Formula E: Evans hit by technical shock as Jaguar leaves Shanghai Sunday empty-handed

Once again, Mitch Evans has been hampered by a technical problem with his Jaguar car in the battle for the Formula E World Championship title, with the season drawing to a close: The New Zealander was forced to sit out Sunday’s race in Shanghai and watch helplessly as Pascal Wehrlein in the Porsche finished fourth, thereby snatching the lead in the overall standings from him. As his team-mate Antonio Felix da Costa also failed to score any championship points, Porsche also closed in on Jaguar in the team standings.

Technical problems for Mitch Evans in his otherwise extremely reliable Jaguar just before the end of the season - it brings back memories. At the 2021 season finale in Berlin, the New Zealander came to an abrupt halt whilst starting from third on the grid as the lights went out and was hit by Edoardo Mortara. Both championship contenders were thus out of the race. The following year, Evans’ Jaguar rolled out of the London E-Prix shortly before the end of the race with a faulty inverter. He lost what had seemed like a secure fourth place to none other than his title rival Stoffel Vandoorne in the Mercedes, a position he was unable to regain despite a victory at the subsequent Seoul E-Prix. Will history now repeat itself for a third time?

This thought sprang to mind at the Shanghai E-Prix. Having already seen from the live timing that Evans’ car was not on the starting grid but in the pits, the New Zealander was spotted in the pits shortly before the start of the race. By this point, Evans had already changed into his racing gear and was wearing a headset so he could listen in on the team radio. A bitter setback in the battle for his first world championship title.

Standard component failed

"A suspected DC/DC issue on his car - a Championship specification component as used by all teams - prevented him from racing", according to a statement from the Jaguar team.

Team principal Ian James went into further detail in his comments: "This is a championship spec component, and it looks to be similar to the failure we had in Mexico on Antonio's car in free practice. As it failed, it caused a fuse in the battery to blow. It's very frustrating for us and for Mitch as these are common components not manufacturer parts.”

Evans was understandably disappointed after the race. “Another very frustrating day both for me and for the team with the DC/DC issue meaning I couldn't take the start," said the New Zealander. "But I'm still very much in the Championship fight. I'll reset along with the team and will head to Tokyo to race hard as always."

Felix da Costa: "We were just unable to maximise the result"

Although Antonio Felix da Costa was able to take part in the race, the Portuguese driver was anything but happy in the end. After starting from 13th on the grid, Felix da Costa damaged his front wing following contact with Oliver Rowland – a racing incident, as the race stewards ruled. Despite the damage, he managed to fight his way up to third place behind the two Porsches by the middle of the race. However, as the track dried out towards the end, the Portuguese driver stood no chance against the drivers who had opted for dry-weather set-ups and eventually dropped back to 13th place.

"It was a difficult race today," said Felix da Costa after the race. "We had pace in the early stages, but we were just unable to maximise the result on track. With four races to go, our focus now turns to Tokyo where we aim to bounce back back strongly."

For Jaguar, this race without any points comes at an inopportune time: for the first time since the Mexico City E-Prix in January, the team failed to score any World Championship points in a race. After the Porsche works team had struggled in Monaco and Sanya, which gave Jaguar a comfortable lead in the teams’ championship, their German rivals now scored a total of 47 points in Shanghai - more than at any other weekend this season.

The next race in the 2025/26 Formula E World Championship is due to take place in just under three weeks’ time. The penultimate E-Prix of the season will take place in the Japanese capital, Tokyo. Jaguar heads into the race weekend with a six-point lead in the team standings. In the drivers’ standings, Evans and Felix da Costa occupy second and fourth place.