Championship showdown on the Thames: The e-Formula.news driver ratings for the London E-Prix 2023

Jake Dennis has arrived at the summit of electric motorsport: Two podiums at his home races in London helped the Briton to his first Formula E world championship title, and he was right to celebrate the success exuberantly with his Andretti team. But away from Dennis' successes, there were also some outstanding performances at the season finale in the UK. Our driver ratings.

After each round of the 2023 Formula E season, our editors award points on a scale between 1 and 10 for all drivers. They are then sorted according to their average score, and the best ten performances are commented on by our Formula E reporter Tobias Bluhm. Only the individual driving performances are included in the rating, taking the potential of the car or external circumstances out of the equation.

The e-Formel.de driver rating for the Hankook London E-Prix 2023

1 | Mitch Evans | Jaguar TCS Racing | 9.3 points

Another year at the end of which Mitch Evans will look back on missed opportunities. At least, his campaign ended with two outstanding individual performances in London. On Saturday in particular, the New Zealander did not set a foot wrong. However, as Jake Dennis finished on the podium, the title decision was out of Evans’ hands. Too bad for the Jaguar driver, because he would have deserved this title equally.

BOTTOM LINE: On Saturday, Evans was unbeatable after the mistakes of Envision but on Sunday he lacked the speed of Cassidy in the rain. A good end to his excellent season!

2 | Nick Cassidy | Envision Racing | 9.3 points

Nick Cassidy was a man who simply deserved a hug after Saturday's race. Amid confusion over an Envision team order in which Cassidy assumed Buemi would let him pass, he damaged his front wing which then fell under the car - leading to an early exit from the race and the battle for the world championship.

"I woke up at two in the morning and thought it was a nightmare," Cassidy said the morning after. "But it wasn't." At least on the second day of racing, he was able to take advantage of his car’s excellent pace and drove confidently to victory. A conciliatory end to the year - but the missed title will pain him greatly.

BOTTOM LINE: Cassidy's championship ambitions fell victim to internal team coordination problems. Individually, however, he showed all his strength in London - both in driving and emotional terms.

3 | Jake Dennis | Avalanche Andretti | 8.8 points

At the Formula E aftershow party, Andretti pushed Jake Dennis into a mosh pit, singing "We All Live In A Red And White Machine" to the tune of The Beatles. The joy over his first title was boundless - and completely justified. The consistent manner in which the Briton contested the season and the final weekend is almost fairytale-like. Especially since he was the only Porsche driver to master qualifying. He confidently concluded the season with a second and third place: what an achievement!

BOTTOM LINE: Dennis showed in London why he is a worthy world champion of the 2023 season. Congratulations!

4 | Norman Nato | Nissan | 8.5 points

Away from the media attention, which unsurprisingly focused on the title fight among drivers and teams, Norman Nato contested arguably the "best weekend" of his season, in his own words. A bold attack on Sebastien Buemi on Saturday saw his chances shattered at the TecPro barrier of turn 19 and he finished only eighth after repairs. Incomprehensibly, Nato was penalized for the maneuver - not Buemi, who’d jerked ever so slightly to the right under braking.

Recovered from the shock, however, Nato performed confidently again Sunday. He brought his Nissan racer home in fourth position after a strong qualifying and race performance, single-handedly collecting the crucial points that put the Nissan factory team ahead of customer team McLaren in the teams’ standings.

BOTTOM LINE: An insanely good weekend from Nato, who really hit his stride on the home stretch of the season!

5 | Sebastien Buemi | Nissan | 7.0 points

1,082 days had passed since his last Formula E podium, but now Sebastien Buemi's top-3 curse has been broken. After the team-mate debacle - which was also the fault of the Envision team - and penalties against rivals on Saturday, he was classified in third position. On Sunday, he also scored championship points as a solid sixth-place finisher, giving his racing team a decisive advantage over Jaguar in the team standings.

BOTTOM LINE: The veteran driver is back where he belongs: At the front of the Formula E field. Buemi showed what a talented driver he still is in London, even if he was definitely a protagonist in two unfortunate situations.

6 | Sam Bird | Jaguar TCS Racing | 6.8 points

For his farewell to Jaguar, Sam Bird once again returned to top form, although the Briton still did not seem as biting as team boss James Barclay would have expected from him. Especially in the rain on Sunday, he lacked the pace of his teammate Mitch Evans. But Bird hadn't been as confident as he was on Saturday since the Berlin E-Prix.

In the past season, Bird was an important asset for Jaguar, but also made too many mistakes. His future with the team was already determined before the London E-Prix - he will be leaving the "big cat". Perhaps it was that very pressure, no longer on his shoulders, that allowed him drive more liberated.

BOTTOM LINE: A worthy farewell to Jaguar!

7 | Dan Ticktum | Nio 333 | 6.3 points

The relief at Nio 333 was huge when Dan Ticktum crossed the finish line in Sunday's race. After Sergio Sette Camara's disqualification the day before, the Briton virtually single-handedly managed to move his team past Mahindra in the overall standings. Especially on Sunday, when efficiency mattered less, Ticktum impressed with his undoubted talent.

BOTTOM LINE: One of Ticktum's best race weekends ended with great success in the overall team standings for Nio 333.

8 | Pascal Wehrlein | TAG Heuer Porsche | 6.0 points

In London, there was little sign of the pace former world championship top candidate Pascal Wehrlein had had earlier this season. Inconspicuously, the German often only competed somewhere in the midfield. On Saturday, Rene Rast crashed him out in turn 1 and robbed him of a better result. But even apart from that, at no point did Wehrlein seem to have the pace to realistically keep up with Dennis or the Jaguar drivers. That's not Wehrlein's expectation - but he knows that himself. P9 and P10 in London are not enough for a world championship title.

BOTTOM LINE: A rough end to what was actually a very good season. Similar to Evans, Wehrlein will now have to gnaw on the fact that his title will again only come "maybe next year."

9 | Nico Müller | ABT Cupra | 6.0 points

Every points result in the 2023 Formula E season is a huge success for ABT Cupra. After a solid Saturday race, Nico Müller was able to benefit from the rainy weather on Sunday and demonstrate his driving class. In battles with Bird, Ticktum and Wehrlein, he kept his nerve and brought home a solid ninth place.

BOTTOM LINE: Another good weekend by Müller, who showed strength especially in qualifying (grid positions 8 and 12). He eclipsed teammate Robin Frijns - as he’d done almost throughout the season.

10 | Antonio Felix da Costa | TAG Heuer Porsche | 6.0 points

At the end of his first year with Porsche, Antonio Felix da Costa is likely to draw a positive conclusion. Looking back, of course, his magical Cape Town overtaking maneuver against Jean-Eric Vergne, which brought him his only victory, stands out. But in London, too, the Portuguese showed how right his switch from DS to Porsche was. On Saturday, a curious 3-minute (!) time penalty robbed him of second place after a great recovery. On Sunday, however, he lacked the overtaking opportunities in the rain to score a points result after a weak qualifying session.

BOTTOM LINE: Another weekend well done by Felix da Costa. Although he must be criticized for his qualifying pace. With the conclusion of his season, he should still be satisfied.