BMW’s last season in Formula E hasn’t really moved the needle for the Bavarians in terms of championship aspirations. The first half of the season delivered mixed results for the BMW i Andretti Motorsport and the second half seems to be off to a similar start.
In the first race of the double-header Mexico e-Prix, BMW i Andretti Motorsport’s Jake Dennis (GBR) finished fifth in the #27 BMW iFE.21 to score ten points in the overall standings. Like Dennis, Maximilian Günther (GER) was in the top three for some time, even leading the race for a while. However, he struggled with energy problems in the final laps and crossed the finish line in twelfth position.
It’s encouraging thought that for the first time this season, both BMW i Andretti Motorsport drivers made it to Super Pole in qualifying. Dennis and Günther secured third and fifth places on the grid. After a great start, Günther moved into second position right ahead of Dennis and when leading driver Pascal Wehrlein (GER, Porsche) pulled into the Attack Zone, the two BMW iFE.21s were at the head of the field for a short time.
After 28 laps, Dennis crossed the line in fifth position, while Günther struggled with energy problems and finished in twelfth place after outbraking himself on the final lap. Dennis and Günther are tenth and 17th in the drivers’ standings, and BMW i Andretti Motorsport is in sixth place in the team championship, with 65 points. Race nine of this season’s ABB FIA Formula E World Championship takes place on Sunday in Puebla.
Jake Dennis (#27 BMW iFE.21, starting position: 3rd place, race result: 5th place, points: 43, driver standings: 10th place):
“We just got unfortunate with the safety car. We were one of only cars that hadn’t taken Attack Mode. Attack Mode here is so unforgiving; you lose three seconds, so we went from second to ninth. There were just a few things that went against us during the whole race but we brought it back in fifth. At one point I didn’t think we would even get points so I think as a team we can do better but as a team we did a mega job to bring this car back in the points.”
