Oliver Rowland heads into this weekend’s season-opening Mexico City E-Prix “without too much expectation”, ahead of his return to the Nissan Formula E Team.
After suddenly departing Mahindra Racing ahead of the Season 9 Jakarta E-Prix, Rowland has returned to Nissan for the second season of the Gen3 era, an outfit he previously spent three seasons with. Rowland raced for Nissan during the vast majority of the Gen2 era, starting in Season 5 before leaving for Mahindra at the end of Season 7.
His return to the Japanese manufacturer comes after becoming frustrated reportedly with how poor the performance was from Mahindra’s powertrain, which was the weakest package last year. Whilst Nissan’s isn’t the strongest, it is capable of challenging for pole positions and podiums, both of which were achieved in 2023.
Rowland knows Nissan incredibly well and has previously claimed four podiums for the side, including a race win back in Season 6 in Berlin. Having spent 2023 towards the back of the pack, the British driver is “eager” to get back amongst the pack, although he is entering the Mexican capital with some caution.
Whilst he believes a good qualifying performance is possible, he’s suspecting that his side will have to manage their energy very carefully. As a result, he isn’t demanding too much from himself as he’s more focused on building a “solid foundation” for the remainder of the 2024 campaign.
“I’m eager for my first race back with the team, we’ve prepared well and are anticipating an enjoyable start to the season,” Rowland said. “I have a lot of experience at this track so I feel if we can get the car in a good window in Free Practice, we can deliver a strong qualifying performance.
“In terms of the race, we will need to be careful with energy management as it’s particularly challenging at this circuit. I am entering the weekend without too much expectation. My aim is to build a solid foundation for the rest of the season and to hopefully score some good points.”
Incredibly, 2024 will be the first time in Rowland’s Formula E career that he’s older than his teammate, who is 24-year-old Sacha Fenestraz. Fenestraz enters his second campaign in Formula E with Nissan on the back of a mostly successful rookie season, where his one-lap pace was often exceptional.
What tended to let the Frenchman down was his energy management, as he was occasionally unable to convert his duel appearances into big points. However, with a full season of knowledge, he can now look to improve on his regen skills in Season 10.
Fenestraz is “confident” that a good result is on the cards in Mexico City, if the team can “maximise our performance”.
“I’m excited to start my second season with Nissan Formula E Team,” said Fenestraz. “The Mexican fans always create a special atmosphere, so I’m looking forward to the occasion of racing here.
“I’m confident that we can begin the season with a strong result, as we had an encouraging qualifying here last year, reaching the Duels, and the lessons we have learned as a team about energy management during Season 9 and the break should allow us to maximise our performance in the race.”
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