Daniel Abt clinched his maiden victory in the FIA Formula E Championship in Mexico City, ending the long drought without a German E-Prix winner in the electric street racing series.

After agonisingly being stripped of a win for a post-race technical infringement in Hong Kong, Abt can now claim to be a winner in Formula E and the first from Germany in 38 races. The result in front of the fervent Mexican fans also marks the first victory for Audi as a factory team.

Abt progressed through the field during the early phase of the race from fifth on the grid and took the lead during the pit-stop window. The German inherited a place after Julius Baer pole-sitter Felix Rosenqvist ground to a halt due to a technical glitch while heading the field on lap 15.

He stuck close behind the gearbox of Sebastien Buemi but eased his way into second spot after the Renault e.dams driver ran wide at Turn 1 shortly before the mandatory mid-race car swap.

As the cars peeled into their garages, Abt had closed the gap to Oliver Turvey and put himself in prime position to jump the NIO driver. Turvey - who looked set to win here this time last year, but retired due to a technical fault - had his eyes set on the top step again. However, Abt was strapped in quicker than his nearest rival in the pits and comfortably jumped Turvey to move into first position.

With a clear road ahead Abt looked comfortable as the chasing pack went hammer and tongs in the battle for the final podium places.

Buemi pressurised Turvey to the chequered flag but couldn’t find a way past, consolidating Turvey’s highest finishing position in Formula E and his first podium finish in second place. The 2015/16 champion continued his consistent form with a third podium in as many races - stretching back to Marrakesh.

Another driver showing similar form is Nelson Piquet Jr, coming home in what seems to be a familiar fourth place - narrowly missing out on an elusive top-three finish for his new Panasonic Jaguar Racing team. It’s the third time Piquet has crossed the line in fourth place this season.

Championship leader Jean-Eric Vergne couldn’t replicate the speed shown in Santiago and could only manage fifth. However, with Rosenqvist and Bird failing to score, Vergne has edged further ahead in the standings - 12 points clear of the Mahindra Racing driver.

Mitch Evans added to Jaguar’s points-haul in sixth, moving the team to third in the team standings, which is their highest position to date. Antonio Felix da Costa was a place further back despite starting from fourth on the grid, with Edoardo Mortara impressively scything his way from 18th to eighth.

Reigning champion Lucas di Grassi managed to claim his first points of the season from last on the grid. Even with the odds against him with a 10-place grid penalty for changing an inverter and a further five-second time penalty during the race, di Grassi managed a hard-fought ninth-place finish.

The Brazilian didn’t stop there though, also picking-up a much-needed extra point for fastest lap. DS Virgin Racing’s Alex Lynn rounded-out the top-10 and the final points-paying position.

Daniel Abt, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, said: “We came here knowing that we had a super-fast car and 12 points overall in the team. In Formula E, anything can happen - you have to focus on every lap. The mechanics were very, very fast today - I don't know how they were able to do that but it was key for the victory and I'm very thankful for them. We didn't give up, we kept believing in it and today was just a fantastic day. But we've seen Formula E is unpredictable - we saw that with Felix - and we just need to keep doing our best. For now, I'm just very proud of the team and it's been a great day.”

Oliver Turvey, NIO Formula E Team, said: “Last year was really tough - we had pole position and then we had the issue when I was in the lead. Today, I knew that we had the pace if we had a smooth weekend to be challenging at the front. I was feeling pretty comfortable at the beginning and I was able to pull away from Sebastien. I felt confident to try and defend and I saw him coming down the inside, so I just braked as late as I could. It was a close race but I'm so pleased to get the first podium for the team.”

Sebastien Buemi, Renault e.dams, said: “The first part of the race was the most difficult for me, but then in the second part of the race I was much quicker. I knew Daniel was too far ahead, so I was taking my time to try to pass Oliver and trying to wait until he was really struggling with the energy because it's really difficult to pass here. I don't consider myself in contention for the championship because I'm not quick enough, but I'm still quite happy because that's my 20th podium in Formula E and at the same time we scored points.

2018 Mexico City E-Prix (Rd 5)

1 - Daniel Abt, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, 50:45:164s (25)
2 - Oliver Turvey, NIO Formula E Team, +6.398s (18)
3 - Sebastien Buemi, Renault e.dams, +6.615s (15)
4 - Nelson Piquet Jr, Panasonic Jaguar Racing, +7.015s (12)
5 - Jean-Eric Vergne, TECHEETAH, +7.546s (10)
6 - Mitch Evans, Panasonic Jaguar Racing, +9.050s (8)
7 - Antonio Felix da Costa, Andretti Formula E, +17.157s (6)
8 - Edoardo Mortara, Venturi Formula E Team, +26.511 (4)
9 - Lucas di Grassi, Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler, +29.208s (3)
10 - Alex Lynn, DS Virgin Racing, +29.515s (1)
11 - Jerome D’Ambrosio, DRAGON, +30.418s
12 - Jose Maria Lopez, DRAGON, +31.859s
13 - Andre Lotterer, TECHEETAH, +36.206s
14 - Luca Filippi, NIO Formula E Team, +38.336s
15 - Tom Blomqvist, Andretti Formula E, +38.592s
16 - Maro Engel, Venturi Formula E Team, +44.689s
17 - Sam Bird, DS Virgin Racing, +44.982s

