Andretti Formula E Aiming for Strong Start to Season 12 in São Paulo
Season 12 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship begins this weekend as the Andretti Formula E team returns to the fast, slipstream-heavy streets of São Paulo, Brazil. The 2.933km, 11-turn Anhembi Sambadrome circuit once again plays host to the season opener, with its signature long straights and heavy braking zones promising close racing and bold overtaking across the 30 laps of action. The E-Prix marks the Andretti team’s fourth visit to Brazil at a track where the team has shown potential in the past, including a fifth-place finish for Jake Dennis in Season 10. The São Paulo Street Circuit has produced standout charges through the field, highlighted by Andretti’s André Lotterer’s nine-place gain in the Season 9 edition. A strong history of season-opening success and with Brazilian Felipe Drugovich making his Andretti debut on home soil, the Indianapolis-based squad arrives for Round 1 aiming to start strong.
Race Details
| 2025 Google Cloud São Paulo E-Prix – São Paulo Street Circuit |
| Track Length | 2.933km | Pole Position | Left Hand Side |
| Turns | 11 | Attack Mode | Turn 3 |
| Laps | 30 | Tire Allocation | x4 Front & Rear |
| Track Direction | Clockwise | First FE Race | 2023 (S9) |
Fast Facts
Andretti Formula E
- The Season 12 race will be the fourth visit to Brazil for Andretti Formula E.
- Andretti Formula E have claimed one points finish across the three previous races in São Paulo (a fifth-place finish for Jake Dennis in Season 10).
- Across the three races in São Paulo, Andretti have achieved one Duel appearance and managed to lead two laps.
- André Lotterer holds the record for the most places gained by an Andretti driver in São Paulo, gaining nine places in Season 9’s race, moving from 21st on the grid to finish in 12th place.
- Andretti have led the Team’s Championship Standings after two different season openers – Season 1 (2014/15) and Season 9 (2022/23).
- Across the 11 season opening races, Andretti Formula E have the most points finishes (14), the most laps led (78) and the most points scored (150) of any team on the grid.
- Andretti INDYCAR has a winning legacy in Brazil dating back to James Hinchcliffe’s dramatic last lap and final corner overtake for victory on an alternate version of the São Paulo Street Circuit in 2013, while recently signed Andretti INDYCAR driver Will Power won the first three editions of the race from 2010 to 2012.
Jake Dennis
- Since the very first visit to São Paulo back in March 2023, Jake Dennis is the fourth highest scorer in Formula E to date.
- If Dennis scores at least seven points in São Paulo, he will finish 2025 having scored over 100 Championship points. Dennis has achieved over 100 points in 2022, 2023 and 2024.
- Dennis has out qualified his teammate in all the three previous races in São Paulo.
- The 2025 São Paulo E-Prix will be Dennis’ 80th race in Formula E, having raced them all for Andretti. Only four drivers have previously reached 80 races for one team.
- At last season’s 2024 São Paulo E-Prix, Dennis qualified in third and topped his qualifying group.
- Across the previous five season openers that Dennis has taken part in, the British driver has claimed two podiums (2022 Diriyah E-Prix, Season 8 and 2023 Mexico City E-Prix, Season 9) and a victory (Mexico City E-Prix, Season 9).
Felipe Drugovich
- The 2025 São Paulo E-Prix will be Felipe Drugovich’s first race for Andretti Formula E, marking his first return to full-time single seaters since winning the Formula 2 title in 2022.
- Drugovich will become the sixth Andretti driver to have raced on home soil, after Scott Speed (USA), Maximilian Günther (GER), Dennis (GBR), Oliver Askew (USA) and Lotterer (GER).
- If Drugovich scores four points in the 2025 São Paulo E-Prix, he would have scored the 1,500th point by a Brazilian driver in Formula E (doing so on home soil).
- Drugovich will be the seventh different teammate that Dennis has had in six Formula E seasons.
Team Quotes
Jake Dennis
No. 27 Andretti Porsche 99X Electric
“It’s been very busy since Valencia, and I’ve been back on the simulator at the factory working hard to get us in the best possible shape for São Paulo. Overall, I think we’re all very motivated coming into this season, and I think we’ll be back to performing at our best!
The track in São Paulo always creates lots of opportunities, as we saw when Mitch [Evans] won, having started from 22nd last season. It’s a tough combination of energy management and battery temperatures which is going to test the entire grid, but it’s a challenge I’m looking forward to. I haven’t had the best of luck here in terms of results, but qualifying has always been a strong point for me. I’m not too sure why the track suits me so well on single-lap pace, but I will be aiming to continue that form as we start Season 12.”
Felipe Drugovich
No. 28 Andretti Porsche 99X Electric
“It’s going to be incredible to be doing my first Formula E race at home in Brazil and in São Paulo. It will be my first time racing in an international, top-tier motorsport race in Brazil so that means a lot to me and I’m sure it’s going to be a pleasure, specially racing in front of my family who will all be there. Hopefully we can put on a show for them. My goals for the season are mainly going to be around getting more and more comfortable with the car and to just keep working on myself and try to improve at every race. Testing went reasonably well, but obviously there is still a lot more to come, so it will be a case of refining everything.
Regardless, I’m super excited to get started. I would like to thank all of the fans that are coming to watch me too – they’ve all be so supportive of me and my career, so to be able to race in such a cool environment in São Paulo is going to be really special for me.”
Roger Griffiths
Team Principal
“Heading into Season 12, our expectations are no different to that of the past; to deliver success for the Andretti Global brand with victories and podiums that allow the team to challenge for titles. Though this upcoming season feels different in some ways as there is a new energy about the team. An exciting new driver lineup with their own high expectations for strong results, a revitalized engineering team eager to put the learnings of the off-season to good use and a newfound commercial direction. You can feel the energy resonating throughout the team.
Since last season, we have also seen a constant evolution of improvement in all areas across the team. The engineering group has made good gains in their understanding of the car, addressing areas that held them back last season, backed up by a strong showing at the Valencia test. We can see that the whole field will be highly competitive and probably the closest we will have seen in Formula E. While a number of driver moves will potentially shake things up, I believe that there will be more drivers in the mix for the win at every race, meaning every point available will be hard fought. I don’t see a Champion being crowned until the very last race.“
