Oliver Rowland takes third victory of the season at Monaco

Written by Jodie Saxon

Oliver Rowland took his 3rd victory of the season on the streets of Monaco after a clever deployment of his Attack Mode and Pit Boost strategies, while Jaguar Racing faced another disaster.

Rowland celebrated yet another win in season 11 | Credit: Andrew Ferraro/LAT Images

Pit Boost made its second appearance in Formula E as the series headed to Monaco for its first double header event. Nissan’s Oliver Rowland took risks with his attack mode, leaving it late while others went early, on his way to a commanding victory, while polesitter Taylor Barnard missed out on a points paying result after finding the wall at the hairpin.

Nyck de Vries took Mahindra Racing’s first podium since 2023 while teammate Edoardo Mortara pipped Nico Müller to fourth position on the line. Andretti’s Jake Dennis rounded out the podium despite a five-second penalty due to overspeeding during one of the Full Course Yellows.

As it happened

McLaren’s Taylor Barnard kept hold of his lead into the first turn with Oliver Rowland slotting into a comfortable 2nd behind him while Dan Ticktum lost 3rd place to Nyck de Vries. 

Overall the start was clean, with drivers rushing two-by-two up to Beau Rivage. Rowland was quick to report the odd noise his car was making, likely a result of his qualifying crash, but the issue did not affect his pace. 

Müller was the first driver to pit, although for a right rear tyre change instead of Pit Boost, and rejoined the race in last position. At the front of the pack, Rowland was content to conserve his energy levels and let Barnard lead, but the McLaren man soon began his own energy saving tactics, backing up the pack.

Nick Cassidy of Jaguar Racing was the first to chance Attack Mode, taking it on lap 4, and immediately reaped the benefits - soon finding himself climbing into the top ten after starting back in 19th. 

The first Full Course Yellow (FCY) appeared on lap 9 after Porsche’s António Félix da Costa

crashed into the barriers in the final corner following a tangle with Edoardo Mortara and David Beckmann. 

When the race went green again a few laps later De Vries was slow to get going, allowing Jake Dennis to sweep by him and Pascal Wehrlein who was lined up right behind De Vries.

Rowland pestered Barnard for the race lead on the restart too, going first for a move at the swimming pool chicane that ended with Barnard forced off the track, before trying again the next lap at the exit of the tunnel. That time, Barnard was forced to concede the race lead after skipping over the chicane. 

After being the first to take Attack Mode, Cassidy was also the first to take Pit Boost on lap 14. The same lap also saw his teammate, Mitch Evans, pull to a halt on track with a technical issue and cause the second FCY of the race.

Müller benefitted the most from this, having just entered the pits when the FCY was called, and when the rest of the leading pack had pitted he inherited the lead of the race. 

Cassidy’s early Attack Modes came back to bit him and dropped down the order in the final portion of the race, going from briefly leading to sitting down in 18th as he was forced to conserve energy. Rowland’s strategy was the opposite, with his final attack mode left for the final few laps when everyone else had run out.

The risky move – which could’ve ended up with a penalty like at the Miami E-Prix – paid off and Rowland took the chequered flag in first position. Behind him, De Vries finished second while Dennis sat in third, his podium position saved by teammate Müller backing up Mortara and Wehrlein and creating a gap larger than five seconds.

Barnard had an incident in the last few laps while battling with Wehrlein at the hairpin and made contact with the wall. Although he was able to get going again, he lost positions and saw the chequered flag in 16th.

Mahindra Racing had plenty of reason to celebrate with their large points haul, as did Kiro Race Co who finished the day with six points courtesy of Ticktum’s seventh place finish. On the other hand, Jaguar Racing suffered yet another pointless race, with Cassidy finishing 18th and Evans in 20th after his earlier stoppage. 

The results of round 6 are as follows:

1. Oliver Rowland (Nissan)

2. Nyck de Vries (Mahindra Racing)

3. Jake Dennis (Andretti)

4. Edoardo Mortara (Mahindra Racing)

5. Nico Müller (Andretti)

6. Pascal Wehrlein (Porsche)

7. Dan Ticktum (Cupra Kiro)

8. Robin Frijns (Envision Racing)

9. Stoffel Vandoorne (Maserati)

10. Maximilian Günther (DS Penske)

11. Sam Bird (McLaren)

12. Jean-Éric Vergne (DS Penske)

13. Lucas di Grassi (Lola Yamaha ABT)

14. Norman Nato (Nissan)

15. David Beckmann (Cupra Kiro)

16. Taylor Barnard (McLaren)

17. Jake Hughes (Maserati)

18. Nick Cassidy (Jaguar)

19. Sébastien Buemi (Envision Racing)

20.  Mitch Evans (Jaguar)

21. Zane Maloney (Lola Yamaha ABT)

22. António Félix da Costa (Porsche) - DNF

There will be a second Monaco E-Prix on Sunday, 4th May, 2025 at 3pm local time.