Mahindra Racing have released a statement confirming that they’ve suffered “extensive damage to our trackside operations”, with only one car to be used when testing resumes at 1pm GMT at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, Valencia.

The Banbury-based team’s garage was situated next to WAE’s (formerly Williams Advanced Engineering), where the fire took place. WAE’s garage blaze was caused by a battery which had been extracted from a DS Penske car on Tuesday, which was driven in the morning session by Robert Shwartzman. WAE supplies the Gen3 batteries and fast-chargers.

Due to the blaze, testing was cancelled on Tuesday afternoon, Wednesday and Thursday morning so that an investigation into the incident could take place. Following the conclusion of the investigation by the technical suppliers, testing has been allowed to resume on Thursday afternoon.

Mahindra are believed to be the only outfit impacted by the fire, as they’ve been forced to move garages due to damage to their equipment. It’s Nyck de Vries’ side of the garage which is believed to have been damaged in particular, with only Edoardo Mortara to complete on-track action in the first session since Tuesday morning.

Despite the damage to their equipment, Mahindra Racing Team Principal Frederic Bertrand has praised the Incident Response Team for their quick actions on Tuesday to minimise the extent of the damage. He also praised his side for managing to at least get Mortara’s car ready for action.

“First of all, I would like to extend my thanks to the Incident Response Team,” Bertrand stated. “Although we have sustained extensive damage to our trackside operations, without a doubt their quick actions helped to avoid a much larger incident.

“I would also like to express my gratitude to the FIA, Formula E and to each and every single one of our competitors. The support for Mahindra Racing at this difficult time has been unanimous and is a clear indication to me that we exist and compete as one family within the paddock.

“I am extremely proud of everyone at the Mahindra Racing team. It has taken a huge amount of time, effort, and dedication to get us to a position where we can resume testing with a single car in Valencia this week. Although this comes with some obvious sporting disadvantages, we are all looking forward to resuming our programme.”

Edoardo Mortara has stressed that Mahindra Racing can still make progress in season 10 despite the hardware being homologated until the end of the new campaign, with “so much” being possible “in terms of software”.

Mortara has switched from Maserati MSG Racing to Mahindra for the 2023/24 season, making many predict that he’ll be towards the back of the pack come Mexico City. This is because the Indian manufacturer’s powertrain was the weakest in season nine, with that being a part under homologation for another year.

Whilst energy efficiency wasn’t too big of an issue, one-lap pace was a huge problem for the Banbury-based team. As a result, it wasn’t a shock to see the four-Mahindra powered cars – two at Mahindra and two at ABT CUPRA – at the back of the grid.

This often left the likes of Lucas di Grassi with too much work to do during the races, to try and get amongst the top-10. As none of the hardware can be touched for season 10, it’s easy to predict that Mahindra will endure another troubling year before they can introduce their new powertrain in season 11.

However, Mortara has stressed that this isn’t necessarily the case, given that software changes can be made. For Mahindra, this is where any improvement in performance will come, with the Swiss driver having explained to Motorsport Week just how much can be played around with before racing gets underway in Mexico City in January.

He acknowledges that software changes can “take really a lot of time” but that “it’s actually quite nice” just how much can be altered to try and discover some performance gains.

Of course, Mahindra aren’t going to suddenly become a frontrunning team in season 10, far from that in fact, but Mortara is adamant that just because a hardware homologation is in place, doesn’t mean the backmarker should disregard season 10 to fully focus on season 11.

“There is so much that you can change,” Mortara admitted to Motorsport Week. “I keep on having this comment and Formula E is one of these categories where you can change. Probably it’s the category where you can change the most.

“I do understand that you have the hardware that is homologated for two years, so season nine and season 10. But in terms of software, you can do so much, obviously, and this is really making the car more or less competitive.

“If you have really strong software and strong IDs there, you’re going to be able to really make the car really competitive. And this is something that I truly believe obviously this will take a lot of time because in order to implement, let’s say, software changes, you need to code, you need to have maybe different philosophy and stuff like that.

“And this could take really a lot of time, but there is so much that you can do in this category. It’s actually quite nice.”

