Jake Dennis opened the season in style in São Paulo, securing victory in Brazil after a dramatic and interruption-filled race.
The Brit became the first driver to win from pole in Brazil, though he still needed a dose of fortune and some composed race management to seal the result.
Dennis’s race was won thanks to a late safety car which appeared with six laps remaining, as he still had one Attack Mode activation left to take. When the race resumed, he immediately dived for Attack Mode and crucially managed to force his way to the lead before the race was brought to a halt by a red flag.
The suspension was triggered by a heavy accident involving rookie Pepe Martí, who failed to slow sufficiently under Full Course Yellow and crashed into the back of António Félix da Costa, flipping upside down and rolling twice. Martí walked away, but the severity of the incident forced race control to stop the race.
A one-lap restart followed, and Dennis held off a charging Oliver Rowland to take the win.
Rowland’s second place was remarkable given he started 13th. The Brit took his second Attack Mode early, which helped him cycle to the front when the safety car was deployed.
The timing worked in his favour, as several drivers behind were in Attack Mode and lost their usable time due to the neutralisation. He ultimately lost the lead to Dennis’ late Attack Mode but did enough to secure P2.
Nick Cassidy completed the podium for Citroën after starting 15th. The Kiwi used his Attack Modes late and also benefited from the safety car that followed Lucas di Grassi, forcing Edoardo Mortara into the wall—an incident that destroyed Mortara’s front-right suspension and left him stranded on track.
Pascal Wehrlein came home fourth for Porsche, matching his starting position despite serving a three-place grid drop. Felipe Drugovich finished fifth on home soil, aided by a remaining Attack Mode he used effectively after the safety car, though he remains under investigation for overtaking under Full Course Yellow.
Nico Müller claimed sixth in his first race for Porsche, while Maximilian Günther took seventh for DS Penske. Joel Eriksson finished ninth, and Nyck de Vries snatched the final point in tenth by deploying his final Attack Mode on the last lap.
Behind them, Zane Maloney finished 11th with Da Costa classified 12th. Taylor Barnard ended 13th, a lap down, after being pushed back to the garage during the red flag.
Martí, Vergne, Evans, di Grassi, Mortara, Nato, and Ticktum all failed to finish. Nato was eliminated in a collision with teammate Rowland, who pushed him into the wall, while Evans retired after out-braking himself attempting to pass Buemi.
