Formula E: Verlaine won and took the lead

      The season finale of the World Championship for electric car racing promised an exciting intrigue – we reported that two races before its conclusion, nine drivers still had a chance at the title.

      Of course, the main contenders had to be considered Jake Dennis, Mitch Evans, and Pascal Wehrlein, occupying the top three spots in the individual standings, with the 2023 world champion having only two points more than his rivals.

      Wehrlein started from pole position after qualifying, but Nico Müller, his teammate from the Porsche factory team, began the Saturday race from second position, giving them a certain tactical advantage.

      Wehrlein got off to a good start and remained in the lead, especially since Müller was covering his back, while Evans immediately had to fend off attacks from Dan Ticktum, the Cupra Kiro driver who started fourth. The New Zealander managed to do this, which was important in its own right, as Dan's electric car had the same powertrain as the Porsche 99X Electric, which was arguably the most efficient in 2026.

      Naturally, tactical games began immediately, as Müller was clearly holding back the peloton, allowing his teammate to build up a lead that exceeded two and a half seconds after four laps. Evans tried to pressure the German, constantly making attempts to attack, but Müller defended himself quite decisively and aggressively.

      However, on the 7th lap, Zane Maloney, the Lola Yamaha driver, stopped on the track due to a broken left drive shaft, prompting yellow flags to be displayed all around the circuit. Consequently, the battle was neutralized, but Wehrlein maintained his advantage, although it was slightly reduced.

      Immediately after the restart, Evans resumed his attacks, but Müller continued to hold second position. At the same time, Mitch had to act cautiously to avoid excessive energy consumption compared to his rivals, as this could put him in a disadvantageous position.

      Meanwhile, it became known that Maloney's teammate Lucas di Grassi, the Brazilian veteran who was having his last weekend in Formula E, received a 5-second penalty for speeding under yellow flags.

      The first to make a mandatory pit stop for an express battery recharge was Felipe Drugovich, Dennis's teammate at Andretti, after which he returned to the track in last place. Jake, meanwhile, continued to hold fifth position. But Drugovich's example was almost immediately followed by Mitch Evans, who returned to the track in 15th position, while both Porsche drivers remained on the track for another lap. But then Müller turned into the pit stop and exited literally right in front of Mitch.

      It seemed that the tactical move known as "cutting in" did not work for Jaguar, however, on the 19th lap, Evans went on the attack and managed to overtake the Porsche with the number 51.

      On the 21st lap, yellow flags appeared on the track again, this time because the aforementioned di Grassi crashed his car – the Brazilian's brakes failed. Naturally, Wehrlein immediately took advantage of this and turned into the pit lane. And although the yellow flags were quickly removed, Pascal not only remained ahead of Evans but also practically lost nothing, as the entire peloton had to slow down.

      Now the Porsche driver was in second position, while Evans was in 11th, with Müller managing to overtake him thanks to Attack Mode, the power boost mode. The two continued to battle each other, while Pascal calmly drove half a minute ahead and soon returned to the lead.

      With 10 laps remaining, Wehrlein led the peloton, Ticktum was second, trailing him by about nine seconds, and António Félix da Costa, Evans's teammate, had moved up to third, but he was decisively attacked by Dennis, who managed to overtake him on the 29th lap. The Andretti driver did not stop there and soon overtook Ticktum as well, moving into second position, thus minimizing his losses.

      On the 33rd lap, Evans finally managed to break Müller’s resistance and climbed to 8th position, while his teammate made a beautiful overtake against Ticktum and returned to the top three.

      Due to the race being neutralized twice by yellow flags, the race director decided to increase the distance by one lap.

      On the 37th lap, Ticktum attacked the Portuguese Jaguar driver, but this ended with da Costa not only maintaining his position – Dan also let Sebastian Buemi, the Formula E veteran racing for Envision Racing, through. Then Ticktum was passed in turn by Edoardo Mortara, and there was contact between the cars.

      Meanwhile, the race finished, and Pascal Wehrlein secured his third victory of the season, which was a well-deserved achievement, although it is worth noting that, firstly, he received certain help from his teammate, Nico Müller, and secondly, he was fortunate with the yellow flags, which allowed him to make a pit stop with almost no losses. Thus, before the last race of the season, Wehrlein took the lead in the individual standings.

      Now he has 5 points more than Jake Dennis, who finished second and clearly did everything he could for such a result. By the way, Dan Tauriss, the head of TWG Motorsports and the leader of the Cadillac program in Formula 1, was watching from the Andretti pits how he raced.

      António Félix da Costa also made it to the podium, starting from 7th position, while his teammate Mitch Evans crossed the finish line only 8th, despite starting the race third. It turns out that Jaguar could not offer their leader an optimal strategy, although, of course, it was impossible to foresee everything. But in the end, Mitch slipped to third place in the individual standings, and he has 21 points less than the leader.

      Consequently, his chances of winning the championship have sharply decreased, but in any case, the decisive battle for the title will take place tomorrow. Although, undoubtedly, among the three main contenders for the title, in the words of David Coulthard, one of the commentators of the London final, "the racing gods were on Pascal Wehrlein's side today."