FE | Race | Miami E-Prix | Wehrlein wins a chaotic race - Motorsport

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The fifth race of the 2025 FE season proved an exciting and chaotic one, with a three-car crash causing the Miami E-Prix ending as a four-lap sprint. Despite a promising start on pole position, Normal Nato failed to capitalise, and though he crossed the line first, he finished P6, after being handed a penalty for ATTACK MODE misusage. António Félix da Costa, however, having started P3, put in an impressive performance, taking the lead before the race-defining Red Flag. Unfortunately, with no ATTACK MODE remaining for the final laps of the race, he ultimately finished P3, behind Lucas di Grassi and teammate Pascal Wehrlein, who claimed the win despite crossing the line second.

Nissan’s Nato starts on pole, alongside Andretti’s Dennis

Nissan Formula E Team’s Norman Nato stormed to pole position in Qualifying at the 2025 Miami E-Prix, delivering a standout performance at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The Frenchman edged out his former teammate, Andretti Formula E’s Jake Dennis, by just 0.113 seconds to secure the first pole of his Formula E career. Along with a front-row start, Nato earned his first three championship points of the season.

Starting from the second row were TAG Heuer Porsche’s António Félix da Costa in third and Envision Racing’s Robin Frijns in fourth. Behind them, Mahindra Racing’s Nyck de Vries lined up in fifth alongside Maserati MSG Racing’s Stoffel Vandoorne in sixth on Row 3.

Lola Yamaha ABT’s Lucas di Grassi started seventh, sharing Row 4 with Cupra Kiro’s David Beckmann in eighth. Rounding out the top ten were TAG Heuer Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein in ninth and Mahindra’s Edoardo Mortara in tenth.

Further down the grid, NEOM McLaren’s Taylor Barnard started eleventh next to Envision’s Sébastien Buemi in twelfth. Jaguar TCS Racing teammates Nick Cassidy and Mitch Evans occupied P13 and P14, respectively. Cupra Kiro’s Dan Ticktum and Nissan’s Oliver Rowland took positions 15 and 16 on Row 8.

Meanwhile, DS Penske’s Jean-Éric Vergne and Andretti’s Nico Müller started on Row 9 in P17 and P18. NEOM McLaren’s Sam Bird and Lola Yamaha’s Zane Maloney followed on Row 10, starting from P19 and P20. Finally, Maserati’s Jake Hughes and DS Penske’s Maximilian Günther made up the back row in P21 and P22.

Officials handed Maximilian Günther a five-place grid penalty for his collision with António Félix da Costa in Jeddah. Meanwhile, the drivers under investigation for parc fermé infringements after Qualifying escaped any penalties.

Nych de Vries claims early lead

With Nato starting from pole and a tightly packed, competitive grid behind him, the stage was set for a thrilling showdown at the Miami E-Prix.

As the lights went out, Norman Nato launched cleanly off the line, holding onto the lead into Turn 1. Behind him, António Félix da Costa immediately snatched second from Jake Dennis. However, it was Nyck de Vries who made the most dramatic move off the line—slicing through the pack, overtaking Dennis, da Costa, and Nato to seize the lead in a sensational opening lap. Da Costa responded swiftly, reclaiming second from Nato, while Robin Frijns also capitalized, diving past Nato on Lap 2 to move into third.

Further back, Sébastien Buemi, who had started twelfth, carved his way through the field with precision and aggression. By Lap 2, the Envision Racing driver had climbed into fifth, while Taylor Barnard lost his lap time for exceeding track limits at Turn 12. On Lap 4, Buemi continued his charge by overtaking Frijns for fourth, while Cupra Kiro’s David Beckmann pushed into eleventh, just ahead of Edoardo Mortara.

Nato reclaims lead on Lap 5

Nato quickly rediscovered his rhythm, charging past both Frijns and da Costa to reclaim second place. On Lap 5, he completed a bold move on de Vries to retake the lead. Meanwhile, Pascal Wehrlein moved into eleventh, overtaking Beckmann, who then lost another position to Jean-Éric Vergne and dropped to thirteenth.

Taylor Barnard, who had started in P11, climbed back to sixth, with Stoffel Vandoorne close behind in seventh. Mortara held eighth, while Jake Dennis, after starting on the front row—found himself languishing in ninth. Nick Cassidy, still stuck in P15, lost his Lap 6 time due to another track limits violation at Turn 12.

As the race began to settle, drivers shifted their focus to tyre and energy management under the sweltering Miami heat, leading to slower lap times. Even so, Mortara pressed on, moving up to fifth ahead of Barnard. Buemi, after a strong charge earlier in the race, slipped down to seventh as the pack reshuffled.

