The best of Britain was on display at the 2023 Hankook London E-Prix for the conclusion of Season 9 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, as two British winners were crowned on home soil over the weekend.
Avalanche Andretti’s Jake Dennis became Formula E’s first ever British Champion yesterday, before Silverstone-based Envision Racing secured the Teams’ title today.
Envision and sister team Jaguar TCS Racing started the season finale level on points in the standings, but Nick Cassidy pipped fellow New Zealander, Mitch Evans, to the victory to secure the crown for his team.
It was a commanding lights-to-flag victory from Cassidy with the result meaning he finished in second overall in the individual standings.
Newly-crowned Season 9 World Champion, Dennis, completed an incredible home race-weekend with a podium finish in front of an adoring crowd at the ExCeL Centre.
Team Envision Racing – who operate a Jag powertrain – joined Dennis in celebrating with all Formula E silverware remaining on British soil in Season 9.
Speaking after the E-Prix, Managing Director and CTO of Envision Racing, Sylvain Fillipi said, “It took us nine years and it’s an incredible feeling. It’s been an incredible season, it’s all been so close. An incredible job from the team and as you know we were in very close competition with Jaguar TCS Racing but we’ve had the most amazing car. It’s fast and it’s got us where we are today.
“We issued a team pep talk and chat late last night to regroup everyone. But ultimately our team is very strong and that is why I am so proud of them”.
Torrential rain in the hours leading up to Round 16, the second race in the Hankook London E-Prix, created treacherous conditions on the outdoor sections of the unique outdoor and indoor 2.09km track at the ExCeL.
While the outcome of cricket’s Ashes was impacted by the classic downpours of a British summer, the 22 drivers were eventually able to get underway and complete the full 38-lap race which would decide the outcome of the Teams’ championship.
Both Jaguar TCS Racing and their Jaguar-powered customer team Envision Racing were on 268 points going into the final round, creating a compelling final chapter for fans despite Jake Dennis winning the Drivers’ World Championship title in Round 15 the day before.
Cassidy composed himself after multiple red flags and returned to the garage to claim a comfortable race win, leading home fellow New Zealander Mitch Evans and rookie champion Jake Dennis in third to win a maiden title for Envision Racing.
Ultimately, it was an emphatic win for the Kiwi. He started in Julius Bär Pole Position, led from lights-to-flag and set the TAG Heuer Fastest Lap of the race. He kept Evans at arm’s length throughout while the lead pair also extended a 10 second advantage over next-best Dennis with track conditions and visibility as tough as they can be in motorsport.
Cassidy’s conclusive victory in the Jaguar I-TYPE 6 earned him runner-up in the Drivers’ World Championship.
The final round of Season 9 ended with Envision Racing extending beyond their previous best of third place to top the table ahead of their factory Jaguar TCS Racing team by 12 points. The Porsche-powered Avalanche Andretti Formula E Team was also able to edge their factory supplier TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team to third by 10 points. Dennis finished 30 points clear of Cassidy with Evans third and Wehrlein fourth.