Mahindra Racing CEO and Team Principal Frederic Bertrand has revealed why Nyck de Vries and Edoardo Mortara were signed for season 10, over other candidates.

The Banbury-based side are the only Formula E outfit fielding a completely new driver line-up for 2024, after Oliver Rowland left halfway through season nine and Lucas di Grassi departed ahead of pre-season testing to rejoin the ABT CUPRA Formula E Team.

Replacing the duo is De Vries and Mortara, two drivers who are both proven race winners in the all-electric series and are very experienced. Deciding who would race for Mahindra in season 10 wasn’t just about finding quick and experienced drivers though, with Bertrand having devised certain criteria that he wanted candidates to meet.

Despite the Indian manufacturer having endured a massively disappointing start to the Gen3 era, several drivers from multiple categories were interested in racing for Mahindra. With their initial Gen3 package not being the most competitive, the side are very much on a long-term journey to try and return to the front, something Bertrand stresses must be supported by the drivers.

Bertrand wanted two drivers “able to embrace the project” Mahindra have embarked on, which will continue into season 11 and 12, when they’ll use their Gen3.5 powertrain. The outfit are already working towards an improved powertrain for when the hardware homologation ends at the conclusion of season 10, meaning they needed drivers who are prepared to stick around.

This is why De Vries and Mortara have been given multi-year contracts, as it truly allows the team to look at and plan for the future. The Team Principal wanted drivers prepared to work for the team, rather than just for themselves.

He more than gets this in De Vries and Mortara, who have both been part of successful outfits. De Vries was a key member of Mercedes-EQ in season six, seven and eight, with the German manufacturer having won the Constructors’ Championship in their final two campaigns in the series.

Mortara was also a huge part of Venturi’s rise in Formula E, with him having worked tirelessly to make the team a frontrunner. He even secured their first ever victory back in season five at the Hong Kong E-Prix.

Both drivers are more than prepared to persevere through the hard times with Mahindra to get to the good, making Bertrand convinced that they’re the “right people to lead the journey”.

“I wanted people able to embrace the project,” Bertrand exclusively told Motorsport Week. “You don’t necessarily look for drivers coming for themselves only.

“You need team players, you need strong performers, you need people with high-level background, knowing what winning races means, knowing what winning titles mean, knowing what working with a top team means. So these were all the criteria which were very important to me.

“The one which is not on an excel sheet is how you feel with the people, how you feel that it will be the right people to lead the journey and make sure that you will have moments where it’s sometimes difficult, sometimes very good. But you will always find one thing in common is that we have the same goal and we share the same values behind that.

“So that was clearly the important part for me to identify and to find. And it was quite clear with Edo’s background and with Nyck’s background, there was really no question to really ask on this. It was quite obvious.”

Whilst Mahindra did receive plenty of interest in their two vacant seats, Bertrand admits that it was a “quick” decision to sign the season seven World Champion and Mortara. It wasn’t just the decision to sign them which was fast, with both drivers having also understood the “project” in rapid fashion, vital in helping Mahindra “climb the big mountain”.

“So I would say the fit was quick,” added Bertrand. “What was quick, in a way, what was then necessary, is that they also know all about the project and that they understand what we want to do and how we want to do it and where we are and how we are.

“Because for sure I don’t want them to be disappointed or badly surprised when they arrive. They still have surprises, to be honest.

“But the good thing is that they knew about the project, they knew about the challenges, and they come really strong in their mind and in their motivation so that we can go through all the challenges and make sure that we climb the big mountain we have in front of us.”

Season seven World Champion Nyck de Vries was linked to several teams during the current Formula E silly season, but why has he chosen a seat at the struggling Mahindra Racing for his comeback campaign?

It was announced by the Banbury-based team on Wednesday morning that De Vries and Edoardo Mortara had been signed for the 2023/24 season on multi-year contracts, keeping the duo in the side until at least the end of season 11.

Following his abrupt departure from AlphaTauri in Formula 1 after just 10 races, a return to Formula E was widely expected for the four-time Formula E race winner, but not necessarily at Mahindra. De Vries was linked to Maserati MSG Racing, the Nissan Formula E Team and even Andretti Formula E, all teams who were significantly stronger than Mahindra in season nine.

