Nelson Piquet Jr. excited for first Formula E race in Mexico

Defending FIA Formula E champion Nelson Piquet Jr. is relishing the series’ first visit to Mexico City on March 12, saying that it is right for there to be a race in a country with such steep racing heritage.

The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City held its first Formula 1 race in over 20 years last November, putting on what many deemed to be the best-hosted grand prix of the season.

Formula E will use part of the track for next weekend’s race, while the FIA World Endurance Championship is also poised to visit Mexico in the autumn.

“I think it’s going to be a fantastic race in Mexico City. The fans there are some of the most enthusiastic in the world,” Piquet said.

“They gave F1 an incredible reception earlier in the year and I hope they enjoy what we bring to the city with Formula E. It’s right that big races are going back to a city with such motorsport history.

“It’s a fantastic country with some of the most passionate fans in the world. There’s also so much history there that it seems right that they are attracting world class racing once again.”

Issues with the powertrain produced by NEXTEV TCR for the second Formula E season have left Piquet’s hopes of defending his title all but over even after just four races, but the Brazilian remains upbeat ahead of the rest of the year.

“This year has been difficult so far. Because the design of our car is now frozen due to Formula E rules and regulations, we’re going to have to optimize everything we can on the car to try to maximize our results,” Piquet said.

“We’re learning as much as we can about the car and working on all the different areas we can. But the worst thing we could do is say ‘we don’t have a good enough package, let’s sit still, cross our arms and do nothing’.

“This is a development battle and we have to keep optimizing every area we can. We were undoubtedly the best at saving energy in season one.

“It’s harder to do that this season because our car is much heavier, but we’re going to be running some truly aggressive strategies to get the best results we can.”