Pascal Wehrlein’s win in the Shanghai E-Prix strengthened Porsche’s Formula E title challenge. The reigning World Champion converted pole position into dominant win, during Round 12 Formula E World Championship.
The Porsche Formula E Team driver controlled much of the race despite changing weather conditions. Customer team Andretti Formula E completed a strong afternoon with Jake Dennis finishing third and Felipe Drugovich fourth.
Result extended Porsche’s lead in Manufacturers’ Championship, while Wehrlein closed within three points of Drivers’ Championship lead with five races remaining.
Porsche recently unveiled its vision for Formula E’s future with 975 RSE Gen4 challenger. It signalled manufacturer’s continued commitment to electric racing ahead of next season.
Pascal Wehrlein’s win in the Shanghai E-Prix boosts title hopes
Starting from pole position, Wehrlein led most of the 30-lap contest around the Shanghai International Circuit.
Mandatory Pit Boost stop briefly interrupted his advantage, but the German returned to front before expertly managing late Safety Car period.
In damp conditions, Wehrlein activated Attack Mode during closing laps, benefiting from all-wheel drive to maintain control and secure his second victory of season by 1.6 seconds.
Pascal Wehrlein’s win is his first Formula E victory in Shanghai and the tenth win of his Formula E career.
Porsche extends Formula E manufacturers’ advantage
While Pascal Wehrlein celebrated his win, Nico Müller recovered from 14th on grid to score final championship point in tenth.
Meanwhile, Andretti Formula E strengthened Porsche’s overall tally as Jake Dennis secured third place and Felipe Drugovich finished fourth.
As a result, Porsche increased its lead in Manufacturers’ Championship while factory team continued its pursuit of Jaguar in Teams’ standings.
Wehrlein praises flawless Porsche performance
Following the Pascal Wehrlein win, the reigning champion praised both the team and the execution of the race.
“A fantastic race at a crucial stage of the season. I couldn’t be happier with today – it was a flawless performance and the car was amazing. We didn’t make any mistakes and the execution was perfect. I had really good pace, so I didn’t feel it was necessary to stay in the slipstream that much, which meant I could keep away from the chaos behind. A big thanks to the team. With five races still to go, we will give it our all and try to bring home as many trophies as possible.”
Team Director Florian Modlinger also highlighted the significance of the Pascal Wehrlein’s win for Porsche’s championship campaign.
“An amazing win today for Pascal after taking an impressive pole position, which means he has closed the gap to Mitch Evans in the championship. As a team, we also reduced the gap to Jaguar slightly. With the rain and the humidity, conditions today were difficult, so well done to everybody in the team for doing a really good job, including our colleagues back at the factory in Weissach.”
He also praised Andretti’s contribution to Porsche’s manufacturers’ points haul before outlining objective for remainder of Shanghai weekend.
“P3 for Jake Dennis and the Andretti team means another strong result for our customers after their win in Sanya. Thanks to them as well, Porsche has increased its lead in the manufacturers’ standings. Our target for tomorrow is to score strong points with both factory cars.”
This Pascal Wehrlein win leaves the former World Champion firmly in title contention with five Formula E races remaining. Wehrlein definitely will aim to maintain, or even decrease his gap to Evans heading into Sunday’s second Shanghai E-Prix.
