Formula E: Mexico City ePrix preview - MotorSportsTalk

The ABB FIA Formula E Championship heads to Mexico City this weekend for Round 5 of the 2017-18 campaign. The current season, the fourth of the Formula E championship, has seen three different winners – Sam Bird, Felix Rosenqvist, and Jean-Éric Vergne – in four races, with Vergne currently leading the championship standings on 71 points, five ahead of Rosenqvist.

Below are noteworthy storylines heading into Saturday’s Mexico City ePrix.

Vergne’s victory at the last race, in Santiago, Chile, a 1-2 for Techeetah Formula E Team, with teammate André Lotterer finishing second after the two engaged in a hard-fought battle for the win. It was also the first 1-2 for any team in Formula E history.
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler’s Lucas di Grassi, the defending Formula E champion, enters Mexico City in somewhat of a slump, with a best finish of 14th in the 2017-18 season and with two consecutive DNFs to his name. However, di Grassi is also the defending Mexico City winner, so this weekend presents a strong opportunity for him to right the ship.
Ten points separate championship leader Vergne from third-place Sam Bird. Fourth place Sébastien Buemi sits on 37 points, 24 behind Bird, meaning the early-season title picture looks to be a three-man fight. However, with seven rounds remaining, including Saturday’s Mexico City event, there remains plenty of time for a driver outside of the Top 3 to make a championship run.
The Teams’ Championship is also a close fight at the front, with Techeetah leading the way on 89 points, but only two markers ahead of Mahindra Racing. DS Virgin Racing sits in third, on 69 points.
While Formula E events are held on city streets, the Mexico City event does feature a permanent racing facility, utilizing parts of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, including the Peraltada, to make up the 17-turn track.
DS Virgin Racing’s Alex Lynn is slated to receive a 10-spot grid penalty for taking a new gearbox after suffering a failure at the Santiago ePrix.

Saturday’s Mexico City ePrix rolls off at 4:30 p.m. EST.

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Coming off his best Supercross season to date, Enzo Lopes has re-signed with Muc-Off / ClubMX Yamaha and will race for the team in 2024. The deal is for Supercross only.

*Enzo Lopes won his heat race in Denver and finished fourth in the Main. – Feld Motor Sports*

Lopes debuted in the Supercross series in 2019 on a Suzuki and scored his first top-10 finishes in his last two starts of that season. Showing consistent improvement, he earned six top-10s in eight Main events the following year and finished fifth in the 250 East standings. In 2022, he scored his first top-five at Daytona and finished in the top five in points again.

“I am happy to be returning to ClubMX for another season,” Lopes said in a press release. “It is like family to me there and that is very important. Although I had many options, staying where I am makes the most sense for many reasons. The bikes are great, the people are great, the tracks are amazing, and I am surrounded by people that care about me. We all want to win and together we will get there.”

While he improved his season-best performance by only one position this year, it was nevertheless a breakout season. Lopes barely missed the podium three times in 2023 with fourth-place finishes at San Diego, Seattle, and Denver.

His strong performance him rumored to be speaking with factory teams.

“We could see the growth from Enzo every time he gets on the bike,” said team owner Brandon Haas. “We all knew it was just a matter of time before he would be noticed by everyone, and we are proud of him on many levels. He had some heat race wins and qualified fastest at three events this season. It would be hard not to be noticed going that fast. He had a big decision to make and we are glad he chose to stay with us at ClubMX.”

Lopes had three podium finishes in heat races this year, including a win preceding his fourth-place finish in Denver.

Lopes will join Jeremy Martin, Phil Nicoletti and Garrett Marchbanks, who announced a two-year extension with the team in January, at the ClubMX team.

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