DNF - Nico Prost, Renault e.dams, 36 Laps
DNF - Felix Rosenqvist, Mahindra Racing, 34 Laps (3)
DNF - Nick Heidfeld, Mahindra Racing, 27 Laps

Driver standings

Jean-Eric Vergne, TECHEETAH - 81
Felix Rosenqvist, Mahindra Racing - 69
Sam Bird, DS Virgin Racing - 61
Sebastien Buemi, Renault e.dams - 52
Nelson Piquet Jr, Panasonic Jaguar Racing - 45

Team standings

TECHEETAH - 99
Mahindra Racing - 90
Panasonic Jaguar Racing - 74
DS Virgin Racing - 70
Renault e.dams - 59
Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler - 40
Venturi Formula E Team - 34
NIO Formula E Team - 27
Andretti Formula E - 20
DRAGON - 12

The 2018 Mexico City ePrix will take place at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez next Saturday with Rosenqvist and Heidfeld looking to add another win

The fifth round of the 2017-18 FIA Formula E season will take place in Mexico next Saturday and Mahindra Racing, whose M4ELECTRO cars are run in collaboration with Campos Racing, is ready to keep firmly in contention for the crown.

Felix Rosenqvist and Nick Heidfeld made a strong start to the season as the Swedish driver notched up two wins in Hong Kong and Morocco.

German racer “Quick” Heidfeld also brought the first podium in the opening race held in the streets of Hong Kong. The M4ELECTRO cars are proved race winners and Mexico is expected to be a continuation of their previous form.

The Mexico City ePrix uses part of the iconic Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez layout with seating for around 40,000 people and is approximately 2.092km in length.

After four rounds, Rosenqvist lies second in the Drivers’ standings on 66 points, only 5 points behind Jean-Éric Vergne. Heidfeld sits 8th on 21 points. Meanwhile Mahindra Racing lies second in the Teams’ standings on 87 points, a mere two points behind Techeetah.

The Mexico City ePrix race will take place at 16.03 (local time) on Saturday.

The fifth round of the 2017/18 FIA Formula E Championship takes place in Mexico City this weekend, as the 20 contenders take to the famous Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on Saturday, 3 March, for another exciting E-Prix.

The 2.092km layout was created for the arrival of Formula E in 2016, and now as the championship gears up for its third race in the Mexican capital, the event stands as a firm favourite in the calendar. This year’s race will be two laps longer than last, 47 rather than 45, underlining once again the constant advancements being made by competitors in the championship in efficiency.

With the opening punches of the season pulled, it is proving to be a season full of classic Formula E unpredictability, with three of electric racing’s young talents currently sitting atop the points table.

TECHEETAH’s Jean-Eric Vergne leads the way following victory last time out in Santiago, while Felix Rosenqvist’s two wins have netted him second place for Mahindra. DS Virgin Racing’s Sam Bird lies third ahead of two former Formula E champions in the form of Sebastien Buemi in fourth for Renault e.dams and Nelson Piquet Jr in fifth for Panasonic Jaguar Racing.

Last year’s Mexico City E-Prix was a nail-biting affair, with eventual champion Lucas di Grassi making and incredible charge through the field from 15^th on the grid to take a decisive victory that many saw as a turning point in his title challenge. It was a masterclass of energy management which he will be hoping to repeat following a tough start to the season with technical issues hampering his Audi Sport Abt Schaeffler machine.

The tens of thousands of spectators expected to attend on Saturday will be treated to plenty of entertainment both on- and off-track, including an opportunity to learn more about the FIA’s #3500LIVES Action for Road Safety campaign, which will be on display in the FIA stand in the E-Village.

Event timetable

Saturday 3 March

Championship standings

The back and forth between the CEO's of both Formula 1 and Formula E in recent weeks has continued with F1 boss Chase Carey labelling the all-electric series as a "street party".

Recently the founder of Formula E, Alejandro Agag claimed his championship would be the only major manufacturer category in two decades time due to its relevancy with the current car industry with the likes of F1 becoming mere "entertainment" comparable with horse racing.

Agag has taken other shots suggesting Liberty Media are copying Formula E's ideas but, on Friday, Carey responded making it clear F1 was still the premier series in motorsport.

"I'm glad he has a crystal ball," he jibed, speaking to Germany's Sport Bild.

"Formula E is not our competitor. It represents something that matters to all of us - the environment - but I see it as more of a street party than a sports event," he added.

"People who've been there say they had fun but F1 is watched worldwide and we now have the opportunity to take it to a new level.

As for the claim of copying ideas, with more street events something Liberty are keen to introduce, the American added: "I believe other series can help us because they create interest, but the top series is and remains F1."

Another topic that has rumbled through motorsport in recent weeks, was the news F1 will no longer use grid girls from 2018, replacing them with 'Grid Kids' in a new program revealed this week.

The Formula E boss mocked F1 again welcoming the sport "to the 21st century" yet now, following a backlash, Agag has revealed his series will continue to use grid girls at certain events.

"For me, it's not the most relevant issue today," he told Motorsport.com. "It should be a non-issue. Sometimes we use kids, sometimes we should use grid girls.

"They haven't done anything bad, it's part of the visual tradition of motorsport. I am not an enemy of the concept of grid girls at all.

"Formula E will have grid girls. Maybe not in every race, but I think they are part of the tradition of motorsport."

F1 CEO Carey has also made it clear "pretty girls" will continue to be at Grands Prix too and that the "glamour" shall remain.