Nick Cassidy (Envision Racing) stormed to the top of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship after starting tenth on the grid and winning the 2023 Monaco E-Prix.
Cassidy led Mitch Evans (Jaguar TCS Racing) home after fending off his countryman until a late-race Safety Car sealed the victory.
The 150mph chess game ebbed and flowed as leaders vied for control and to set the pace, but Cassidy's key early-race moves provided the final victory. Cassidy didn't look back as his engineer gave the go-ahead for a six-lap sprint finish, despite the close attentions of Evans' factory Jaguar.
Evans had climbed from sixth on the grid to second at the checkered flag, and he was within touching distance of the Envision until three circuits from the finish. New Zealand's one-two made it four wins in a row, a new Formula E record for a single country.
Jake Dennis (Avalanche Andretti Formula E team) couldn't quite keep up with the leaders, but he had come from 11th on the grid to finish on the podium.
Sacha Fenestraz (Nissan Formula E Team), who thought he had secured the Julius Baer Pole Position only to have a post-session penalty deprive him of the honor, finished fourth, unable to compete with the lead trio's benchmark combination of speed and efficiency. Hughes followed him to the finish line, with Dan Ticktum (NIO 333 Racing) holding on for sixth despite a number of late-race accidents and some car damage.
Long-time Drivers' standings leader Pascal Wehrlein could only improve to 11th after starting 12th, causing both the driver and his TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team to lose their respective titles.
After DS PENSKE was penalized from qualifying due to tyre pressure violations, fellow championship candidate Jean-Éric Vergne returned to seventh place from the rear of the grid. Vergne won the first ABB Driver of Progress race award, which recognises clever, efficient driving that results in the most positions gained in a race.
With eighth position, reigning world champion and DS PENSKE colleague Stoffel Vandoorne advanced to the points.
Cassidy's 121 points put him ahead of Wehrlein's 100 points in the Drivers' standings, with Jake Dennis currently third on 96 points and Evans close behind on 94. Vergne finishes Monaco in fifth place.
Envision Racing now leads the Teams standings with 182 points, 14 points ahead of TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team (168 points), and Jaguar TCS Racing (157 points).
Nick Cassidy, No. 37, Envision Racing, said:
“It's insane, I've got nothing against Berlin - but this feels amazing! This is so, so special. I'm lost for words. It is going to take a bit to sink in, man we had such a tough day, I was 21st I think in both Free Practices which struck me a lot. I qualified 10th and I was really happy with that, so that was kind of how our day was going. Credit to our guys, both car crews and everyone in our garage helped out with the issues. I am so happy we got the reward after the work.
“There is a long way to go, this guy right here Mitch (Evans) he showed today how bloody strong he is. It is going to be a really cool fight, but for the moment let’s just enjoy the fact we won in Monaco.”
Mitch Evans, No. 9, Jaguar TCS Racing, said:
“Not the right position but I gave it my best today. Full credit to Nick and Envision, they did a great job. Nick passed me at the right time. I thought I had him but he made a good move on me and that was it. Another podium, we are on a good roll, so good points and that's the main thing.
"(Would he have passed Cassidy without the Safety Car?) I'm not too sure, I kind of became locked out a bit after the Safety Car. There's a few moments in the race I wish I could do again, and may have had a different outcome, but it is what it is. Full credit to Nick and his team, but also my team, we have been doing a really good job but we just missed out today.”
Jake Dennis, No. 27, Avalanche Andretti Formula E Team, said:
“Back on the podium, two races in a row again. I think I had to make it up to the boys after hitting the wall in my first lap. We had a car to start in the front two rows today. Mistake on my behalf, so I think I have some beer money for sure tonight to repay them! Super happy but a little disappointed in certain ways, we had the most efficient car but we didn't quite optimize it with leading at the right point. It is a bit frustrating that you have 2% more than the cars in front but can't do anything about it. Nevertheless, I'm really happy and we are back in the title hunt for sure - looking forward to celebrating with the boys tonight and enjoying it.”
Next stop in ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is a return to Indonesia for the first Jakarta E-Prix double-header with Round 10 on Saturday 3 June and Round 11 on Sunday 4 June.
