MEXICO CITY, Mexico — Avalanche Andretti Formula E team driver Jake Dennis produced a dominant drive to win the Hankook Mexico City E-Prix and the first race with the GEN3 car.
“The fans here have been sensational. In that final lap I could really hear them cheering. To start on the front row and then win by that much, with a Porsche one-two, big shoutout to my team,” Dennis said. “It was such a physical race. These cars are so hard to drive physically and with the lower grip as well, it makes everything more challenging. But it’s even more rewarding, especially when you win by five seconds.”
Dennis climbed from second on the starting grid to win the race ahead of TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team driver Pascal Wehrlein who started from sixth to finish second. Mahindra Racing’s Lucas di Grassi slipped past Julius Baer to finish third.
“It was a very very tough race. Of course we know in this race that the Porsche’s are really fast. Remember last year they won P1, P2 and they disappeared. It was impossible to hold Jake and Pascal, I was running low on energy but I tried to defend as much as I could,” di Grassi said. “In the end a podium is like a win for us with only three or four days in this car, there is so much potential to take it out further, so I am very happy.”
After the race, Dennis soaked in the adulation of the Foro Sol and the capacity crowd of more than 40,000 passionate fans who witnessed the historic debut of the GEN3. The Andretti driver made the race-winning move on lap 12, with the Brit taking advantage of an opening left by di Grassi.Â
From there, Dennis stretched his lead and through three Safety Car periods, he was able to run away with the race lead, eventually heading home Wehrlein by seven seconds. As last year’s winner in Mexico, Wehrlein pushed to an eventual 11-second margin on third-place driver di Grassi, having clambered up from sixth on the grid. Both drive Porsche-powered cars, with the German manufacturer finishing up with four of their powertrains in the top 10.
Although Di Grassi started in pole, he found himself on the defensive entering the final third of the race and it took all the Brazilian’s guile to hold off the attentions of NEOM McLaren’s Jake Hughes over the closing stages. Eventually, the rookie would be preoccupied with Lotterer looming in his mirrors, relieving the pressure on di Grassi.
Lotterer, who moved to the Porsche-powered Andretti team in the off-season, went past Hughes’ McLaren on the inside at the hairpin on the final lap. However, a fifth-place finish was more than respectable for Hughes’ debut. The rookie has impressed since he took the McLaren seat during testing in Valencia. Envision Racing’s Sebastien Buemi took sixth.
Season 6 champion António Félix da Costa added to Porsche’s tally with seventh spot on the day, fighting his way up through the points positions late-race with a belated Attack Mode. Mitch Evans quietly claimed eighth for Jaguar TCS Racing, Nick Cassidy made it two Envision Racing cars in the points with ninth, while reigning champion Stoffel Vandoorne could only steer his DS Penske to a single point from 14th on the grid.
Dennis sealed the TAG Heuer Fastest Lap.
The second and third rounds of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will take place in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, on Jan. 27-28.
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