Jaguar Overtakes Porsche and McLaren in Brazilian Chaos

The first race of the 2024-2025 Formula E Championship allowed Jaguar to shine beyond social media.

The 11th season of Formula E, the 100% electric World Championship, kicked off with a bang, and Jaguar did not miss the chance to showcase itself. Well, a sporting opportunity after having dominated the media with a quite disruptive new style and image orientation…

The new Gen3 Evo single-seaters made their debut on the São Paulo circuit for the first time, ready to fight. Defending champion Pascal Wehrlein took pole position for the first race of the season, ahead of Oliver Rowland and Jake Dennis. Wehrlein didn’t know that he was about to give us the biggest scare of the weekend!

From the very first moments, things did not go as planned. Robin Frijns, driver for the Envision team, reported a brake problem even before the start and had to withdraw, causing a delay of a few minutes. When the race finally started, chaos quickly ensued. On the third corner, rookie David Beckmann collided with Nico Müller, who in turn propelled Jake Hughes into the wall. Müller’s and Hughes’s cars were immobilized, forcing the safety car to intervene.

After the restart, the two Porsche cars, led by Wehrlein and Antonio Felix da Costa, took the lead, and the race stabilized. However, on the 21st lap, the apparent calm was shattered. Andretti’s car, driven by Jake Dennis, stopped in the chicane at the first turn, causing a delay of over twenty minutes. The weight and complexity of the vehicle made its removal particularly difficult.

The race resumed with a standing start, but strategy played a role, with drivers like Jean-Eric Vergne and Oliver Rowland, who had activated their Attack mode before the interruption, at a disadvantage. Meanwhile, others, such as Jaguar and McLaren drivers, took advantage.

With only five laps to go, a second red flag was waved. Coming out of the first chicane, Nick Cassidy sent Max Günther’s DS Penske into the wall before flipping Wehrlein’s Porsche onto its roof. Thankfully, no serious injuries; the German driver emerged unscathed after a huge scare.

The race finished after a rolling start and four additional laps to make up for the interruptions. Starting from the last position, Mitch Evans took the lead ahead of Antonio Felix da Costa and the two McLarens. Despite having less energy than his opponents, the New Zealander secured his 13th career victory driving his Jaguar and took the lead in the championship.

On the French side, Jean-Eric Vergne finished 9th, while Norman Nato, despite crossing the line in 6th place, was penalized for a grid position violation.