The key factors behind Porsche's strong start to Formula E's new era

By:

Jake Boxall-Legge

Feb 1, 2023, 3:38 PM

A low-key Valencia test left some quarters of Porsche's Formula E squad worried, but a 100% winning start for the German manufacturer's powertrain in 2022-23 underlines its early race day advantage. Porsche's key figures explain the strong start in Gen3, and why the work is only just beginning

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After Valencia’s collective Formula E testing, Pascal Wehrlein was hardly at ease. Across the three-and-a-bit days of running at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo, once the best times were put together in order, Wehrlein was 12th overall. Of the four Porsche-powered cars on the grid in 2022-23 season, including the Andretti squad, Wehrlein’s 1m25.873s was the best of the quartet.

It’s usually pointless to look too deeply into the Valencia times themselves but, following the December running, Wehrlein was still not particularly confident heading into the Mexico City season opener – and nor was customer team Andretti’s Jake Dennis. It looked like Porsche had rather missed the boat with the all-new cars.

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Jake Boxall-Legge Technical Editor

Having studied Automotive Engineering with Motorsport at the University of Hertfordshire, West Country-born Jake's original ambition was to design racing cars. During a year between studies in which he accidentally rekindled a love of writing, he took up a Master's in Motorsport Engineering at Oxford Brookes. Halfway through his master's year, he was offered a place on the Autosport Academy, conducting occasional freelance duties before becoming the press officer for Formula 2 and GP3 in 2018. Autosport offered him a return to the fold later that year to serve as its Technical Editor. His voice appears on a number of videos and podcasts, and can often be found writing about terrible Formula 1 cars in excruciating detail. In his spare time, Jake enjoys baking and blames his failure to make it past the Great British Bake-Off interviews on his tenuous grasp on choux pastry. His dream is to open a brunch cafe - and his willingness to make outrageous puns in inappropriate situations has earned him the contempt of his colleagues.