Intensive test days for Porsche in Valencia ahead of the 2024 Formula E season
With the official test in Valencia, Porsche’s countdown to the 2024 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship has begun.
- Teams and drivers conducted tests in Valencia in preparation for season 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
- Pascal Wehrlein (GER),António Félix da Costa (POR),Jake Dennis (GBR) and Norman Nato (FRA) covered a total of 2,975 kilometres in the Porsche 99X Electric.
- The test schedule was disrupted after a battery caught fire in the paddock.
- Gabriela Jílková (CZE) completed a successful rookie session in the Porsche 99X Electric.
- The new season kicks off with the Mexico City E-Prix on 13 January 2024.
With the official test in Valencia, Porsche’s countdown to the 2024 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship has begun. Porsche works drivers Pascal Wehrlein and António Félix da Costa as well as Porsche customer team Andretti Formula E drivers Jake Dennis (GBR) and Norman Nato (FRA) conducted an intensive test programme at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo with the Porsche 99X Electric.
Stuttgart. The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team is well prepared for season 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. At the official tests on the 3.376-kilometre Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, the squad from Weissach laid the foundation for the opening round in Mexico on 13 January 2024. Porsche works driver Pascal Wehrlein clocked up 767 kilometres with teammate António Félix da Costa covering 698 kilometres in the Porsche 99X Electric.
Porsche’s customer team Andretti Formula E was also represented in Valencia with two Porsche 99X Electric vehicles. The Weissach-developed racing cars were driven by reigning world champion Jake Dennis (758 kilometres) and team newcomer Norman Nato (752 kilometers). Porsche and the racing team of US motorsport legend Michael Andretti will tackle their second Formula E season together.
Tuesday’s schedule was disrupted by an incident after the first test session: In the garage of the supplier of the standard battery used in Formula E, a battery that had been removed from a broken-down racing car ignited. A fire broke out but was quickly brought under control. For safety reasons, the tests were halted. After an extensive investigation, the FIA gave the green light to resume testing on Thursday afternoon.
Gabriela Jílková completed a successful rookie session at the wheel of António Félix da Costa’s Porsche 99X Electric. The racing driver from Prague, who supports the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E team with simulator work in Weissach, completed 43 laps (152 kilometres) on Thursday afternoon – marking her trackside debut in the innovative electric racing series.
Comments after the test sessions
Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E: “In Valencia, we focussed on preparing for the racing season with our drivers Pascal Wehrlein and António Félix da Costa as well as Jake Dennis and Norman Nato from our Andretti Formula E customer team. Despite the incident in the paddock, we made very good use of the available test time with our four Porsche 99X Electric vehicles and systematically ticked off our to-do list. We are very pleased with the results. During the race simulation, which also went well, we managed to get a first impression of how it is to compete with a pit stop. After this test, we’ll travel to the season opener in Mexico well prepared. Despite the reduced time in Valencia, we decided to go ahead with a rookie session and give Gabriela the opportunity to drive the Porsche 99X Electric on the racetrack for the first time. She got a good idea of how the car feels compared to the simulator where she’d supported us.”
Pascal Wehrlein, Porsche works driver (#94): “That was a very helpful week that ended well. After the incident on Tuesday, we didn’t know whether we’d still be able to drive. We learned a lot from last year and our pace was good. Valencia is not a typical Formula E track, so it’s always difficult to gauge how relevant this test ultimately is. However, given that there are more and more circuits like this on the calendar, we needed to be competitive here. We completed our schedule and the test race also went well for us. Still, we have a lot to do before the start of the season.”
António Félix da Costa, Porsche works driver (#13): “Our tests were very positive. We’re considerably stronger than in last year’s tests and we’ve made huge progress. That’s a great sign. We also learned a lot in Valencia. We’ll now implement this by the start of the new season so that we can arrive in Mexico with a winning package.”
Gabriela Jílková, Formula E rookie: “I’m very happy that I got the chance at this test to drive the Formula E car on the racetrack for the first time. The Porsche 99X Electric is truly a very special car. It was an incredibly fascinating experience for me to get a better understanding of the car lap by lap and to push to the limit.”