Nick Cassidy continued his incredible start to the season for Jaguar TCS Racing by winning round three at the 2024 Diriyah E-Prix on Saturday night to top the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship leaderboard.
Under the lights in Diriyah, the New Zealander, who came third on Friday night’s round two in Diriyah after claiming the same podium spot in the season opener in Mexico, blew away the competition to triumph.
Cassidy burst past Oliver Rowland, who was in pole position, and the early race leader Robin Frijns during the attack mode phase to lead until the end of the 36-lap race. Frijns of Envision Racing came second, while Nissan driver Rowland claimed third spot. Third was where Cassidy began the race but not where he ended it, earning his 50th overall win as a driver.
Cassidy – who greeted celebrating fans awaiting the after-race Diriyah E-Prix performance of the Backstreet Boys by telling them: “I want it that way!” – told the post-race press conference: “I’m feeling really good. I think this moment is really important to celebrate. These races are so hard to win in this championship and you never know when they’re going to come again.”
Cassidy added: “I’ve got an amazing car and I’m so privileged. Every win is special, it’s just been a dream start. I’m waiting for a bad day; it’s going to come but for now we ride. I took advantage at the start – I initially thought I went too hard at the start – but, you know, Jaguar TCS Racing gave me an amazing car and I’m super lucky.”
Frijns earned his first podium spot since New York in 2022 – a race also won by Cassidy.
Frijns said: “I had a bit of trouble at the beginning of the season and had to get to know the car. Obviously, Nick has been driving the whole of last year with this car. There are still some steps to be made, but I will get there.
“I thought today was really good. I was leading at first, so I felt nice and comfortable. But then I began fighting with Nick the whole way – we were pulling away constantly, and almost killing each other at times. But Nick did a very good job. I secured good points too. I’ll take another step forward for the next phase.”
Reflecting on his round three finish and overall weekend at the Diriyah E-Prix, Englishman Rowland insisted the foundations were laid for the next stage of the competition in Brazil, despite some disappointment in round two on Friday. Round four of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship takes place in Sao Paulo on March 16.
Rowland said: “Yesterday was a bit disappointing for us, but today we regrouped and did an excellent job, particularly getting pole. We wanted to win, of course, and although we didn’t quite manage that, it’s still lots of points and a great result for the team. Overall, I’m happy. I came back to Nissan with the target of winning and we’ll keep pushing. We’ll take confidence from this heading into the next one.”
Round two on Friday night at the Diriyah E-Prix was won by world champion Jake Dennis, who sealed a sensational double-figure victory for Andretti Global by 13.289 seconds. DS PENSKE driver Jean-Eric Vergne finished second.
This year’s Diriyah E-Prix was the latest illustration of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to host the very best international events across all sports. The Diriyah E-Prix is part of an incredible year-round schedule of international sports in the Kingdom, with motorsport, football, boxing, tennis, esports, combat sports, golf, and equestrian events all locked in for 2024 – with more to come.
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