PREVIEW: Formula E returns to Miami for inaugural Homestead race for Round 5 of Season 11

Article by Katy Fairman

Welcome to Miami, and Round 5 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. We’re back racing this weekend and are heading Stateside for an epic return to Miami. The city in Florida was on our calendars in the first two seasons, but is back and better than ever. 

JOIN US IN MIAMI: Buy tickets for the Miami E-Prix here

Make sure you don’t miss a moment of the action, as the quickest accelerating FIA single-seater race car – capable of 0-60mph in 1.82 seconds – takes top the Homestead-Miami Speedway on Saturday 12 April 2025. 

Another new venue for Formula E

Although we’ve raced in Miami twice before, with the first race over a decade ago at the Biscayne Bay Street Circuit, Formula E will be calling a brand new venue home over the next week. 

The Homestead-Miami Speedway has played host to every major North American race series from NASCAR to IMSA and IndyCar and now, it's set to become Formula E's latest US race location. Opened in 1995, the track echoes the Art Deco glitz of nearby Miami Beach with splashes of turquoise, aqua, purple and silver the backdrop.

The now-oval course incorporates the original technical infield road course with all the ingredients for peak Formula E when the world's leading electric race series makes its debut at Homestead in 2025.

Formula E will be using the anti-clockwise 3.551km circuit that loops inside the outer oval, filled with lots of overtaking opportunities on the 15-turn track layout. The adapted version of the Speedway’s infield road course features several high-speed straights and heavy braking zones, with ATTACK MODE located at Turn 4. 

“A new track like this can also be a leveler for everybody,” Mahindra Racing Team Principal Frederic Bertrand added.

Back racing in the USA 

This weekend will be the 17th race in the United States of America for Formula E, with Germany being the only country to host more races with 20 over 11 seasons. Homestead-Miami is also the fifth different Formula E venue in the US, more than any other Formula E host nation. 

We have visited Miami twice before, with five drivers on the grid taking part in the inaugural Miami E-Prix that occurred at the Biscayne Bay Street Circuit over 10 years ago. They are Envision Racing’s Sebastien Buemi, Lola Yamaha ABT’s Lucas di Grassi, DS PENSKE’s Jean-Eric Vergne, TAG Heuer Porsche’s Antonio Felix da Costa and NEOM McLaren’s Sam Bird. 

Away from Miami, the World Championship most recently raced at the Portland International Raceway in Oregon across Seasons 9 and 10. There have also been fantastic races in Los Angeles and champions crowned in blockbuster races around New York City. 

Miami will also be a home race for three of our teams: Andretti, DS PENSKE and CUPRA KIRO. There will undoubtably be an added level of pressure, but being a track that nobody has raced at before should make for an equal playing field for all teams. Will we hear the United States national anthem on the podium come Saturday? Time will tell. 

USA scored their one and only podium finish at home in Miami when the appropriately named Andretti stand-in Scott Speed sped through the field to take second place in his and the team's home race in the Sunshine State.

Rowland leads the Drivers’ World Championship

Nissan’s Oliver Rowland continues his reign at the top of the standings after winning in Jeddah, his second victory of Season 11. The Brit has looked the driver to beat so far this season, despite losing out on a likely victory in São Paulo due to a drive-through penalty for a power overuse which impacted all theNissan-powered cars. 

Since then Rowland’s bounced back, ending Porsche’s dominance in Mexico City with a spectacular victory as well as another win last time out in Saudi Arabia. He also finished on the podium in Jeddah, collecting a second place result on the Friday after DS PENSKE’s Maximilian Guenther won the race from the Julius Baer Pole Position. 

With 68 points to his name, it’s fair to say Rowland is the early favourite but we’re only a quarter of the way into the season – 12 races still remain. 

NEOM McLaren’s Taylor Barnard has also been a star of the season, with the ‘rookie’ securing three podiums and a pole position in the first four races of the GEN3 Evo era. It’s an incredible start from the 20-year-old, who is breaking Formula E records almost every race weekend. 

