The two factory Porsche 99X Electric Formula E cars will have a different look at the Mexico City EPrix this weekend.
The German marquis celebrating Mexico’s motorsport culture and its passionate motorsport fans as Formula E hits its 150th race. A special livery which pays tribute to the legendary Porsche 550 Spyder with which Hans Herrmann claimed a class victory at the 1954 Carrera Panamericana, Mexico’s most famous road race, will be run by Pascal Wehrlein and Nico Mueller. Herrmann won the “Sport” category for cars up to 1,500 cc and finished third overall, while Umberto Maglioli triumphed in a Ferrari 375.
The Carrera Panamericana was a fearsome and often brutal border-to-border road race in Mexico that ran from 1950 to 1954 and has achieved legendary status for its spectacular stages. The event was re-ignited in 1988 but only as a touring event and not a competitive one. It last ran in 2016.
The widely acclaimed win by Herrmann, who also took Porsches first overall victory at Le Mans in 1970 along with Richard Attwood, not only underlined Porsche’s early status in international motorsport, but together with further successes in 1952 and 1953, it also contributed to the creation of the iconic Porsche name “Carrera”.
View a documentary about the 1954 race……
“Historically and still today, Mexico is a special place for us,” says Thomas Laudenbach, Vice President Porsche Motorsport. “Porsche’s story in electric motorsport is still young, but the circuit in Mexico City has played a defining part in it.
“Our factory team took its first Formula E pole position and first victory here, in 2020 and 2022 respectively. Nowhere else has Porsche been more successful in Formula E. The livery honours our motorsport heritage and the Mexican fans at the same time.
“It is also a thank-you to a country that welcomes us so warmly in Formula E every year.”
Mexico also marks the start of an anniversary year for Porsche. In 2026, the Stuttgart sports-car manufacturer celebrates 75 years of motorsport – a history that began in 1951 with the Porsche 356 SL and a class win at Le Mans. A parallel also connects Hans Herrmann’s 1954 race car with the highly efficient Porsche 99X Electric: the 550 Spyder was the first Porsche designed specifically for racing, while the 99X Electric is the first Porsche developed solely for all-electric motorsport. Laudenbach: “Our heritage in traditional motorsport is unique and is reflected in every Porsche. In the future, we want to be able to say the same in all-electric motorsport. That is why we are competing in Formula E. We want to write stories – and history.”
The 550 Spyder’s legacy in 1954 extended beyond the sporting success. Its aluminium bodywork featured several brand logos from companies that supported the Panamericana campaign. At the time, car sponsorship was still a relatively new concept to motorsport and would only become widespread much later. Some of the most memorable liveries in 75 years of Porsche Motorsport can be traced back to the influence of sponsorship, contributing to the variety of colours that has shaped Porsche’s identity in racing.
