Official: Formula E World Champion returns as Jaguar promotes Stoffel Vandoorne to Gen4 race seat

After a year as test and reserve driver, Stoffel Vandoorne is returning to a full-time Formula E race seat. Jaguar TCS Racing has promoted the 2022 World Champion for the new Gen4 era, with the Belgian replacing record race winner Mitch Evans. Alongside Antonio Felix da Costa, Vandoorne will be looking to rediscover his former form after a difficult few years in the Gen3 era.

Stoffel Vandoorne's return to a full-time Formula E race seat is official: Jaguar TCS Racing confirmed the Belgian's promotion on Monday evening. The 34-year-old will take over the seat previously occupied by long-serving Jaguar driver Mitch Evans for the 2026/27 season, completing the British team's new driver line-up.

From Mercedes to DS Penske and Jaguar: Vandoorne's Formula E career

Vandoorne brings experience from 103 Formula E race starts. His greatest achievement in the all-electric championship came in 2022, when he won the Drivers' World Championship with Mercedes-EQ. He had already finished runner-up in 2020, behind none other than his new teammate Antonio Felix da Costa.

However, Vandoorne was unable to replicate his championship-winning performances during the Gen3 era. His two seasons with DS Penske brought relatively little success, and he failed to claim a single victory. He moved to Maserati for the 2024/25 season and returned to the top step of the podium at the rain-affected Tokyo E-Prix, securing his first victory of the Gen3 era. An early Pit Boost stop followed by a race interruption played a decisive role in that result. It would prove to be his only victory for Maserati MSG Racing before he left the team at the end of the season and joined Jaguar as reserve driver for 2025/26.

Vandoorne made his Formula E debut with HWA Racelab in Season 5 and retained his race seat when the operation became the Mercedes factory team. Across his Formula E career, the Belgian has recorded four victories, 17 podium finishes, eight pole positions and 596 championship points. He also received FanBoost at all 55 races of the Gen2 era. The additional power boost was awarded during Formula E's first eight seasons to drivers who received the most votes in an online fan poll.

Why Vandoorne joined Jaguar back in 2025

Vandoorne explains that Jaguar's success and approach to racing were key factors behind his decision to join a team he had spent years competing against. "Joining them was kind of a no-brainer, let's say, in terms of what they do, the success that they've had," he explained during a media roundtable attended by e-Formula.news. "And ultimately that's where I saw my possibility to be back with a top team in Gen4 and be on the grid."

However, Vandoorne's year as reserve driver was not solely devoted to the Gen4 development programme. He also gained valuable insight into how his new team operates during race weekends. "I've been able to see how this team runs races behind the scenes, spending time with the strategists to see what decisions, what their thought process is during the race," he explained.

That experience significantly strengthened his confidence in the team. Having observed its decision-making processes first-hand, Vandoorne believes the strategists do not favour either driver, but instead aim to make the best decisions for each individual and the team as a whole.

"Some parts of Gen3 weren't my best form"

Vandoorne openly acknowledges that he was unable to maintain the level of performance he had shown during his World Championship-winning campaign in Season 8. Nevertheless, the Belgian has no doubts about his abilities. "I'm still the same driver. I mean, I'm still very talented and motivated," he insisted, pointing out that every racing driver has to deal with setbacks at some stage of their career.

"Some parts of Gen3 weren't my best form, but I'm also learning from that and I'm carrying a lot of that experience forward into Gen4," Vandoorne admitted. He now hopes to use those lessons as he adapts to the challenges of the new generation of Formula E cars.

His move to Jaguar has given him further confidence. The British outfit won two Teams' World Championship titles during the Gen3 era, and Vandoorne has already seen first-hand how its approach differs from that of his previous teams. "I have a huge belief in those guys that they're going to be competitive again in Gen4."

Replacing Formula E's record race winner Mitch Evans does not add any extra pressure, according to Vandoorne. "I think that pressure ultimately comes, well, in the first place comes from myself because I want to perform at my highest level myself," he explained. "So yeah, I don't see it any different, to be honest. It's kind of a mutual pressure that we all want to live up to the past performances and to make sure we carry that momentum from last year into next year."

"It doesn't really feel like it's been that long"

Vandoorne is confident that spending a season away from Formula E racing has not held him back. "I don't feel rusty at all because I've been racing in WEC this year and I've also probably done the most mileage in a Gen4 car up until now, compared to a lot of the other drivers."

He began testing the Gen4 car as early as January 2026 and remained active in other racing programmes, including his commitments with Aston Martin in Formula 1. "It doesn't really feel like it's been that long, to be honest," the Belgian explained.

Ian James: Vandoorne is "a natural fit"

Jaguar team principal Ian James, who also led Mercedes-EQ during Vandoorne's 2022 World Championship-winning season, believes the Belgian is the right choice for the race seat. "I know the calibre of driver and person that Stoffel is and, after working closely with him over the past year as part of our Gen4 development programme, the entire team has seen those qualities for themselves," James said. "His experience, technical insight and proven ability to perform at the highest level make him a natural fit alongside Antonio as we enter a new era of Formula E."

At Jaguar, Vandoorne will be reunited with a familiar rival from his junior racing days: 2020 Formula E champion Antonio Felix da Costa. The Portuguese driver is looking forward to working alongside his new teammate. "We've raced against each other for many years, and I've always had huge respect for what he's achieved in Formula E and throughout his career," da Costa said. "He's incredibly fast, very technical and I know we'll push each other hard."

"We've been very hard competitors actually for most of our junior careers and then into Formula E as well," Vandoorne recalled. However, he does not anticipate any problems with their working relationship. During the early stages of Gen4 development, both drivers have been working closely together without playing games or withholding information from each other.

For the new season, Vandoorne is hoping that their combined efforts will put Jaguar in a position where they can fight each other on track: "Hopefully we're strong enough so we can fight it out on track between us."