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HANKOOK DEBRIEF: Five things we learned in Monaco

FEATURE 18 May 2026 5 Mins

Championship Journalist Katy Fairman picks her five biggest talking points from the Monte Carlo weekend.

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feature season 12

Feature by Katy Fairman

The Monaco E-Prix double-header once again delivered some epic racing, as well as two new race winners this season – continuing the trend of different eight winners in the first 10 events across the 2025/26 campaign.

Nyck de Vries managed a masterclass for Mahindra Racing, taking his PIT BOOST at the best time to convert a front-row start into a victory that was four-years-and-one-day in the making.

For the Sunday, it was Oliver Rowland who progressed from eighth on the grid with a perfectly executed push to the front, making the most of energy saving and ATTACK MODE activations.

Here’s five big talking points from Rounds 9 and 10 in Monaco.

Rookies on podium

We all love a wholesome story, right? Well, Monaco was not short of them with all three of our Season 12 rookies having positive weekends around the principality. First up was Pepe Martí, who benefitted from a post-race time penalty for his teammate Dan Ticktum, to achieve his maiden Formula E podium.

The young Spaniard managed a seriously impressive charge from 15th to third, to collect his and CUPRA KIRO’s first podium of the 2025/26 season. During the same race, Andretti’s Felipe Drugovich just missed out on some silverware with fourth place, but he didn’t have long to wait.

As chum Gabriel Bortoleto looked on, Drugovich finished second in Round 10 to achieve his first Formula E podium. The Brazilian, who has admitted to finding the format of Formula E a challenge, has been storming to strong results over the last few events and benefitted from returning to a circuit he knows and loves.

It’s also worth giving a mention to Envision’s Joel Eriksson, who secured back-to-back points finishes in Monaco this weekend having never raced here before in any category.

Monaco always delivers

Racing around the principality is always a treat. Not only is it packed with history and incredible motorsport moments at every turn, it’s also one of the best circuits in the world to drive. Thanks to the smaller and lighter cars that are used in Formula E currently, overtaking is plentiful.

There were 382 competitive overtakes across both races – 115 on Saturday and 267 on Sunday. There were moves for the lead, podium places and in the points, with risk and reward found at every corner. It’s what makes Monaco so special, with incredible bravery and brilliance up and down the grid.

This was the ninth season we’ve had the privilege of returning to the streets of Monte Carlo for all-electric racing, moving to the full layout in Season 7, and things are only going to be better when the GEN4 is introduced later this year.

Mahindra milestone moment

London, 2021 and Alex Lynn. That was the statistic that almost haunted Mahindra across the GEN3 era. It was the details of their last Formula E victory, having not yet won an E-Prix across the championship’s new era. Until this weekend.

Nyck de Vries had looked rapid all day, topping both practice sessions and securing second in qualifying. Come the race, the team and the Dutchman opted on an early PIT BOOST strategy which worked in their favour and from there de Vries was able to keep both Jaguar TCS Racing drivers behind him, or at least one of them as Antonio Felix da Costa and Dan Ticktum came to blows.

The win was the first for de Vries since his return to the championship after his time in Formula 1, and feels almost overdue for the team that have had countless podiums thanks to Edoardo Mortara this season.

Unfortunately for him, Monaco continues to be fairly unkind to the Swiss driver. A problem with the car stopped him from competing in Saturday’s qualifying, and contact with da Costa on the first lap of Sunday’s race saw him slapped with a 10-second penalty and meant he finished fifth.

Porsche podium curse continues

Despite their great success in Formula E, proved by being the reigning Teams’ and Manufacturers’ World Champions, Porsche have never finished on the podium in the principality. They’ve taken home trophies, like the Julius Baer Pole Position thanks to Pascal Wehrlein’s pole in 2024, but once again this weekend resulted in no top-three results and means Jaguar TCS Racing now lead the standings.

Contact between teammates resulted in a race-ruining puncture for Wehrlein in Round 9, with Nico Müller penalised for the incident. The following day, only Müller finished in the points, as Wehrlein also lost his top spot in the drivers’ standings for now.

There was something for Porsche to be happy about though, as Dan Ticktum banked not one but two pole positions over the weekend for their customer-team CUPRA KIRO.

All eyes on the GEN4

In addition to the great racing on offer, the GEN4 also got its first public outing as F1 Legend David Coulthard took the next generation of car out on the streets of Monaco.

"The most acceleration I've ever experienced around Monaco, and I've won here twice,” Coulthard said on the GEN4 Formula E car. "Imagining how I've just driven it compared to what those guys [Formula E drivers] will do with it... They'll experience something nobody has in racing. I'm speechless! What a machine!

"Once you're through an apex you realise the car can take everything you throw at it. It's just not normal. It's redefining what a race car can be.

"I've driven a lot of cars over the years - I have an understanding of what all-wheel drive could feel like but a car under 1000kg with 800+bhp in old money, that's an impressive getaway.

"First time through the tunnel, it was like hyperspace from Star Wars! I've been through there thousands of times but never like that."

As well as DC’s laps, lots of stars from the Formula 1 paddock were in attendance including current World Champion Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto.