Speaking in the press conference ahead of this weekend’s Monaco E-Prix double-header, the Porsche Formula E Team Principal, Florian Modlinger, reflected on the team’s previous near-misses at the venue. He also spoke about Nico Müller’s breakthrough victory in Berlin, the differing strategic demands expected in both races, and the debate over qualifying tactics following the second Berlin race.
Porsche aiming to end Monaco podium wait
Modlinger admitted Monaco had been a frustrating venue for Porsche in Formula E. The team had regularly shown speed without converting it into a podium. He pointed to previous years where Porsche had been in contention, including occasions with pole positions and fastest laps. Pascal Wehrlein had also led in Monaco before a technical issue ended his hopes.
Last season, Modlinger felt Porsche had again been in the mix for a podium. However, an operational issue around Pit Boost cost the team. As a result, he said the pace had often been there, but the final result had not followed. Ahead of this weekend, the target was clear. Porsche wanted to fight for podiums and put itself in contention for victory.
“First of all, welcome everyone. Yeah, correct. Good question. I think we had the pace in several years. We had pole positions, fastest laps. Pascal [Wehrlein] some years ago was leading, then had a technical failure.
“And some other issues. Last year we would have been also good for a fight for the podium, and operationally we had something wrong in the pit boost. So, we did not have it here yet. The pace was there, and the target is clear, to fight for podium and to win this year.”
Müller carrying Berlin momentum into Monaco
Modlinger praised Nico Müller after his first Formula E victory in Berlin. The Team Principal described the win as a major moment for both driver and team. He felt the race had been one of the most demanding Formula E events Porsche had experienced. The team had to manage several factors at once, including tyre wear, temperatures, system management and energy usage.
For Modlinger, the way Müller and the team handled the demands made the victory particularly impressive. He highlighted that Müller had already started the season strongly, taking a podium and pole position before finally securing his first win. With that breakthrough, Modlinger believed Müller had gained momentum and would be eager to add more strong results.
“First of all, it was an impressive win in Berlin. How he drove, how the whole team operated, for me was one of the most complex races in Formula E we ever had. Things we had to consider from tyre, tyre wear, temperatures of different systems, and also the energy.
“And how the whole team executed, and also Nico [Müller] drove, was impressive. He had a strong season opening already, on the podium, pole position, now the first win, and this momentum we tried to use with him. I think he’s hungry, he wants to have more.”
Two Monaco races set to offer different challenges
Looking ahead to the double-header, Modlinger expected Saturday and Sunday to bring very different strategic demands. The first race will feature Pit Boost. The second race will run with two Attack Modes, creating different energy targets and race approaches across the weekend.
He suggested qualifying would likely carry more weight on Saturday, while Sunday’s format could create a different dynamic. However, he stressed that Monaco still left no margin for error, regardless of the format. On a circuit where mistakes are heavily punished, Modlinger said both drivers and teams would need to execute cleanly. Porsche’s focus remained the same across both races: to be competitive, whether Pit Boost was involved or not.
“That’s a good question, I’ll tell you on Sunday evening. Clearly the two races will be different from the strategy approach. The energy targets will be different.
“The starting position, as Cyril [Blais] said already, will be more important on Saturday than on Sunday. Here you’re on this track, iconic track, you have no room for any mistake. This means the drivers need to deliver, the teams need to deliver, and I would say our target is to be competitive in both races, it doesn’t matter if we have a pit boost or not.”
Modlinger critical of Berlin qualifying incentive ahead of Formula E double header in Monaco
Modlinger addressed the debate over qualifying for the second Berlin race. It had some drivers who favoured starting further back to gain a strategic advantage. He acknowledged that the situation sat on a very fine line. In his opinion, only a small group of drivers and teams had tried that approach, and only a few had made it work.
Porsche chose a different route with Wehrlein, who took pole position and collected the three points that came with it. He managed to finish on the podium. Still, Modlinger admitted the team did not have the tyre life or energy advantage needed to fight for the win.
He recognised that the alternative strategy had paid off for others. However, Modlinger made it clear he was not personally in favour of it. He felt the race format had created too much incentive for drivers to save tyres and energy by starting near the back. Rather than rewarding the traditional aim of pushing flat out in qualifying.
“I want only to emphasise and to add to serve that it’s a very, very fine line. When it’s too much or it’s exactly spot on and we have in Formula E different kind of races. But also in my opinion, you could see, I think it’s, yeah, it was four to five drivers playing this strategy. We discussed it also in advance of the qualifying. But out of the four or five drivers, two succeeded.
“Well executed, well done. We tried it differently. Pascal [Wehrlein] did a very good qualifying with the pole position, three points and could keep it on the podium. But the tyres we didn’t have to be able and the energy for the win. So the strategy clearly paid out and it’s also not what I personally like. That’s my personal opinion.
“In my opinion, this kind of giving an incentive to save tyres and to have good energy when you start at the back of the field was a bit too much.”
