Porsche's WEC exit a 'double-plus' for Formula E –Dodds

Porsche’s exit from the FIA World Endurance Championship at the end of last season meant that one of motorsport’s premier competitions lost one of its most successful participants.

But WEC’s loss was Formula E’s gain, because following the news of its WEC exit, Porsche immediately became the first manufacturer to commit to fielding two factory-operated FE teams.

“When you've got a brand with the brand power and global presence of Porsche committing two teams into a championship, that's amazing,” Formula E Jeff Dodds told RACER. “Obviously it coincided with their withdrawal from WEC, so it was, almost like a double-plus for us, that they were coming out of one championship, doubling down in another."

Customer teams are commonplace in Formula E – Porsche currently has two with Andretti and Kiro (using the previous version of its powertrains) – but there has never been a scenario where a works operation is effectively fielding four cars. Because of that, Dodds doesn’t see it as Porsche gaining an unfair sporting advantage any more than it already has, even if it will have full control over twice as many cars.

“There's a lot of competition here, and Porsche is a racing powerhouse. So now they've got twice as many chances to beat them on track, and Porsche have twice as many chances to get themselves on the podium,” he said.

“The FIA runs the championship in terms of the sporting part, so it's their job to make sure that the regs and the rules create sporting equity, and we will do everything in our power, because we want an equitable championship. If they're in a title hunt today, you've got two Porsche cars, two Andretti cars and two Kiro cars that are all Porsche-powered, so I'm not sure it's massively different to that.

“We don't know exactly what Porsche will do with those two teams. I don't know whether it's a Red Bull/Racing Bulls-style set up, an A/B team, I don't know whether it's two separate Porsche teams with different title sponsors or with Porsche in the title.”

Nevertheless, even with more cars in its stable, it's not a foregone conclusion that Porsche will be automatically stronger. Porsche has won two from three drivers’ championships courtesy of Andretti’s Jake Dennis in 2023-24 and factory driver Pascal Wehrlein in 2024-25, as well as last season’s teams’ and manufacturers’ crowns, but it hasn’t been totally unbeatable.

“I hear Porsche, their powertrain owns Mexico City, they're so successful there, it's got to be a Porsche powertrain that wins, right?” Dodds said. “Nick Cassidy was on the top step, Edoardo Mortara with Mahindra was in second, Oliver Rowland (Nissan) was in third. 

“This is motorsport, and we're the most unpredictable motorsport in the world. There are no guarantees.”