It was a race day to remember for Jaguar TCS Racing's Mitch Evans, who left Monte Carlo with a win around this historic street circuit after years of coming close. It was a strong weekend for the team as they finished 1-2, who also announced their commitment to GEN4, and also meant Nick Cassidy jumped into second in the Drivers' World Championship.
RACE REPORT: Evans leads Jaguar one-two in Monaco
Elsewhere on the grid, we had a new rookie, a third Julius Baer Pole Position for TAG Heuer Porsche's Pascal Wehrlein and plenty of big results up and down the pack.
Here are some of the biggest news stories and big talking points from our magical weekend in Monaco.
Jaguar TCS Racing back on top
It was almost the perfect weekend for Jaguar's Mitch Evans. The 29-year-old topped both free practice sessions, just missed out on a chance in the finals of the qualifying duels and then won the Monaco E-Prix for the first time in his career. Evans had come so close on so many occasions with three prior podiums in Formula E and several more in other junior categories, but finally got to stand on the top step of the podium in Monte Carlo.
After the race, Evans was quick to thank his teammate Nick Cassidy who he said was a great team player. After getting to the front of the pack after starting third and fourth, the two took turns in switching positions to take their respective ATTACK MODES. Before the start of the race, plenty of strategies were discussed but in the end it was Evans who finished first with Cassidy just behind in second.
It’s Jaguar’s first double podium of the year and the first for a team in Monaco, despite Formula E racing there from Season 1! The timing of this success also comes at a great time for the team, who have had a few races recently that have allowed other teams to catch up to them in the Teams’ Standings.
For Cassidy, who started the year with three consecutive podiums including a win in Diriyah, it’s a second consecutive piece of silverware and moves him up to second in the Drivers’ World Championship.
Evans was also in need of a big result in Monaco to re-launch a title bid for Season 10, after a mix of results in the first half of the season. “I need to keep scoring big points consistently and I hope that I can keep this momentum heading into Berlin,” the race winner said after the chequered flag.
Formula E’s youngest race starter
The all-electric championship welcomed a new addition to the grid on Saturday, in the shape of 19-year-old Taylor Barnard. The Brit made his race debut around the challenging Monaco street circuit, but has been in the NEOM McLaren GEN3 car as recently as Misano when he topped the Rookie Test.
Barnard was drafted in after Sam Bird broke his hand in an accident during FP1, when his car locked up and went down an escape road near Sainte Devote. Despite his best efforts to rescue the car and minimise the damage, Bird hit the barrier and failed to let go of the steering wheel which led to the injury.
It’s not yet been confirmed if Bird will be able to recover in time for the Berlin E-Prix on 11 and 12 May, but it does mean that Taylor can’t take part in the Rookie Test next month now he’s got a race start to his name.
Aged 19 years and 331 days, it also meant Barnard is now the youngest Formula E driver there has been in the championship’s 10 year history and the first teenager to start a race.
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The youngest before this was Matthew Brabham who was 20 years and 270 days old when he started the 2014 Putrajaya E-Prix.
DS PENSKE make history in Monaco
Another team who had a fantastic Monaco E-Prix was DS PENSKE. Repping a special one-off black and gold livery, the team finally made their way to the podium having never accomplished that in either Formula E (2015-) or Formula 1 (1975-77).
Stoffel Vandoorne earned his first podium place since the end of his championship-winning season, and marked his first piece of silverware since joining the DS PENSE squad for Season 9. Just behind him was teammate Jean-Eric Vergne, who picked up fourth place around the principality. Between them, they picked up 27 points, which is the most the team has managed over a race day since Vergne won in Hyderabad last season.
Along with Maserati MSG Racing's Maximilian Guenther's ninth-place finish, this also brought STELLANTIS closer to the Nissan in the Manufacturers' Trophy.
The last time the PENSKE had two cars finish in the top four was in London Season 2, when Jerome d'Ambrosio finished third and Loic Duval ended up fourth.
Tough day at the office for Andretti
Although they were able to walk away with a championship point, it was a tricky day for the Andretti team. Home to the reigning World Champion, Jake Dennis, race day proved to be a challenging one for the American team.
Norman Nato was moved from Group B to Group A for qualifying after Bird sustained his hand injury, but the Frenchman could only manage 11th in the group. Dennis was then compromised in his group when a left-front wheel nut failure occurred during a pit stop and stopped him from making the Duels.
Dennis made up plenty of positions during the start of the race, finding himself in 10th before he made contact with the Envision Racing of Robin Frijns and sustained front wing damage. In dramatic scenes, the Brit was forced to limp around the 3.33km circuit and back to the pits and would finish the race in 19th.
It was a similar story for Nato, who also picked up front wing damage when he and Mahindra Racing’s Nyck de Vries had an incident on Lap 4. Nato pitted under Safety Car conditions and was able to work his way up the pack to finish in 10th and get a point.
“We leave Monaco pretty disappointed,” Roger Griffiths, Andretti Team Principal said post-race.
“By our own high standards, having just one car in the top 10 is not good enough. There were a lot of circumstances outside of our control today and we ended up having both cars pit for front wing damage. We'll go back to base and have a good look at the data and rebuild from there.
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“We're now third in the Team's Standings, and Jake drops to third too in the Driver’s Standings which at the halfway point of the season is promising. The plan now is to turn things around and focus on Berlin to get a strong result there."
The future is here
Over the Monaco E-Prix, there were several big stories that would shape the future of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship!
One of these was the commitment of Jaguar TCS Racing to the next era of Formula E: GEN4. This makes the British manufacturer the second group to make this pledge, after Nissan did the same in Tokyo earlier this season.
NEWS: Jaguar commits to GEN4 of Formula E
“As a team we recently celebrated our 100th race in Formula E and, with Jaguar being reimagined as a pure-electric brand from 2025, the timing couldn’t be better,” James Barclay, Managing Director, JLR Motorsport and Jaguar TCS Racing Team Principal said about the news.
However, perhaps the most discussed was the launch of the GEN3 Evo to the world. Shared in an exclusive press conference ahead of the Monaco weekend, the event was attended by drivers, team principals and members of the media and the championship.
The GEN3 Evo, unveiled at H.S.H Prince Albert II’s Private Car Collection, will debut in Season 11 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. Developed by specialists from Formula E and the FIA, the latest GEN3 Evo edition marks a significant leap in electric racing technology, with acceleration 0-60mph in 1.82s.
It makes the GEN3 Evo the quickest accelerating FIA single-seater race car, and will be faster, stronger, more agile. An aggressive new body kit is designed to be stronger, more robust and more aerodynamic, delivering closer wheel-to-wheel racing.
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There is also the introduction of all-wheel drive which is a first for a Formula E car. This will be available during qualifying duels, race starts, and ATTACK MODE and maximises acceleration and control, elevating the thrill of critical race moments and intensifying driver rivalries. AWD enhances both performance and strategy, providing more exciting racing for drivers and fans alike.
Optimised all-weather Hankook iON tyres will also provide 5-10% more grip and are made from 35% recycled and sustainable materials which is up 9% on the GEN3 spec.