The start of the Gen3 era wasn’t kind to the Indian manufacturer, who were unfortunately last season’s backmarker. Their powertrain was, unfortunately, just not as strong as the other Formula E manufacturers, with one-lap pace having been a real burden. The team also had to withdrew from the Cape Town E-Prix amid concerns with the safety of their rear suspension.

Both Mahindra drivers starting towards the back of the grid was a regular occurrence in season nine, although Lucas di Grassi was able to rescue some solid results at times. Efficiency wasn’t actually too big of a concern, something which often saw Di Grassi go from the back of the field towards the points places.

However, starting at the back often left Di Grassi with just too much work to do, something which the team recognised. So far, the Gen3 era hasn’t gone as planned for Mahindra, although Team Principal Frederic Bertrand has stressed that the side are on a long-term project to get back towards the front in season 11 and 12.

Whilst De Vries admits that “performance is only measured against results”, the Dutchman has had a chance to see and hear from himself all that the team have planned for the future, to get back to where they ultimately should be. This is “really encouraging” to him.

The idea of a project seemingly excites the former Mercedes-EQ driver, with him already being impressed by the “fundamentals” the team have in place. However, with so much being under homologation for season 10, De Vries accepts that the upcoming campaign could be a challenge but that it’s ultimately an “exciting new chapter” for him.

“I thought I escaped Europe and went to the US and I was left out a little bit of all the conversations,” De Vries joked, when asked exclusively by Motorsport Week why he chose Mahindra over all the teams he was linked with.

“But I think meeting with Fred [Bertrand] and having been presented the future roadmap of the team, explaining where it is and what the plans are going forward, I think was really encouraging for me to hear from Fred. And also, I think often in sports, performance is only measured against results, which is fair because that’s what our world is about.

“But I think when I came here and when I spent a little bit of time with the team, I also really see that there are already a lot of fundamentals that are very good. We just need to kind of find a synergy between all of us now to already build on the progress they’ve made through season nine and then hopefully beyond.

“But it doesn’t mean we need to discard season 10 just because we believe the package isn’t quite strong enough. But there’s a lot of work ahead. But I believe in the project and in the people we have here together. So it’s an exciting new chapter.”

Whilst De Vries has only been out of Formula E for one season, a lot has changed in that time. The last time he actually competed in the series was when the Gen2 machinery was still in use, meaning he’s not yet raced the new Gen3 cars.

He’s not a complete stranger to the Gen3 package though, as he’s completed two tests at two different venues behind the wheel of one of the new cars. Both tests took place in 2022 following season eight, when he was expected to join Maserati before his switch to F1 was announced.

It’s not just racing the new era of car he’ll have to get used to, it’s also the new peloton-style of racing which has faced some criticism.

Neither seemingly bother the 28-year-old, who’s targeting to get up to speed “as quickly and best as possible” before Mexico City in January. In regard to the style of racing, De Vries does note that this could change once again in season 10, if fast-charging pit-stops are introduced as planned.

“It’s still Formula E,” De Vries noted, in regard to how long he thinks he’ll need to get back up to speed.

“I’ve actually tested the Gen 3 car, two times in 2022 on two different tracks, and, of course, it’s a different car. And the front motor, new battery, new car bring different dynamics to the race. But if they decide to introduce fast charging this year, that dynamic will change drastically again. So it’s always a moving target.

“Collectively, we’ll try to prepare myself as quickly and best as possible ahead of the season, but I’m sure I’ll get up to speed.”

What De Vries and Mahindra can expect from season 10 won’t truly be discovered until action gets underway in January, with the pecking order after last season’s pre-season test having been very different to what was seen in the first race of the Gen3 era.

Because of that, De Vries is reluctant to make any specific targets in regard to “pure results”; instead, season 10 is about improving the team’s “structure” and “foundation” for the future, when Gen3.5 is introduced in season 11.

“Well, if you want to quantify them in pure results, obviously it’s an impossible question to answer,” De Vries admitted, when asked what he expects from season 10. “But I think as a team we collectively want to become better and improve the kind of structure and the foundation of the team for its future.”

