Lola Yamaha ABT left the Mexico City E-Prix without points but with a clearer picture of its competitive position in Season 12 of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. Across practice, qualifying and the race, the team demonstrated improved one-lap pace and solid strategic execution, even if efficiency issues ultimately limited its results. Through the reflections of its drivers Lucas di Grassi and Zane Maloney, and Team Principal Mark Preston, the weekend emerged as an important step in understanding how to unlock stronger race performances moving forward.
“A weekend of ups and downs” for Lucas di Grassi
Lucas di Grassi endured a disrupted start to the weekend after problems in FP1 restricted his running. Despite that setback, the team made rapid progress, and by qualifying di Grassi extracted competitive pace from the car. His P7 finish in Group B underlined the improvements made since São Paulo and left him narrowly outside the duel stages.
“It’s been a weekend of ups and downs. We had a decent qualifying being P7 in the group and only a tenth off the duels, especially considering our FP1 session was cut short.”
However, circumstances beyond pure pace shaped his race. A three-place grid penalty from the previous round pushed him down the order, forcing a strategic approach focused on energy management rather than immediate position gains.
That strategy initially paid dividends. By saving energy early and capitalising on a mid-race safety car, di Grassi climbed through the field and briefly ran as high as P7. Yet as the race unfolded, efficiency limitations became impossible to ignore.
“During the race I think the strategy to save energy was the correct one and we moved all the way up to P7 but unfortunately, we didn’t have the efficiency to stay there.”
Late Attack Mode activations offered limited opportunity to recover lost ground, leaving di Grassi just outside the points. Still, he viewed the weekend as a foundation rather than a failure.
“We therefore didn’t achieve our target to score points but we will keep working hard to improve for Miami.”
Maloney rues lack of efficiency in Mexico City
For Zane Maloney, the weekend carried both optimism and frustration. The opening practice sessions suggested the team had taken a step forward, with the car responding well and delivering encouraging lap times. That promise, however, did not fully translate into qualifying.
“Despite FP1 and FP2 looking promising, in qualifying we didn’t quite get everything in the window to maximise performance which was a bit disappointing but we managed to start in P14.”
From his midfield starting position, Maloney adopted an aggressive strategy, taking Attack Mode early in an attempt to move forward. While the additional power helped him gain places initially, the same efficiency issues affecting the team soon curtailed his progress.
As the race settled, maintaining position became increasingly difficult, particularly as others deployed Attack Mode later in the race. Despite this, Maloney remained focused on the broader picture and the work still to come.
“In the race we struggled for efficiency as a team which we will now look at in the gap to Miami. The whole team are highly motivated and we’ll continue to push to make improvements and keep moving forward.”
Preston acknowledges “positive learnings and developments” amid challenging weekend
Lola Yamaha ABT Team Principal Mark Preston viewed the 2026 Mexico City E-Prix as a turning point in understanding the team’s recent challenges in Formula E. While the weekend proved demanding, he emphasised the value of the data and insights gathered, particularly in relation to issues that first emerged in São Paulo.
“It has been a challenging weekend but we’ve come away with some positive learnings and developments. We now fully understand the problems we faced in São Paulo and can turn our full focus back to performance.”
Preston highlighted qualifying pace as a clear strength, reinforcing confidence that the underlying speed of the car is competitive. The priority now lies in transferring that performance into race conditions.
“Our pace over a single lap is there so the whole team will be working hard between now and Miami to make similar improvements in race pace.”
He also pointed to the team’s strategic execution as a positive takeaway, believing it can become a decisive asset once efficiency improves.
“If we can combine this with the effective way in which we implemented our race strategies today, we should be in a good position to compete for points at the end of January in Miami.”
Looking ahead to Miami
Although the final results in the 2026 Mexico City E-Prix did not reflect the team’s ambitions in Season 12 of Formula E, Lola Yamaha ABT emerged with renewed confidence in its direction. With improved one-lap pace, stronger operational execution and a clearer understanding of its limitations, the focus now shifts to refining race efficiency. As the team prepares for Miami, the messages from di Grassi, Maloney and Preston all point towards determination, alignment and belief that tangible progress is close.
