The current Formula E campaign reaches a thrilling conclusion in London this weekend with two British drivers – both former champions and alumni of the Motorsport UK Academy – still in contention for the title.
Jake Dennis and defending champion Oliver Rowland will head the home charge when the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship stages its final double-header at ExCeL London.
With as many as 58 points still available across the two races, the mathematics means that up to nine drivers remain in theoretical contention, but it is Dennis who holds the strongest hand. Following a pair of podium finishes in Tokyo, the 2023 champion arrives at his home event with a two-point advantage over nearest rival Mitch Evans, with Pascal Wehrlein a further three points behind. Rowland sits another nine points adrift, meaning he is 14 points behind his fellow Briton.
That Dennis and Rowland remain firmly in the title fight is testament to their performances throughout a season in which rivals racing for Jaguar and Porsche have often appeared to have the strongest packages. Dennis has consistently extracted the maximum from his Andretti car, while Rowland has kept Nissan in championship contention despite acknowledging that the team has not always possessed the outright pace of its rivals.
“I kind of still feel the underdog,” Dennis admitted to The Race. “I feel like it’s been Mitch’s and Pascal’s to lose and I’ve just arrived at the party and am somehow leading it.”
Rowland is equally realistic about his chances of retaining the crown he secured last season.
“I feel like we’ve maximised our potential this year,” he said. “We haven’t always had the quickest car, but we’ve managed to be in the fight until the end. Formula E is unpredictable, so we’ll prepare like we always do and put ourselves in the best possible position heading into the weekend.”
For both drivers, there is the added incentive of competing for the world title in front of a home crowd. Dennis became Formula E champion in 2023, while Rowland arrives in London seeking to defend the crown he won last year – ensuring that Britain is guaranteed to have a major presence at the sharp end of the championship battle.
The compact 1.3-mile ExCeL London Circuit is the shortest and one of the narrowest tracks on the Formula E calendar and has consistently delivered more than its fair share of drama. The unique layout begins inside the exhibition centre before emerging outdoors, with overtaking opportunities limited until the run down to Turn 10 and the approach to Turn 16, where the track plunges back indoors.
The season finale gets underway with Free Practice 1 at 16:00 on Friday. Qualifying on Saturday and Sunday begins at 10:40, with both races scheduled to start at 15:05.
Saturday’s opening race will feature Formula E’s mandatory Pit Boost stop, while Sunday’s finale will revert to the championship’s traditional format, presenting teams and drivers with two very different challenges as they battle to close out the campaign in style.
The weekend also marks the end of the Gen3 era, while ExCeL London hosts Formula E for the final time before the championship introduces its new Gen4 machinery and the UK round moves to Brands Hatch next season.
For Dennis and Rowland, however, the focus will be firmly on the present: two British champions, one home crowd and a secondx Formula E world title still within reach.
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