Dennis triumphs in chaotic season-opening race of attrition in Sao Paulo

Jake Dennis emerged from a chaotic Sao Paulo E-Prix as the winner, becoming the first driver ever to win the race from pole position.

A late race sequence of a safety car, full course yellow, then a red flag left the Andretti driver in the perfect position to deliver his and the team’s first win since the first race of the 2024 Diriyah E-Prix.

The safety car came out on lap 23 of the 30 lap race after Edoardo Mortara was squeezed into the wall at Turn 6 by Lucas di Grassi, an incident that caused both to retire. It caught out a number of drivers – including frontrunners Oliver Rowland, Nick Cassidy and Pascal Wehrlein – who had just taken their second Attack Modes and weren't able to fully capitalize on its effectiveness. 

Dennis, however, hadn't yet used his and sat in third when the race resumed on lap 27. He immediately went for the Attack Mode and subsequently vaulted to the lead. One lap later a full course yellow was deployed after Mitch Evans ended up in the wall at Turn 10 after being hit by Sebastien Buemi. While it meant Dennis couldn't fully benefit from his Attack Mode in a similar fashion to the others before, with all frontrunners having already used their boost, it didn't matter. If anything, it stood to benefit those who’d gone for it before the safety car, because they were no longer likely to get swamped by faster drivers who’d waited.

The race was then red flagged after a frightening crash for Pepe Marti after he was caught out by Nico Mueller and Antonio Felix da Costa on the run to Turn 7 as they slowed for the FCY. Marti launched into a violent roll off both of their cars, but walked away unscathed.

After a lengthy delay, the race resumed for a lap behind the safety and then a one lap shootout. With Attack Modes all done for the frontrunners, temperatures under control after the pause, and only a lap to run, it was a straightforward dash to the line with everyone remaining in line. 

Dennis headed home Rowland, with Cassidy completing the podium, both having to complete charges through the field to get onto the podium, having started 13th and 15th on the grid respectively.

The reigning champion was already into the top 10 when he took his first Attack Mode on lap seven, and subsequently had the lead by lap nine when he passed Jean-Eric Vergne – who'd employed a similar Attack Mode strategy two laps before Rowland and charged to the fore. 

Rowland soon shuffled back to sixth as others at the front deployed Attack Mode for the first time, then slipped to seventh after contact with Evans on lap 14 allowed Taylor Barnard to sneak past both. 

He then made contact with teammate Norman Nato on lap 17 as they navigated the tight Turn 6. Nato got a puncture and pitted, but came to a stop at Turn 1 after rejoining the race. It hampered Cassidy's own Attack Mode-led charge to the front as he looked to make a move on Dennis but had to back off because of the yellow flags for Nato.

The Nissan driver was the first to go for his second Attack Mode on lap 21 and passed Dennis for the lead at the penultimate corner a lap later, but with the interruptions to come, he was now a sitting duck and at the mercy of the Season 10 champion whose call to wait for his own second Attack Mode deployment would prove pivotal.

Felipe Drugovich capitalized in a similar way to his teammate Dennis to recover to fifth, having started 17th after a crash in qualifying, but he was later handed a five-second time penalty for speeding during an FCY and dropped to 12th. That elevated Mueller, who miraculously survived the clash with Marti with minimal damage, to fifth, ahead of Maximilian Guenther, with the Envisions of Joel Eriksson and Buemi seventh and eighth, while Nyck de Vries moved up to ninth. 

De Vries made a poor getaway at the start, leaving the grid in a cloud of smoke, then braked late into Turn 1, collecting both Dan Ticktum and his Mahindra teammate Mortara. But like the winner, he saved his Attack Modes until later to recover. 

Zane Maloney completed the scorers, getting his first Formula E point in 10th, with Antonio Felix da Costa 11th and Barnard 13th to round out the finishers in what was a race of attrition, with Vergne, Evans, Mortara, di Grassi, Nato and Ticktum all failing to complete the race.

Updated results to come