Mahindra Racing struggled with qualifying and were unable to score any points at Jakarta
The Jakarta E-Prix double header provided yet another twist in the 2023 Formula E championship, with Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein re-taking the championship lead as Envision’s Nick Cassidy struggled.
Max Guenther also handed Maserati their first world championship single-seater win since Juan Manuel Fangio’s F1 German GP win in 1957.
- Wehrlein wins Round 10; Dennis and Guenther on podium
- Guenther wins Round 11; Dennis and Evans on podium
- Cassidy drops to third in championship
Wehrlein bounces back
Wehrlein lost the championship lead to Cassidy after the Monaco E-Prix, but he bounced back to win the first Jakarta race. Starting from third on the grid, he quickly moved up to second off the line and then passed polesitter Guenther for the lead on Lap 4.
The top three drivers – Wehrlein, followed by Guenther and Andretti’s Jake Dennis – remained within striking distance of each other throughout the race. Dennis found a way past Guenther and then attempted to pass Wehrlein into Turn 1. But the Porsche driver held on to score his third win this season and reinvigorate his championship fight.
Guenther clinches Maserati’s first Formula E win
Guenther picked up back-to-back pole positions in Jakarta. However, he lost the lead to Dennis early into the second race. By using his attack mode activation later than Dennis, he was able to jump the Andretti driver and reclaim the lead.
This time around, he held on to the position and delivered Maserati their first-ever Formula E win. Jaguar TCS Racing’s Mitch Evans rounded out the podium in third place.
2023 Formula E championship standings
Cassidy endured a torrid race after a costly slip while trying to pass Wehrlein on Lap 20. He dropped to the back of the field with a damaged car and could only limp to 18th place.
Wehrlein’s sixth place result in the second race was enough for him to once again take the championship lead. He’s now one point clear of Dennis, while Cassidy has dropped to third overall, six points off the lead.
No points for Mahindra
Mahindra Racing had a new driver line-up at Jakarta, with Roberto Merhi replacing Oliver Rowland. However, both Merhi and Lucas di Grassi struggled in qualifying and didn’t score any points.
Reflecting on their performance, Mahindra Racing CEO Frederic Bertrand said, “We would have hoped for more, but we now know that this season is turning into more of a learning and rebuilding year. Lucas did a great job making up multiple places during both races and Roberto settled into the team and the car more and more each session.”
“Of course, we still have a lot of work to do, and we don’t pretend that it is going to be an easy end to the season results wise, but thankfully our team has a good fighting spirit and we will not give up,” he added.
Formula E will now head to USA for the inaugural Portland E-Prix on June 24.
2023 Jakarta E-Prix results
| Jakarta Round 10 results | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pos | Driver | Team |
| 1 | Pascal Wehrlein | Porsche |
| 2 | Jake Dennis | Andretti |
| 3 | Max Guenther | Maserati |
| 4 | Stoffel Vandoorne | DS Penske |
| 5 | Jean-Eric Vergne | DS Penske |
| 6 | Edoardo Mortara | Maserati |
| 7 | Nick Cassidy | Envision Racing |
| 8 | Antonio Felix da Costa | Porsche |
| 9 | Robin Frijns | Abt Cupra |
| 10 | Jake Hughes | McLaren |
| 11 | Nico Muller | Abt Cupra |
| 12 | Norman Nato | Nissan |
| 13 | Dan Ticktum | Nio 333 |
| 14 | Lucas di Grassi | Mahindra Racing |
| 15 | Rene Rast | McLaren |
| 16 | David Beckmann | Andretti |
| 17 | Sergio Sette Camara | Nio 333 |
| 18 | Roberto Merhi | Mahindra Racing |
| 19 | Sacha Fenestraz | Nissan |
| 20 | Sam Bird | Jaguar TCS Racing |
| 21 | Sebastien Buemi | Envision Racing |
| NC | Mitch Evans | Jaguar TCS Racing |
| Jakarta Round 11 results | ||
|---|---|---|
| Pos | Driver | Team |
| 1 | Max Guenther | Maserati |
| 2 | Jake Dennis | Andretti |
| 3 | Mitch Evans | Jaguar TCS Racing |
| 4 | Sacha Fenestraz | Nissan |
| 5 | Norman Nato | Nissan |
| 6 | Pascal Wehrlein | Porsche |
| 7 | Antonio Felix da Costa | Porsche |
| 8 | Edoardo Mortara | Maserati |
| 9 | Stoffel Vandoorne | DS Penske |
| 10 | Sebastien Buemi | Envision Racing |
| 11 | Dan Ticktum | Nio 333 |
| 12 | Nico Muller | Abt cupra |
| 13 | Robin Frijns | Abt Cupra |
| 14 | Lucas di Grassi | Mahindra Racing |
| 15 | Rene Rast | McLaren |
| 16 | Jean-Eric Vergne | DS Penske |
| 17 | Roberto Merhi | Mahindra Racing |
| 18 | Nick Cassidy | Envision Racing |
| NC | Jake Hughes | McLaren |
| NC | David Beckmann | Andretti |
| NC | Sergio Sette Camara | Nio 333 |
| NC | Sam Bird | Jaguar TCS Racing |
Also see:
Jehan Daruvala: “My future lies in Formula E”