British Formula E drivers Jake Dennis and Oliver Rowlands were overtaken in the championship standings by Nick Cassidy who won the Mexico City E-Prix on Saturday night
Nick Cassidy leapfrogged Britain’s Formula E title contenders with to win by a hair in Mexico City – but perhaps at the cost of his barnet. The New Zealander started 13th on the grid but came sailing through to victory in the second race of the season and knock Jake Dennis off top spot in the championship.
And afterwards he admitted: “I made a deal that if I won I’d shave my head. As I was coming across the line I was like, ‘Do I lift off?’” But the winner in Mexico has won the title in each of the last three seasons and Cassidy added: “There’s a statistic that whoever wins this race is good in the championship, so I wasn’t giving that one up.”
A lengthy period of yellow flags, caused by former Formula 1 driver Nyck de Vries stopping after overshooting turn one on lap 18, saw the contest extended by two laps. And the energy saved by the cars going so slowly for several laps created a thrilling finish as everyone pushed flat out to the chequered flag.
Edoardo Mortara led for much of the contest but the extra energy expended by having no-one in front of him punching a hole in the air may have cost him in the end. Cassidy slipped by the Swiss in the closing stages to secure Citroen’s first Formula E victory in only their second E-Prix, having entered the all-electric championship for the first time this year.
The Kiwi said: “I tried to stay positive after qualifying. My team really gave me a great car for qualifying and I didn’t do the job. They gave me the confidence for the race that we would be good. I’m just very happy and pleased for them, because those guys don’t do holidays. They work so hard.”
Victory builds on a podium finish in the Sao Paulo season opener, and Cassidy added: “What a dream start we’ve had. There’s some really cool times ahead but, man, what a moment. I didn’t think until the last lap that we were okay. I was happy today with P4, having started P13.”
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Defending champion Oliver Rowland secured back-to-back podiums, finishing third from eighth on the grid, while 2023 title-winner Dennis was fifth. The two Brits are well-placed in the standings, just six and four points behind Cassidy in third and second place respectively.
It might have been an even better day for Rowland had it not been for a messy period mid-way through the race. On lap 18, he was pushed onto the grass while duelling for position and lost half-a-dozen places, seconds before those yellow flags caused by De Vries ruined the four minutes of Attack Mode he had taken.
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Another Brit finished high up in the form of Taylor Barnard, who crossed the line fourth. The DS Penske driver had started second on the grid and took an early lead when pole-sitter Sebastian Buemi, who had qualified quickest for the first time in three years, went off track.
The former Toro Rosso F1 racer’s 17th Formula E pole – a series record jointly held with fellow Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne – meant nothing when he outbraked himself while defending from Barnard into turn one on the opening lap and had to take the run-off, dropping from first to 19th place. Buemi eventually finished 17th, last of the cars that completed the E-Prix.