As well as being the youngest driver to achieve pole position, Barnard also became the all-electric championship's youngest podium finisher at just 20 years old and 189 days in São Paulo. Add this to his record of youngest driver to start a race from Monaco earlier this year, as well as youngest points scorer in Berlin, and it's quite the collection of achievements. 

Barnard is second in the drivers’ championship fight, just 17 points behind his former mentor Oliver Rowland. The two have a wholesome history together, with Rowland playing a significant part in Barnard’s junior career, and now both race with the Nissan powertrain in Formula E. 

Tough start to Season 11 for reigning champions 

One of the biggest storylines from the season so far has been how current Teams’ World Champions Jaguar TCS Racing have struggled so far. Although things started off strong thanks to Mitch Evans and his phenomenal comeback drive in Brazil – going from last to first – the team have only picked up an extra 10 points in the three rounds since then. 

DRIVER STANDINGS: See how the championship is looking after Round 4

Evans classified 19th for the first race in Saudi Arabia, and suffered two DNFs in both Mexico City and the other Jeddah E-Prix. On the other side of the garage, Nick Cassidy had a pointless first three races and before an excellent drive from 17th to fifth at the Jeddah street circuit for Round 4. 

For the reigning Drivers’ World Champion, Pascal Wehrlein, it’s also been a turbulent start to the new season. Things started well with pole position in São Paulo, but ended with a scary crash that saw his TAG Heuer Porsche thrown against the wall and land upside down. 

Wehrlein put that behind him in Mexico, with a consecutive pole position and well-earned podium place, but was forced to settle for 15th and eighth over the Jeddah double-header. He currently sits eighth in the standings, with teammate Antonio Felix da Costa currently the highest-place Porsche driver on 39 points. The Season 6 champ has had a successful start to his campaign, with two second-place finishes but was twice the victim of crashes in Jeddah. 

Andretti’s Nico Mueller whacked da Costa during the first race, but he was able to recover to ninth and bag two championship points. However, he wasn’t as fortunate on the Saturday race when Maximilian Guenther wiped both himself and da Costa out of the race on the opening lap. 

The Season 11 Formula E driver line-up

There was plenty of off-season drama in the driver market ahead of the start of Season 11. Here's your reminder of which drivers and teams are racing in Formula E in 2025:

GEN3 Evo is quick… really quick

Formula E’s latest race car, the GEN3 Evo, is the quickest accelerating FIA single-seater and capable of 0-60mph in just 1.82 seconds – 30% faster than a current F1 car. The new reinforced body kit enhances aerodynamics and durability and all-wheel drive is available in key race moments, including qualifying duels, race starts, and ATTACK MODE. 

GEN3 EVO: Everything you need to know about Formula E's latest electric car

Reigning World Champion Pascal Wehrlein managed to make it back-to-back Julius Baer Pole Positions in São Paulo during the season-opener in December, starting from the P1 grid slot in both Season 10 and Season 11. However, this season his pole lap came in almost three seconds quicker thanks to the developments behind the GEN3 Evo. 

SCHEDULE: Where, when and how to watch or stream the 2025 Miami E-Prix Round 5

Miami is back on the calendar after the iconic location held the first Formula E race on US soil back in the inaugural season. The legendary Homestead-Miami Speedway will trade stock cars for single seaters as it plays host for Round 5 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.

Home teams Andretti, CUPRA KIRO and DS PENSKE will be looking to put on a show for their home fans on Saturday April 12, 2025. 

Free Practice 1: Friday 11th April, 16:30 local/21:30:00 UTC+1

Free Practice 2: Saturday 12 April, 07:30 local/12:30 UTC+1

Qualifying: Saturday 12 April, 09:40 local/14:40 UTC+1

Race: Saturday 12 April, 14:05 local/19:05 UTC+1

View the full schedule in your time zone and check the broadcaster listings or tap the Ways to Watch button above to find out where to watch all the racing action where you live.

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