Porsche’s Gen4 Customer Choice
Porsche is currently in detailed negotiations with potential Gen4 customers and is known to have held discussions with various parties including Envision, Penske and Mahindra, as well as current partners Andretti and KIRO. While Andretti is expected to switch to Nissan, KIRO is gearing up for the possibility of continuing with Porsche for Gen4.
Penske is believed to be one very viable hook-up for the Gen4 period, although no deal is thought to be absolutely confirmed at present. DS and Penske are expected to go their separate ways for Season 13 onwards.
Speaking to Formula E Notebook recently, Porsche’s Formula E leader Florian Modlinger said that “the deadline is 1st of December this year. This means a lot of time left over, and I think for both sides that the target would be to have a decision in some months, when we come closer to the end of the season, so that you know with who you are working in the future.”
FEN understands that the Gen4 prototype test car ran at the Monteblanco circuit after the Monaco EPrix and concluded more kilometres as part of its development programme. The car is set to run again at the Calafat Circuit next month.
Driver Market Latest
Formula E Notebook understands that runaway 2024/25 points leader Oliver Rowland is close to a fresh deal to keep him at Nissan until at least 2028, the halfway mark of the Gen4 period. Rowland signed for a second terms at the team in the summer of 2023 and is believed to have several favourable options anyway to stay with the Japanese manufacturers. FEN also understands that the 32 year-old has also had significant interest from several other teams in recent months.
The Formula E driver market is in a state of relative immobility at present as several deals are waiting on the decision of Porsche on whether it will take up an option on Antonio Felix da Costa’s services for 2026. Should the Season 6 champion not continue with the German manufacturer it is believed that Nico Mueller is likely to replace him for the final Gen4 season at least alongside Pascal Wehrlein who has a long-term deal with Porsche.
Speaking to FEN, Porsche’s Florian Modlinger, said that a degree of patience is being undertaken in regard to Porsche’s Season 12 driver line-up.
“Over the next 30 days, we have six races in 30 days, so it’s good that we can focus on the actual season then,” he said. “I think later on, we can then think about what in the future, also Gen4 and so on, the driver plannings are. But that’s not top (priority) at the moment, so we focus on the actual season.”
Nick Cassidy is considered as a lynchpin in the driver market and his future is likely to be decided in the coming weeks as he processes multiple offers. FEN asked his present team boss James Barclay about the likelihood of Cassidy remaining with the Big Cat, with Barclay stating only that “speaking openly, that’s a conversation with us and Nick to work out what’s both going to be best for us both.
“From his perspective and our perspective, if we can find great common ground for the futurethen that’s right. But ultimately, you want to have both sides fully clear and comfortable and that’s the best position for the future. That’s the process that that we are kind of going through as we speak,” concluded Barclay.
Sergio Sette Camara is talking to several teams about a race seat for the 2025-26 season. The current Nissan reserve driver is expected to deputise for the WEC clash compromised Norman Nato at the Berlin EPrix in July. Confirmation of Sette Camara’s inclusion in the race team for that weekend is expected next month.
Farewell Big Sight Yump
The infamous Turn 3 ‘yump’ has been smoothed out via re-surfacing at the Big Sight circuit a year on after it caused several issues for cars getting airborne. Many cars had to have repairs to the underside of their cars and the spec RESS batteries also came in for a hammering on the jump.
“I think it’s better to avoid the jump for reliability concerns on the car, but also for the comfort of us drivers in it,” DS Penske’s Maximilian Guenther told FEN. “We had some good pictures from last year of us taking off. But yeah, I believe in a single seater you want to be with both axles on the ground.”
Wehrlein Rubber Questions
Pascal Wehrlein told FEN in Tokyo that he felt there was an unexplained inconsistency in the two sets of tyres he used on the Saturday. “In Monaco we had quite a poor behaviour from one set to the others. That is, again, something which is not in our control,” he said.
When asked about the inconsistencies further, Porsche Formula E boss Florian Modlinger said that Wehrlein had raised his concerns and “did not feel happy with one tyre set. We are still investigating with our engineers, but it’s quite difficult to the mixed conditions in Monaco, but yes he reported that it was a clear difference.”
Praising Seb
Envision Racing boss Sylvain Filippi paid tribute to his charge Sebastien Buemi after he ended the teams 22 month winless streak at the Monaco EPrix earlier this month.
“There’s a reason why Seb is in this team and I believe in him,” Filippi told FEN.
“He’s a great driver, just look what he does in WEC too. He’s really so good technically. Helping us a lot when we have a new car and a lot to understand. He’s absolutely critical in our development.”
