara which left the #48 car with a puncture and sent him limping to the pitlane; undoubtedly not how the Mahindra driver planned on spending his birthday weekend. Race control notified the viewers on lap 9 that they were investigating the incident, and Bird was later handed a 5 second penalty.
On lap 11, Bird then found himself side by side with the other Mahindra, the two of them getting a little too close for comfort. However, this near-miss for Bird opened the door for Nico Mueller’s Andretti, passing the McLaren with ease whilst using his attack mode, then passing de Vries on the following lap. Mueller’s teammate, Jake Dennis, still sat comfortably near the front of the pack in P5, though it went without saying that both Andretti drivers would be vying for the most points possible to take them out of the bottom of the team standings.
Before the end of lap 12, Mueller had caught up to his teammate, the two of them now in P5 and P6, and the following lap saw the two Andretti’s in a 2v1 with Vergne for P4. Dennis tried to make the move first but was unsuccessful, so as Mueller’s attack mode was ending, Dennis activated his. This meant that shortly afterwards he was able to pass Vergne, even if that meant almost giving the back of Rowland’s car a little kiss with his front wing. Wehrlein then took his chance to use attack mode, even if that did mean giving up the lead to his teammate for the time being.
It wasn’t long then before the top 3 was being completely shaken up for what felt like the first time all race. Wehrlein took the lead back, however Rowland was now behind him in P2 with Da Costa falling back to P3. This wasn’t the case for much longer, however, as on the first corner of lap 15, Dennis also passed Da Costa, still absolutely flying in attack mode and looking to catch up with the two drivers remaining ahead. Shortly after, Rowland dropped to P4, with Da Costa still behind him, but Dennis and Vergne were now P2 and P3 respectively – not to mention that both of them were also still in attack mode. So if there was ever proof that the attack mode can make a world of difference, take this as said proof.
For those lovely blog readers who are new to Formula E, here’s a quick reminder – attack mode is crucial in on-track battling. When the attack mode is activated, the car receives a boost of energy, meaning their total power output is upped to 350kW as opposed to the usual 300kW. So if you’re a driver in a Formula E race and your team radio pings to let you know the driver behind you is currently in attack mode – buckle up, because you’ll need to defend for your life!
Lap 16 gave me the moment I personally had been waiting for – Jake Dennis was finally able to take the lead, something very important to the team and his fans after his car’s technical fault last race. Wehrlein stayed hot on his tail, however, with Vergne still firmly planted behind him. Rowland in P4 was in attack mode and so was Da Costa, who had fallen back to P6 but was about to change that very soon.
By lap 19, just past the halfway point of the race, Da Costa had climbed back up to take the lead for the next few laps, until Dennis took it back with the fastest lap at the end of lap 22. The top 5 at this point was now Dennis, Da Costa, Wehrlein, Mueller and Evans – the latter being our first race winner of the season, certainly looking to hold on to his early championship lead. Lap 23 saw Dennis and da Costa swap places again, but the top 3 were all in attack mode so there was every chance this could change again, and it did – Wehrlein was able to pass Dennis during lap 24. This may have been something to do with what Dennis then informed his team of on the radio a lap later (much to my dismay) – that his front left tyre was dead.
Further back in the race, on lap 26, Frijns – who’s season opener last month was over before it even began – was able to jump several positions into P16, but the three cars then ahead of him were all also in attack mode so this stopped him climbing any higher for the time being. Then, on lap 28, spectators saw an all-too familiar sight – the dreaded yellow flag.
Beckmann had been involved in a small collision, leaving him unable to get the car going again and rendering him a danger to the other cars still on the track. This flag could not have been more poorly timed for just over half the grid; twelve drivers had their attack modes interrupted by the incident, which then required a safety car. Thankfully, Beckmann was okay after his contact with Maloney, and the race was able to commence again at the end of lap 30… for less than a lap before it was required again.
Coming into lap 31, Rowland was able to overtake Dennis for P3 and then both Porsches for the lead of the race, much to the audible excitement of the crowd at the track. But suddenly, Mitch Evans plummeted on the graphics, all the way down to P21 behind Mortara, who was still lagging behind after his unfortunate earlier contact with Bird. It seemed that Evans’ hopes of holding onto the championship lead this weekend were squashed, and it was a further dampener on the spirits of the Jaguar team after earlier that day, Evans’ teammate, Nick Cassidy, had his lap time deleted in his group qualifying session and therefore lost his place in the duels. Evans' broken car meant the safety car made a swift second appearance.
After what surely felt like the longest safety car of Oliver Rowland’s life, the race was green flagged towards the end of lap 32 and it was time to go racing again. With no added laps, Rowland had just four laps remaining to keep the lead, the Porsches still nipping at his heels. Back towards the middle of the pack, the seven cars with remaining attack mode had all activated it now, but with very little time remaining to try and score some points, it was sure to be a flat-out race until the very end. Whilst all this was happening, viewers at home were shown a replay of the incident that had damaged Evans’ Jaguar and ended his race; a collision with the back of Mueller’s Andretti; the latter of which was now hanging on to the penultimate points position.
The final lap commenced, and it was going to be one of the most important laps of the race for Rowland. His car had 3% of its remaining energy left, and Da Costa had 5%, so things were tense. Rowland’s gap from Da Costa on the prior lap had been half a second, though it looked as if the Porsche was getting closer and closer to the Nissan with each passing second. Da Costa tried desperately throughout the final lap to look for an opportunity to take back the lead last-second but it wasn’t meant to be for the Portuguese driver; it was Barnsley-born Rowland who passed the chequered flag to take his first victory in Mexico City, and his fourth career win overall. Da Costa finished behind him in second, and Wehrlein took the final podium spot, with Dennis behind him just missing out, but still finishing in a very respectable fourth place. Vergne, Guenther, Vandoorne, De Vries, Mueller and Barnard completed the point-scoring positions, with Barnard earning an extra point for driving the fastest lap.
However, as the top 3 drivers celebrated their achievements in the race, there were investigations into the race going on behind the scenes, and after the completion of the race there were more penalties handed out. Dan Ticktum was kicked whilst he was already down with a fine for speeding in the pitlane, and Buemi, Mortara, di Grassi and Barnard were all given time penalties. The latter meant that Barnard lost both his fastest lap point and his P10; promoting Jake Hughes from P11 into the points, and Jake Dennis thus inheriting the fastest lap time merit.
You’ll probably be both pleased and saddened to know that you have a month to recover from this month’s race in Mexico City. Formula E returns on Valentine’s Day, racing in Jeddah on both the 14th and 15th of February in the first double header of the season. Two races means twice as many points, so will we see the championship lead change hands again? We’ll find out in rounds 3 and 4 of the FIA Formula E world championship, coming to a TV screen near you.
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