Electric Chaos in Brazil:Dennis Claims Opening Victory
The opening round of the new Formula E season in Brazil began not with on-track drama, but with criticism directed at the championship’s calendar planners: once again, the season premiere overlapped with Formula 1’s final qualifying session. Why the electric series chose to ignore the FIA’s long-standing rule of avoiding such clashes remains unclear, but the fact is undeniable.
Returning to the race itself in Sao Paulo, it delivered everything typical of Formula E: close racing, constant movement through the pack, strategic battlesand one truly major incident near the end.
Pascal Wehrlein won qualifying, but a penalty sent him down the order, giving pole position to Jake Dennis. The Briton controlled the early part of the race before switching to “waiting mode” a common tactic in Formula E,where leading every lap is far from necessary.
On lap 23, the safety car was deployed after a heavy collision between Mortara and di Grassi, forcing both to retire. The restart brought more incidents Buemi and Evans tangled and then came the most dramatic moment of the race. Rookie Pepe Martí made a mistake, crashing heavily into Muller’s Porsche and collecting da Costa’s car as well. Martí’s car was launched into the air, rolled several times, and caught fire yet he miraculously escaped injury. The race was red-flagged.
The finish turned into a short sprint. Dennis found himself in the perfect position: he was the only driver who still had an available Attack Mode, having activated it before the major crash. This allowed him to charge into the lead and hold it when just one racing lap remained.
Second place went to reigning champion Oliver Rowland in the Nissan. Third was Nick Cassidy, who delivered a brilliant debut for the new factory Citroen team: starting 15th, he surged to the podium and became the standout performer of the race.
