Weather has been the defining feature of the Formula E Round 15 at Tokyo. With Free Practice 3 cancelled due to thunderstorms and qualifying taking place on a drying track, the drivers were facing rain for the race. Ending Porsche Powertrains pole streak, Mahindra Racing’s Edoardo Mortara lined up on pole for the fourth time this season. The rain never came but a late red flag switched everything up. Ultimately, Nyck de Vries won the TDK Tokyo E-Prix.

Safety Car Leads Into The Start

Due to the wet track, race officials opted to start the race under the safety car. After a single lap, drivers lined back up on the grid. 32 racing laps awaited as the lights went out. Mortara got a perfect start, retaining his lead as he threaded through the opening corners. From 12th on the grid, Jean-Éric Vergne got a great start, making his way through to P9 on the opening lap.

António Félix da Costa was the first to take his first Attack Mode stint and opted for four minutes. Behind him, Oliver Rowland, Pascal Wehrlein and Nico Müller also opted for this early strategy. The Porsche Formula E Team duo made their way up into the top 10 whilst da Costa overtook Mortara for the lead. As his Attack Mode came to an end, the Jaguar TCS Racing driver had pulled out a four second lead.

Da Costa Tries To Solidify His Lead

As the opening laps came to an end, the weather forecast was now predicting no more rain. After utilising Attack Mode, da Costa was flying out front and gaps were forming through the grid. Yesterday’s winner, Dan Ticktum, was falling away from Mortara and into the clutches of Taylor Barnard. Coming onto the radio, Ticktum reported he had no grip.

Barnard was able to make a move on Ticktum, taking the third place away from the Brit into Turn 1 on Lap 11. Behind him, Mitch Evans was being told to “stay awake” by his race engineer as Ticktum was struggling with energy and pace. But as Evans closed in, he received a black and white flag for failing to follow the Race Director’s instructions. Mortara and da Costa were shown the same flag.

Lap 14 saw Mortara take his first Attack Mode. Consequently, he was closing in on the lead but his progress was hampered by a yellow flag. Making contact with Sébastien Buemi, Pepe Marti crashed into the wall at Turn 17. A lap later the yellow flag turned into a Full Course Yellow. As a result, Mortara was unable to make a move for the lead. However, Evans had made a move on Ticktum before the FCY was called.

A Change of Lead

As the track went green again, Mortara attempted a move on da Costa. However, he was unable to make it stick and remained P2. Behind them, both Barnard and Ticktum took their first Attack Mode. This extra power saw both start to close in on those ahead. The start/finish straight saw Ticktum reclaim P4 from Evans.

Ahead, Barnard had closed the three second gap. With more energy and extra boost, the DS Penske driver overtook Mortara. In the closing stages of his Attack Mode, he overtook da Costa to take the lead. Evans then took his first Attack Mode, dropping behind Rowland and Wehrlein. The championship contenders battled for position, with Evans coming out on top.

Further back, Jake Dennis was having a clean race. After starting P17, he was up to P12. His Andretti teammate, Felipe Drugovich, was under investigation. Consequently, he was awarded a five second time penalty for speeding under the FCY.

De Vries and Dennis Come Into Contention

As the final ten laps started, Rowland was finding pace. Overtaking Ticktum, he was able to challenge Mortara for the podium position. Matching Barnard for energy, Rowland also took P2 from da Costa and was closing in on the leader. Conceding the position, Barnard dropped behind after taking his final four minutes of Attack Mode.

Having quietly made his way up the grid, Vergne was hot on the heels of Barnard. The Brit was able to defend with with Attack Mode, but having to look behind saw him lose team to Rowland out front. The front of the grid was livening up in the closing stages. Utilising his final Attack Mode, Nyck De Vries rose through the grid and made easy work of the leader, taking P1.

Being one of the first to take his final Attack Mode, Barnard was a sitting duck as drivers overtook him. Dennis was setting fastest laps as he capitalised on energy advantage. With 3% more energy than those around him, he’d come through the grid to find himself in the podium places.

Race Control opted to add a single lap and with three remaining, de Vries led from Nick Cassidy and Dennis. The Andretti driver’s charge was thrown off course as a red flag was brought out. Turn 8 became a car park, with seven drivers involved in an incident. Joel Eriksson and Mortara collided into the turn and as they blocked the track, other drivers were collected.

A Rolling Restart Sees de Vries Win in Tokyo

With a rolling restart being called, the only driver to not return to track was Eriksson. A one lap shootout was the name of the game, and Dennis was restarting P3 behind De Vries and Rowland. The safety car led the cars out of the pit lane. After leading them around the track, De Vries led them across the line for the final lap.

The Mahindra Racing driver was able to defend from behind as the final lap begun. But further behind, Evans caused a local yellow as he slowed on track. Vergne was closing in on Rowland, but the reigning champion managed to defend and keep his P4 finish.

De Vries was able to maintain the lead to take the win. Behind him, Cassidy and Dennis came home in P2 and P3, the opposite to yesterday. His third place finish saw Dennis take the lead of the Formula E championship. He heads to the final rounds in London with a two point lead over Evans.

“I think it was very important to save energy in the beginning of the race, because once the track dried, you needed the energy. And I think we were a little bit lucky with the red flag at the end, because Jake was coming on strong in attack, but I’m very, very happy and proud of my team, who executed a great race. Our second win of the season, so we’re very happy.”
~ De Vries following his win.

Next up is the final two rounds of Season 12. Formula E heads to London, UK for the 2026 Hankook London E-Prix at the Excel Centre. Dennis heads to the final weekend as the championship leader, but with 14 points separating the top four anyone could take it. Find out how Formula E ends the GEN3 era on the 14-16th August.