Joel Eriksson's strategy behind his best Formula E result in Miami: "Elbows out"

For Joel Eriksson, the new regular driver for Envision Racing since the start of this season, the race in the Sunshine State Florida at the Miami International Autodrome was a very special one. Eriksson made it into the duel phase of qualifying for the first time, started the race from 6th place and finished in 4th place, setting several personal bests in the process: His best qualifying and best race result in Formula E to date. Eriksson attributes the result to his strategy of getting his elbows out during the race.

Joel Eriksson put in an impressive performance during the Miami E-Prix on 31 January 2026: He secured his ticket to the duels with the third-fastest time in the group phase. Despite losing in the quarter-finals, this meant 6th place on the grid for the Swedish racing driver.

However, right at the start of the race there was a slight contact with the DS Penske of Taylor Barnard. "He crashed into me", Eriksson described to his team on the radio following the contact. Fortunately, his car was undamaged and he was able to continue the race without any problems. He remained consistently in the front group of the field and benefited from a collision between two competitors on lap 27: Felipe Drugovich in the Andretti and Antonio Felix da Costa in the Jaguar collided. Eriksson was able to capitalise on the moment and easily passed the two cars at the scene of the accident. As a result, he made up two positions.

"Proving to myself that I can be fast even in the wet is a good feeling"

The conditions on track were anything but easy due to rain before the race and light rain during the race, admitted Eriksson in an interview with Formula E. "Just to confirm to myself that I can be quick in the wet as well, and can control the car in a very fast way around the lap, that's obviously very, very positive and a good feeling for myself", he described.

Teamwork makes the dream work 🤝

Listen to Joel's radio as he crossed the line in a career best P4! 🏁 pic.twitter.com/huinqZ62k1

— Envision Racing (@Envision_Racing) February 5, 2026

With his strong result, Eriksson also underscores the upward trajectory Envision Racing currently seems to be on. In the past two seasons, the British team has often struggled to score points on a regular basis. Team-mate Buemi finished the race three positions behind Eriksson in 7th place.

After the race in Miami, Eriksson finds himself in eighth place in the championship standings, directly followed by Buemi in 9th place. Envision Racing currently occupies 6th place in the team standings. The next two Formula E races will continue in Jeddah on 13 and 14 February 2026.