London E-Prix: Wehrlein takes slender lead in title fight, Mahindra roar back to form
Nick Cassidy, the championship leader going into the weekend, did well to finish seventh from 17th on the grid to remain very much alive in the title race.
Pascal Wehrlein (X)
LONDON: Pascal Wehrlein of Porsche won an eventful race to take a slender championship lead at the season-ending London E-Prix while Nyck de Vries of Mahindra Racing battled through the field to finish fourth from 14th on the grid.
Nick Cassidy, the championship leader going into the weekend, did well to finish seventh from 17th on the grid to remain very much alive in the title race.
Ahead of the title decider on Sunday, Cassidy finds himself four points behind Jaguar teammate Mitch Evans, who finished second behind Wehrlein to collect 22 crucial points as compared to former's six.
The Saturday's race also produced the best result of the season for an otherwise struggling Mahindra Racing, who are yet to commit to their participation in the Gen4 era beginning 2026.
De Vries gained as many as 10 places in an exhausting race while his Mahindra teammate Edoardo Mortara ended fifth from 16th on the grid.
Other championship hopefuls heading into the weekend, Jean-Éric Vergne (DS PENSKE), Oliver Rowland (Nissan), and António Félix da Costa (TAG Heuer Porsche) were unable to score due to race incidents.
In a strategic masterstroke, the Porsche team opted for Wehrlein to activate his mandatory Attack Modes late in the race, allowing him to conserve energy and maintain a lead. Wehrlein hit the front on Lap 22 of 39, expertly managing his energy reserves to pass both Evans and Envision Racing's Sebastien Buemi.
Despite the frenetic nature of the race around London's Docklands, Wehrlein held his ground to secure victory. Maserati's Maximilian Günther, who climbed from 11th on the grid, unfortunately retired from second place due to technical issues after a second Safety Car appearance.
As it stands, just seven points separate the top three in the title race, with Wehrlein leading at 180 points, followed by Evans at 177, and Cassidy at 173. Evans' additional points for Pole Position and the fastest lap could prove decisive in the title fight.
In the teams' championship, Jaguar leads Porsche with 350 points to 314.
"Jaguar was a bit quicker than us in qualifying but that didn't stop us from feeling confident. We delivered a good performance and perfect strategy, even with the Safety Cars at the end making it more difficult.
“Today has been a great day, but it's only 50 percent. We'll celebrate for a few minutes and then focus will quickly be on tomorrow," said Wehrlein, a former Formula 1 driver.
The only Indian driver on the grid, Jehan Daruvala, finished 18th Maserati after being in contention for points for major part of the race. He sustained damage during the restart and was forced to pit from ninth.