After concussion & bruises: Formula E champion Pascal Wehrlein "happy to be able to drive again in Mexico"

Following his serious accident at the season opener in Sao Paulo, Formula E world champion Pascal Wehrlein returns to the cockpit - with a spare chassis. Ahead of the first race of the new year, he talks about his recovery, but also about Porsche's impressive track record in Mexico City, which once again makes him one of the favourites to win.

Porsche can look back on various highlights in its Formula E history in Mexico: in 2022, the team claimed its first E-Prix victory at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez - thanks to a one-two win by Pascal Wehrlein and his team-mate at the time, Andre Lotterer. In 2023, Jake Dennis from the Andretti customer team secured another victory for the 99X in Mexico.

And last season, Wehrlein also triumphed at the season opener with his pole position and race win. The German is therefore one of the top favourites again this year, although the omens are slightly different this time: "I'm happy to be able to drive again in Mexico, because the accident in Sao Paulo was violent and I suffered some injuries."

As Porsche confirmed to e-Formula.news, Wehrlein had sustained a concussion and bruising to his chest and lungs, which was not previously known.

Wehrlein: "Apart from the accident, things went well in Brazil"

"The holidays have helped me to recover so that I can attack again," says Wehrlein. Porsche team principal Florian Modlinger echoes this sentiment: "We are relieved that Pascal was able to recover. Before we tick off the accident, however, it is important that everyone involved draws their conclusions from it in order to improve safety even further."

"Apart from the accident, things went well in Brazil and I was able to take pole despite not having an ideal lap in qualifying," says Wehrlein, focussing on the sporting side of things. "That gives us confidence, especially as we have often been strong in Mexico in the past. My thanks go (...) to our own people, who will get my Porsche ready to go again in Mexico."

Modlinger confirms that his mechanics still have some work to do, as Wehrlein's new chassis still has to be made race-ready before the first free practice session late on Friday evening (CET). Nevertheless, the team boss is confident: "We have good memories of Mexico, and Sao Paulo has made me optimistic that we are in a good position again this time."

The Mexico City E-Prix takes place on Saturday evening at 9 pm (CET). Qualifying beforehand is scheduled for 4:40 pm. As usual, e-Formula.news will be covering all sessions in the Formula E Live Ticker.