The first Formula E race of 2025 launched in spectacular style at a sold-out Mexico City E-Prix, delivering a thrilling combination of strategy, overtakes, and unexpected twists. Porsche’s strong performance set the tone for the race, but it was Oliver Rowland’s remarkable win that stole the spotlight.
Pascal Wehrlein made Formula E history in Mexico City qualifying, becoming the first driver to secure four pole positions at a single venue. The reigning champion navigated through intense head-to-head duels, ultimately defeating teammate António Félix Da Costa to lock out an all-Porsche front row. The qualifying session was marked by technical infractions and investigations, including Sébastien Buemi’s disqualification for tire pressure irregularities and Nick Cassidy’s deleted lap time. Early favourite Mitch Evans and the rest of the field battled through challenging conditions to set the grid for 2025’s opening race.
Lights out
As the lights turned green, Pascal Wehrlein covered his Porsche teammate Antonio Félix da Costa, ensuring he maintained his lead into Turn 1. Oliver Rowland, starting strong for Nissan, faced immediate pressure from Jake Dennis, while Nick Cassidy surged forward, overtaking both Envision cars in a swift and calculated move.
Jean-Éric Vergne (JEV) briefly stole third from Rowland midway through the opening lap, but Rowland reclaimed the position at the start of Lap 2. Meanwhile, Wehrlein maintained a commanding presence at the front, with Da Costa hot on his heels, applying constant pressure.
Further back, chaos unfolded when Dan Ticktum was spun sideways by Jake Hughes after a tap from Zane Maloney. Ticktum tumbled to the back of the pack, while Maloney, who started in ninth, dropped to fifteenth and reported damage. Despite the early setback, both drivers soldiered on.
Not the start Dan Ticktum wanted 😩
— Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) January 11, 2025
Zane Maloney tags the back of the @KiroRaceCo driver in the Stadium Section. @Hankook_Sport #MexicoCityEPrix pic.twitter.com/OcFT9vorOa
McLaren in the fight
Taylor Barnard, who did not have a great Qualifying session, was the first driver to go for ATTACK mode, making his way up the ladder. He tailed Nyck De Vries, who was working hard to defend his position. Sam Bird followed suit and attacked De Vries with an extra 50 kilowatts.
After De Vries tried to win his position back, Bird collides with Mortara, leading to a 5-second penalty for the British driver.
Rowland was getting impatient, as he looked to make a move on Da Costa, nearly opening the gap for JEV’s DS Penske. Nico Müller made gained places, overtaking Bird on Lap 11. However, he made a gap for Dennis to take his ATTACK mode.
Lap 14 saw Da Costa help Wehrlein with ATTACK mode but suddenly dropped to sixth, when Rowland took advantage of the situation. After an incredible battle with Wehrlein, Dennis was in the lead. The pair went side-by-side and Dennis aggressively took the lead.
It was short-lived for the British driver, as Da Costa took his ATTACK mode, blasting past Rowland to take third. Wehrlein gave his teammate the space to get second, but Dennis was holding off the Portuguese driver, until he sped past by the run into the hairpin.
A battle for the lead
Wehrlein deployed his second dose of ATTACK mode, opting for a six-minute power boost as he looked to regain the front. Dropping momentarily to fifth, the Porsche driver swiftly overtook Mitch Evans’ Jaguar and Nico Müller, making steady progress up the grid. Dennis responded by activating his second ATTACK mode, launching an aggressive attack on Da Costa to reclaim the lead.
Despite the temporary setback, Da Costa fought back fiercely, utilising his remaining power boost to storm past Dennis into Turn 5, reclaiming first place. Wehrlein, now up to second, was right on his teammate’s tail, hunting down Dennis and Rowland to solidify Porsche’s dominance.
David Beckmann’s miscalculated overtaking attempt on Lucas di Grassi resulted in steering damage and forced his Kiro car to a halt in the stadium section. The incident prompted a safety car deployment on Lap 27, freezing the order and halting attacks by Rowland, Vergne, and Guenther, who were mid-boost.
How David Beckmann's race came to an end @Hankook_Sport #MexicoCityEPrix pic.twitter.com/0RtxxP6Rvy
— Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) January 11, 2025
As racing resumed on Lap 31, Rowland wasted no time, executing a bold move past Wehrlein for second and setting his sights on Da Costa. The Nissan driver aggressively tapped Da Costa’s Porsche before seizing the lead, only for the safety car to be deployed again after Mitch Evans crashed into Müller at Turn 11.
With just two laps to go, Rowland led the restart with Da Costa and Wehrlein close behind. Both Porsches maintained an energy advantage of one percent over Rowland, keeping the pressure on the Nissan driver. As Da Costa sought an opportunity to pass, Rowland held his ground, displaying calm under pressure and superb defensive driving.
A brilliant win for Oliver Rowland in Mexico
Despite Wehrlein’s efforts to close the gap on his teammate, Rowland held firm to take a hard-earned victory—the first win of the 2025 season. Da Costa finished second, with Wehrlein completing the podium in third.
Jake Dennis finished fourth, narrowly missing the podium after a strong and aggressive drive. Jean-Éric Vergne and Maximilian Günther followed closely in fifth and sixth, while Stoffel Vandoorne, Nyck de Vries, Nico Müller, and Taylor Barnard rounded out the top ten. Barnard secured the final point-scoring position by timing his second ATTACK mode perfectly, making a late-race push to edge out competitors.
Despite narrowly missing victory, Da Costa left Mexico City as the early championship leader, with Porsche taking an initial advantage in the teams’ and manufacturers’ standings.
Post-race penalties
Post-race investigations revealed ATTACK mode violations by multiple drivers. Sebastien Buemi and Edoardo Mortara received 10-second time penalties for failing to correctly activate their final ATTACK mode. Lucas di Grassi was handed a drive-through penalty, converted to a time penalty, for improper use of the power boost. Dan Ticktum has been fined €1.000 for speeding in the pit lane, while Taylor Barnard has been penalised with a 5-second penalty. This bumps up Jake Hughes to tenth. The fastest lap now belongs to Jake Dennis. Barnard was also given 1 penalty point on his licence for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
These penalties shuffled the final order slightly but did not impact the dominant performances of Rowland, Da Costa, and Wehrlein.