On Lap 9, Vergne ran wide onto the grass following light contact with Lucas di Grassi, losing several positions and falling to P16. Fortunately, he rejoined the circuit without any visible damage.

De Vries reclaims lead at midpoint of race

The action intensified on Lap 11 as lap times picked up and the field bunched up once more. Drivers jostled for every inch of track, with Nyck de Vries and Taylor Barnard going wheel-to-wheel in a tense scrap for sixth. Although they narrowly avoided contact, Barnard lost momentum, slipping to eighth and then ninth as his NEOM McLaren teammate swept past.

On Lap 12, de Vries surged past Nato to snatch back the lead, just as Stoffel Vandoorne muscled his way into third place ahead of da Costa. The Porsche driver responded immediately on Lap 13, retaking third from Vandoorne to stay in podium contention.

Further down the field, both Nick Cassidy and David Beckmann received black-and-white warning flags for repeated track limits violations, particularly at Turn 12. Beckmann’s troubles continued as he suffered a tyre issue and had to pit, which dropped him to the back of the field. As the midfield battle intensified, several drivers went two- and even three-wide into the chicane, turning the Miami E-Prix into a full-throttle tactical brawl.

Müller top on Lap 15

Nico Müller, who had started down in P17, briefly found himself leading the race on Lap 15 after a well-timed energy strategy. However, his time at the front didn’t last long—da Costa, Mortara, and Nato quickly overtook him, pushing him down to fourth. Pascal Wehrlein then overtook Nato to climb into third, while Lucas di Grassi slipped by Müller to take fifth.

By Lap 16, Wehrlein continued his charge, snatching the lead from da Costa as di Grassi climbed to third. Meanwhile, David Beckmann, who had earlier pitted for suspected tyre issues, was forced to retire from the race due to an undisclosed technical problem.

De Vries brings out the Yellow Flag

On Lap 17, Nyck de Vries came to a sudden stop at Turn 3, triggering a Yellow Flag that quickly escalated into a full Safety Car deployment. Although de Vries managed to restart his car after a full-system reboot, the delay dropped him to the back of the field. With 21 drivers still in the race, all eyes turned to the looming restart and the final stages of the Miami E-Prix.

Da Costa takes the lead before three-car crash brings out the Red Flag

With just eight laps remaining, António Félix da Costa seized the lead, overtaking Pascal Wehrlein, who was struggling with 4% less energy than his rivals. However, da Costa’s efforts to build a lead were quickly halted. A major crash at the chicane triggered the deployment of the Safety Car once again.

The incident involved Mitch Evans, Maximilian Günther, and Jake Hughes, all of whom retired from the race following the heavy collision. With debris scattered across the track and safety a concern, officials red-flagged the race on Lap 21, bringing the Miami E-Prix to a dramatic halt. This did not, however, spare Cassidy a five-second time penalty for track limits.

2025 FE Miami E-Prix race ends as a four-lap sprint

The Red Flag proved advantageous for drivers with ATTACK Mode, but for da Costa, it created a challenge, as he had activated it just before the interruption. With a four-lap sprint ahead, the remaining drivers faced a tough finish, as some risked post-race penalties for not using their ATTACK Mode within the race.

Although da Costa lacked ATTACK Mode, he had plenty of energy heading into the final stint. With four laps to go, the grid reformed for a standing start, with Wehrlein joining his teammate on the front row.

As the lights went out, da Costa held the lead, while Mortara moved into second, passing Wehrlein as a traffic jam formed at the ATTACK Mode zone. Mortara briefly surged ahead of da Costa, but after losing control, he dropped back, allowing da Costa to maintain the lead. Wehrlein soon claimed the lead, with Frijns also getting past to take second. Nato followed, moving into third. Despite the risk of penalties, the leading drivers showed no signs of slowing down. Da Costa fought back but, without ATTACK Mode, gradually fell down the order.

Wehrlein takes the win after chaotic end to the race

As the race reached its final lap, many drivers still had excess ATTACK Mode, leaving the Stewards in a tricky position when it came to post-race penalties.

Nato crossed the line ahead of Wehrlein to claim the race win. However, with five drivers, including Nato, finishing with unused ATTACK Mode, Wehrlein could potentially be declared the winner. Frijns finished third, followed by Rowland in fourth, Bird in fifth, di Grassi in sixth, da Costa in seventh, Barnard in eighth, Müller in ninth, and Mortara in tenth.

In the aftermath, Frijns, Barnard, Bird, Nato, and Rowland all received 10-second time penalties for improper ATTACK Mode usage. As a result, Wehrlein was declared the winner, with di Grassi in second and da Costa rounding out the top three.