Formula E: Jake Dennis claims first victory of Season 9 in Mexico
Avalanche Andretti’s Jake Dennis produced an energy management masterclass to win the first race of Formula E’s Gen3 era.
The Brit managed the race and the conditions perfectly to climb from second on the grid, pipping Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein and Mahindra Racing’s Lucas Di Grassi.
With Di Grassi claiming pole earlier in the day, Dennis wasted no time in his move to the front, with the Andretti drive eventually making his way past Di Grassi on lap 12.
From there, Dennis showed no signs of slowing down and all-but cantered across the finish line, picking up the fastest lap in the process, too.
Dennis, who also sealed a win in Mexico last season, peeled away from the rest of the chasing pack, finishing seven seconds ahead of Werhelin and 11 seconds in front of Di Grassi.
It was a good day at the office for Dennis’ teammate, Andre Lotterer, who just missed out on a podium himself, finishing in fourth ahead of McLaren’s Jake Hughes, who produced a storming drive on his Formula E debut.
Envision’s Seb Buemi, who moved from Nissan this year, finished in sixth ahead of Porsche’s Antonio Felix da Costa. Jaguar’s Mitch Evans started his campaign with in eight placed finish, coming in ahead of Envision’s Nick Cassidy and reigning World Champion Stoffel Vandoorne of DS Penske.
“To win by that margin, to start on the front row and get a Porsche [powertrain] one-two is absolutely incredible,” Dennis said about his fourth Formula E victory. “Big shout out to my team.
“These cars are so hard to drive physically. Obviously, with a lower grip as well, it just makes everything so challenging but even more rewarding when you win you win by 7.5 seconds.
“The fans here have just been sensational on that final lap. I could really hear them cheering.”