The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team earned critical points at the gripping first race of the Formula E weekend in Berlin. At the wheel of his Porsche 99X Electric, Pascal Wehrlein crossed the finish line sixth and thus retained his lead in the drivers’ championship of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.

In sunshine and spring temperatures, spectators were in for a treat at round one of the Berlin E-Prix. On the historic Tempelhof airfield, the 22 drivers with their fully electric racing cars gave a thrilling and action-packed show with fierce battles for positions and a total of eight different changes at the front of the pack – a new Formula E record.

As the best driver of the Porsche customer team squad Avalanche Andretti, André Lotterer (GER) turned the fastest race lap and took the flag in eighth place. His teammate Jake Dennis (GBR) finished on P18. After seven of 16 races in season 9, Pascal Wehrlein leads the drivers’ championship of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship with 94 points, followed by Nick Cassidy (NZL/71) and Jean-Éric Vergne (FRA/66). Jake Dennis ranks fifth (62), António Félix da Costa seventh (58) and André Lotterer eleventh (23). The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team leads the team classification with 152 points, 24 points ahead of Envision Racing. Avalanche Andretti occupies fifth place with 85 points.

Race 7
It could have been António Félix da Costa’s race: after starting from P19 on the grid, he fought his way up the order at the wheel of his No. 13 Porsche 99X Electric to fourth position – only to be forced into the pits in the last quarter of the race after becoming entangled in another competitor’s collision. Starting from P15, his teammate Pascal Wehrlein gained nine positions in the No. 94 car during the race, which was interrupted by two safety car phases, and ultimately brought home points for sixth place.

Comments on the Berlin E-Prix, race 7

Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E: “That was a spectacular first race at our home event with lots of thrills and spills. Our drivers concentrated on working their way up the field from their grid positions and they did a good job. António was in fourth place and on track for a very good result. But very unfortunately he was then knocked out of the race and couldn’t do a thing about it. That’s such a shame, he could’ve earned very important points. Pascal progressed from P15 to sixth, scored critical points for the championship and held on to his lead in the drivers' standings. It was a good conclusion to the race for him but not so much for the team. Now we need to make sure we bring home more points tomorrow.”

Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche works driver (#94): “At the end of the day we can be satisfied. I took off from P15 and ultimately scored important points for sixth place. We definitely need to improve our qualifying performance. Tomorrow we get another chance and we’ll do our very best to make the most of it.”

António Félix da Costa, Porsche works driver (#13): “We didn’t quite find the ideal car setup in qualifying and P19 was the price we paid for that. But this team never gives up. We worked hard and, as always this season, had a great car for the race. It was an incredible event. We made up a lot of ground and I was running fourth with about ten laps to go. Then another car hit me and my race was over. It’s such a shame. You work hard to prepare in the simulator and then one of your rivals’ makes a mistake and you’re out. Well, that’s racing. We’ll be back in full force tomorrow.”

Next up
Race 8 will be contested in Berlin on Sunday, 23 April. The worldwide broadcasting schedule of the Formula E event in Berlin is available at: https://www.fiaformulae.com/en/ways-to-watch.

Porsche in Formula E
In 2023, the squad contests its fourth season in the world’s first all-electric racing series with the new Porsche 99X Electric. Avalanche Andretti fields two Porsche 99X Electric as the first Porsche customer team in Formula E. As an accelerator for innovative and sustainable mobility technologies, Formula E has brought thrilling motorsport to people living in major cities since 2014. With the all-electric Taycan Turbo S, Porsche again supplies the official safety car, and thus underlines the importance of Formula E for Porsche Motorsport.