Regardless of what happened last campaign, the future does genuinely look extremely bright for Mahindra, if they can successfully navigate the rocky challenges they’ll likely face in season 10.

De Vries is a proven frontrunner in Formula E who knows what it takes to get a car to the front, something which will work not only in Mahindra’s favour but also in the driver’s, as he looks to bounce back from his disappointing spell in F1.

Nyck de Vries took victory after a chaotic last-lap energy miscalculation resulted in only 12 cars finishing upon Formula E’s inaugural Valencia E-Prix, held in wet conditions on Saturday.

The 45 minute + 1 lap race proved to be an unusual affair from the outset owing to wet conditions, following a burst of rain during the build-up, which prompted a Safety Car start.

Antonio Felix da Costa’s race looked to be well-managed from the start, holding the lead and allowing Maximillian Guenther to fall into the clutches of Mahindra’s Alex Lynn.

However, the racing soon ground to a halt on Lap 2 as Porsche’s Andre Lotterer spun Sebastien Buemi into the gravel at Turn 9, triggering the safety car.

Da Costa was quick off the restart once again for DS Techeetah, as a train of cars began to form behind second-placed Guenther, who had fallen two seconds back from the Portuguese driver.

De Vries on the other hand was storming his way through the pack from seventh, passing Lynn around the outside of Turn 4 for third and then dispatching Guenther in the BMW i Andretti for second.

Wheel-to-wheel racing was in action throughout the field, with the second Mahindra of Alexander Sims making his way from 11th to fifth as Vandoorne charged up to 14th from the back of the grid.

With 25 minutes remaining, da Costa looked in control ahead of de Vries and Lynn, whilst Guenther’s race came to a sudden end as he beached himself in the gravel at Turn 2.

The return of safety car saw da Costa expertly manage the restart once more, as de Vries tried to stay in the DS Techeetah’s slipstream.

Behind the leading duo, the Mahindras duelled over over third as further back, Mitch Evans’ race ended prematurely. The Jaguar driver knocked into the side of Dragon/Penske’s Sergio Sette Camara and spun him into the gravel at Turn 9.

At the same time, Vandoorne and the second Dragon/Penske of Nico Mueller were battling side-by-side, after the Belgian driver drove through the gravel at Turn 8.

The race got back underway with 10 minutes remaining, as da Costa held the race lead ahead of de Vries. Further back, Porsche’s Pascal Wehrlein and ROKiT Venturi’s Norman Nato fought over sixth.

The German driver was caught out as Nato passed him despite going through the gravel, allowing the Envision Virgin duo of Nick Cassidy and Robin Frijns to overtake him. His hard work was then undone as Nato went through the gravel again and dropped himself down to 10th.

With just over five minutes remaining, the safety car reappeared for the fifth time as Lotterer found himself stranded him the gravel at Turn 1. His Porsche team-mate Wehrlein also retired due to a safety issue with his brakes.

Restarting with 1 minute + 1 lap remaining would prove to be a recipe for chaos as da Costa’s race crumbled.

Energy mismanagement resulted in several drivers falling to below one per cent useable energy before the final lap, including race leader da Costa.

A baffling final lap ensued as De Vries smoothly moved his way up to the lead, as cars came to a halt on track all around him. He crossed the line ahead of Rowland and Sims, both of whom were swiftly disqualified for insufficient energy.

As a result, Mueller brought home Dragon/Penske’s first podium since Jerome d’Ambrosio’s third place at the Zurich E-Prix in Season 4. Additionally, due to all the disqualifications, Vandoorne was promoted to third for Mercedes’ first double podium this season.

Rookie Cassidy managed to come home in fourth place, as Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler’s Rene Rast split the Envision Virgin duo, holding Frijns behind him in sixth.

After narrowly losing out on a lights-to-flag victory, da Costa’s only consolation will be that he was still able to bring home points in seventh.

Britain’s Lynn and Sam Bird had to settle for eighth and ninth, ahead of the second Audi of Lucas di Grassi.

BMW i Andretti’s Jake Dennis and DS Techeetah’s Jean-Eric Vergne rounded out the finishers in 11th and 12th place.

