Mitch Evans wins Saturday’s Formula E race in Shanghai after a thrilling duel against Pascal Wehrlein – Nick Cassidy rages on the radio
Jaguar driver Mitch Evans won the first Formula E race at the Shanghai E-Prix on Saturday. The New Zealander fought a thrilling duel with Pascal Wehrlein (Porsche) in the final phase of the race, overtook the German in turn two on the last lap and celebrated his second victory in the 2024 Formula E World Championship at the finish line.
Third place went to Nick Cassidy (Jaguar), who had a heated discussion on the radio in the final phase of the race and complained about Wehrlein after crossing the finish line. Oliver Rowland (Nissan) finished fourth ahead of Antonio Felix da Costa (Porsche) and Jake Dennis (Andretti).
Pole-sitter Jean-Eric Vergne (DS-Penske) finished seventh, with eighth place going to Nyck de Vries (Mahindra). The Dutchman finished in the points for the first time in the 2024 season. Maximilian Günther (Maserati-MSG) and Sebastien Buemi (Envision) completed the Top 10, while Abt drivers Lucas di Grassi and Nico Müller finished the race in twelfth and 17th place respectively.
Formula E’s first appearance on the Formula 1 circuit in Shanghai initially saw a race that was typical of this season, with the majority of the field forming a compact pack and numerous lead changes. However, the race was much smoother than in Berlin recently
Cassidy has a heated discussion with the team
Wehrlein, who had improved from fourth to second place at the start, drove together with Evans at the front of the field from the beginning, while Cassidy showed a typical race for him. The New Zealander rode inconspicuously in the midfield for a long time, saving energy which he used to work his way forward in the second half of the race.
A few laps before the end of the race, Cassidy was finally in third place behind Wehrlein and Evans when a disagreement arose with the team over the race strategy. “Should I hold the position or attack? Tell me what I should do,” Cassidy radioed excitedly into the pits.
DUELLING TO THE VERY END @mitchevans_ takes victory in Shanghai while Wehrlein claims P2 from Cassidy in the final corner! ShanghaiEPrix pic.twitter.com/AJ81OFoQ5c
– Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) May 25, 2024
His race engineer instructed him to hold his position, even though he had the most energy of the top 3 and was ahead of his teammate Evans in the overall standings – a decision Cassidy was visibly unhappy with.
Ongoing investigations against the top 3
After the drivers hardly had to save any energy in the final laps, there was an open exchange of blows at the front between Evans and Wehrlein. The German was able to fend off an attack from the New Zealander on several occasions, but on the final lap Evans overtook Wehrlein on the outside of the “snail corner” and drove to victory. However, this victory is still under reserve, as the stewards are investigating Evans for allegedly leaving the track and thereby gaining an advantage.
Behind him, Wehrlein had to defend hard against Cassidy. There was contact in turn 11, which caused Cassidy’s front wing to break. The New Zealander was also annoyed about this: “He changed lanes under braking and didn’t give me any room,” he complained about Wehrlein on the radio. This incident is also being investigated by the stewards.
After eleven of 16 races this season, Cassidy leads the championship standings with 155 points ahead of Wehrlein (142), Rowland (130) and Evans (122). Jaguar leads the team standings with 277 points. Porsche (211) and Nissan (156) in second and third place are already well behind.
The second race of the Shanghai E-Prix will start on Sunday (May 26) at 9:03 CEST.