Andretti Formula E opened 2026 with a strong and eventful showing on the streets of Mexico City. The championship returned to the iconic Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez under challenging conditions. Jake Dennis set the early tone by topping Free Practice 1 and carried that speed into race day. Cold track temperatures and strategic complexity defined the contest. Starting seventh, the Brazil race winner drove with control and precision. He used a late Attack Mode to climb into the top five and secure the fastest lap. Felipe Drugovich progressed steadily from the back, but disrupted race dynamics halted his charge. A Safety Car affected E-Prix ultimately dropped Andretti to second in the Formula E Teams’ Championship, despite another milestone finish in Mexico.
Strong pace and smart strategy, underscored by late-race energy challenges
Dennis reflected on a weekend that largely met expectations after showing strong pace from the opening practice sessions through to qualifying. He and Andretti executed a clean race and committed to a well-judged strategy that kept them in the fight at the front of the Formula E Mexico City E-Prix. As the race reached its closing stages, a lack of outright pace forced him to spend more energy than planned while battling for position. That decision reduced his margin on the final lap and ultimately cost him fourth place at the line. Even so, he took encouragement from the overall performance and the points secured. He left Mexico City confident in the foundations laid, while recognising that further refinements would be needed ahead of the next round in Miami.
“Overall, it’s been a positive weekend. We were quick in the Free Practice sessions and topped the Qualifying group stage, so we had high hopes for the race. We were able to run a clean race and our strategy was good. I just felt like we weren’t quite quick enough towards the end of the race when Nick was leading, which meant we had to spend a lot of energy which was quite inefficient. As a result, I ran out of energy on that final lap and lost fourth on the line. Still, lots of positives to take from the weekend, but also some work to do for Miami.”
Aggressive recovery undone by setback, focus shifts to Miami response
Drugovich endured a difficult and frustrating weekend, as balance issues prevented him from fully unlocking the car’s potential. He started deep in the field, which immediately put him on the back foot. Andretti chose an aggressive strategy in Mexico and used it to create early momentum during the second Formula E race of the season. Drugovich carved his way forward, found confidence in the car, and pushed into the top ten. Contact at Turn 5 abruptly halted that charge and stripped away the positions he had fought to gain. He lost track position and struggled to recover in the closing stages. The result fell short, but the weekend still delivered valuable lessons. Drugovich and the team now turned their focus to Miami, determined to respond with a stronger performance.
“A fairly poor weekend from us, struggling to find a good balance and not being able to capitalize on certain performance aspects. We knew we were going to struggle a little bit in the race from where we started, so we opted for an aggressive strategy, which worked out in our favour. We made it into the top 10, but an incident at Turn 5 made me lose almost all the positions that I was able to make up until then. After that, we struggled to gain positions and our race was effectively done. Still lots to learn for Miami, but we’ll arrive determined to hit the ground running.”
High standards temper solid result as Andretti targets stronger Miami return
Team Principal Roger Griffiths admitted the result carried a sense of unfulfilled potential. The team believed it could have achieved more than fifth place. Andretti’s high standards and competitive mindset in Formula E made anything short of a podium in Mexico feel disappointing. Both drivers left searching for answers. Dennis rued a missed opportunity, while Drugovich looked to understand why his race unravelled. Even so, positives remained. Andretti finished as the highest classified Porsche-powered entry. Sitting second in both championships after Round 2, the team shifted its focus to analysis, renewed momentum for Miami, and gratitude for the passionate support of the Mexican fans who once again made the event special.
“I think everyone’s slightly disappointed, in how today went. Sometimes you can be happy with a fifth, but it’s clear we’re disappointed as we believed we could’ve achieved more. It just shows the level of competitiveness within the team and our desire to be on the podium and to be on that top step. Although we leave Round 2 second place in both the Drivers’ and Teams’ Championship, we have our own high standards and ideally we’d be one position higher. Jake is disappointed and Felipe is looking for answers as to why his race didn’t go to plan. But, there’s positive we can take from today, such as the fact we were the highest classified Porsche car.”
“We’re going to dig deep to find out what didn’t go our way and keep pushing so that we’re fully prepared for Miami. We also want to thank all of the fans here in Mexico. We’ve certainly got an awful lot of Andretti fans and the reception we’ve had here is incredible. We love racing in Mexico and it’s a privilege to be able to see their passion on full display.”