Buemi’s future in Formula E is still unknown but he is believed to be discussing a possible extension or new deal with Envision Racing in addition to speaking with other parties about a switch for next season. Additionally, Buemi could also stand down from Formula E to concentrate on his programmes with Toyota Gazoo Racing, Red Bull and also the Buemi/Gachnang family car dealership business in Switzerland.
CUPRA Ambition
CUPRA racing boss Xavi Serra told FEN in Monaco that he believes big points are the key target for the CUPRA KIRO Formula E team as it enters the second half of its first season in its present guise in Japan.
“I think we are going through the steps that we planned to and we all want to take these steps quicker, but we always said there’s a starting phase, consolidation,” said Serra.
“We all said from Monaco (onwards) we’ll have to do a breakthrough and we have to start delivering good points. Competition is fierce, so we are happy to be able to at least show that we have the pace.”
A Delicate Operation by Jodie Warrington
NEOM McLaren Formula E Team Operations Coordinator Jodie Warrington here describes her role in Formula E with some insight in to how the flow of car parts is dealt with for long haul races.
“In short, my day-to-day role within the business primarily revolves around the turnaround and servicing of car parts in preparation for the next event,” says Warrington.
“This includes stock management, preparing invoices, and organising any freight requirements. Forward planning is key to my role: we have a lot of conversations in pre-season and make decisions as far in advance as we can.
“The biggest challenge during the busiest parts of the season is getting parts turned around and serviced within brief windows of time, which can be as short as 72 hours. This is especially difficult in Formula E because all the teams use the same suppliers. You have to plan ahead and anticipate worst-case scenarios so that when you experience a tricky race, such as Monaco, and the turnaround of parts is higher, you are prepared for this.
“Over a race weekend, I will manage the stock levels to ensure we have all the parts we need and are staying within budget. I will also arrange for the return of the freight to the UK. At an event, I also take on the role of Team Coordinator, managing time schedules, travel and logistics. This is pretty much what it says on the tin: making sure everyone has all the support and info that they need to ensure the week runs smoothly from an operational point of view.
“We are in Japan this weekend, where it is notoriously difficult to get car parts into the country, so I was busy in the lead-up to the event. The time difference in Japan is also an issue for everyone who is out there, so we need to make sure the team gets as much sleep as they can and prioritises their wellbeing,” concluded Warrington.
Shanghai Surprise?
No! In the sense that the Shanghai EPrixs in two weeks’ time will run to exactly the same distance as last season. The first race will be over 29 lap while the second on Sunday, June 1 will be 28 laps. This season though the first race will include the Pit Boost of 3.85kW of boost with the usual 0.93 regen co-efficient.
Nissan’s Tough Decisions
Nissan confirmed several significant new cost cuts earlier this week with 11,000 jobs cutsand a reduction in back production planned amid difficult sales in recent years.
Nissan saw its profit almost completely lost in the last financial year with operating profitstotalling 69.8 billion yen ($472 million) in the 12 months to March, a decline of 88% from the previous year.
Nissans’ new CEO, Ivan Espinosa, will attend the Toykyo EPrix this weekend and is set to spend his time with the many Nissan employees in the grandstands opposite the pits.
Big Cat Changes
Jaguar TCS Racing has made a change in its senior team as previous team manager Patrick Coorey has switched to the position of Customer Partnership Manager, liaising with Envision Racing. Taking over Coorey’s former position, but under the modified title of Head of Operations, is Mitch Evans’s former race engineer Josep Rocha. Evans has been engineered since Homestead by former NEOM McLaren engineer Alan Cocks.
Legacy Impacts
Throughout race week, Formula E will be supporting and aligning itself with the Tokyo Metropolitan Government’s (TMG) free TOKYO GX ACTION CHANGING, a major initiative promoting Green Transformation that is expected to attract 60,000 participants. This support reinforces the Championship’s mission to drive sustainable human progress and create lasting environmental impact whilst creating synergies around clean energy and sustainable initiatives.
Macan Magic
Formula E Notebook undertook a special road trip from Monaco to Spa last week courtesy of Porsche. The all-electric Porsche Macan took FEN founder Sam Smith and commercial manager Andy Stobart from the Principality to the Spa WEC round as the duo sampled the SUV across France, Luxembourg and Belgium. A full feature on the trip and a review of the Porsche Macan will be available next month.
Turning Japanese… We really think so…
Formula E Notebook is working with Japanese based journalist Jamie Klein this weekend and has already issued several Japanese language content pieces ahead of the second Tokyo EPrix event this weekend. Snappy race reviews will appear again on FEN’s Instagram page and can be viewed HERE across the meeting.