In the end, the remaining 12 drivers were not classified after running out of energy. This included Rowland, Sims, NIO 333’s Oliver Turvey and Tom Blomqvist and the ROKiT Venturis of Nato and Edoardo Mortara.

Wehrlein, Lotterer, Evans, Sette Camara, Guenther and Buemi all retired earlier in the race.

As a consequence of the double podium, it is a Mercedes 1-2 at the top of the drivers’ standings, with de Vries on 57 points, nine in front of Vandoorne. The German team also assume the lead of the teams’ championship on 105 points, ahead of Jaguar Racing in second.

	Position		Driver	Team	Gap
	1		Nyck de Vries	Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team
	2		Nico Muller	Dragon/Penske Autosport	13.128
	3		Stoffel Vandoorne	Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team	34.886
	4		Nick Cassidy	Envision Virgin Racing	36.903
	5		Rene Rast	Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler	51.650
	6		Robin Frijns	Envision Virgin Racing	52.985
	7		Lucas di Grassi	Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler	2:41.946
	8		Jake Dennis	Andretti Motorsport	3:07.061
	9		Jean-Eric Vergne	DS Techeetah	4:19.582
	10		Oliver Rowland	Nissan e.dams	DSQ
	11		Alexander Sims	Mahindra Racing	DSQ
	12		Antonio Felix da Costa	DS Techeetah	DSQ
	13		Alex Lynn	Mahindra Racing	DSQ
	14		Sam Bird	Jaguar Racing	DSQ
	15		Oliver Turvey	NIO 333 Formula E Team	DNF
	16		Tom Blomqvist	NIO 333 Formula E Team	DNF
	17		Norman Nato	Rokit Venturi Racing	DNF
	18		Edoardo Mortara	Rokit Venturi Racing	DNF
	19		Pascal Wehrlein	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	DNF
	20		Andre Lotterer	Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E Team	DNF
	21		Mitch Evans	Jaguar Racing	DNF
	22		Sergio Sette Camara	Dragon/Penske Autosport	DNF
	23		Maximilian Guenther	Andretti Motorsport	DNF
	24		Sebastien Buemi	Nissan e.dams	DNF

Toyota Gazoo Racing has confirmed that 2019 Formula 2 champion and Mercedes Formula E driver Nyck de Vries has joined the team as its reserve driver for the remainder of the 2019-2020 FIA WEC season, as well as the 2021 campaign.

De Vries tested with the team during the WEC’s Rookie test at the Bahrain International Circuit in December, where he completed 41 laps behind the wheel of the team’s TS050 Hybrid.

The 25-year-old told MotorsportWeek.com at the time that he would be interested in working with Toyota in the future.

“I am really excited to join Toyota Gazoo Racing and work with the team again; it’s an honour to be selected as test and reserve driver so I would like to thank the team for this opportunity,” said de Vries. “Driving the TS050 HYBRID in Bahrain was a fantastic experience.

“At the time, I thought it could have been a one-off opportunity so it’s great to know I will be driving the car again, and even more exciting to look ahead to later this year when we start testing the new LMH car. I hope to contribute to a successful start to this new era for the team.”

LMH development

De Vries will return to the cockpit of the TS050 Hybrid later this week during a test at Paul Ricard, where the team will be sampling the low-downforce aerodynamic package which will be used at Spa and Le Mans.

In addition to on-track testing, the Dutchman will be carrying out simulator test sessions and hold reserve driver status in the WEC. De Vries will also play a significant role in the development of Toyota’s Le Mans Hypercar, which is set to debut in the 2021 FIA WEC season.

De Vries will be replacing Thomas Laurent in the role as test and reserve driver, with the team confirming that it has parted ways with the Frenchman.

“I am pleased to welcome Nyck de Vries to Toyota Gazoo Racing,” said Hisatake Murata, Team President. “The feedback following his rookie test in Bahrain was very positive so it’s clear that he has a lot of potential.

“Along with our Toyota Gazoo Racing WEC Challenge member Kenta Yamashita, we have two very promising young drivers developing their skills within our team which is exciting for the future.

“I look forward to seeing their progress, and at the same time I wish Thomas Laurent all the best for the future and thank him for his contribution this season.”