CUPRA KIRO secures historic maiden Formula E podium in Tokyo
CUPRA KIRO secures historic first podium in Formula E, as Dan Ticktum ends 57-race wait for silverware
CUPRA KIRO soared to a landmark maiden podium in Round 9 of the 2024/25 FIA Formula E World Championship as Dan Ticktum battled to a well-fought third place in Tokyo.
In Qualifying, Dan defeated Edoardo Mortara and Pascal Wehrlein to go head-to-head with Oliver Rowland in the fight for pole position, ultimately and starting from second.
After holding position from the start, Dan moved to the lead on lap seven, and despite being shuffled outside of the top three as the race ebbed and flowed, he pressed forward again in the final stages to claim his first career podium.
David Beckmann started from 19th due to a grid penalty. A late Safety Car, compromising his final Attack Mode, halted his progress to finish 13th.
Quotes at a Glance
Alex Hui: “This is our moment, today is our day, and it’s a result we’ll remember for a very long time.”
Dan Ticktum: “We’ve been waiting for our breakthrough moment and today was it.”
David Beckmann: “The Safety Car really screwed my race.”
Russell O'Hagan: “This result is a springboard for the rest of the season.”
Alex Hui, Team Principal, CUPRA KIRO
“Today’s result is a massive achievement for CUPRA KIRO. Throughout this season, we’ve constantly been playing catch-up, but over the past two weekends, we’ve shown that we’ve closed the gap. We left Monaco feeling like we hadn’t lived up to our potential, and that only added fuel to our motivation. Yesterday’s top five was a turning point, and we said that silverware was next. Today, we delivered. Dan put in a flawless drive, and it filled me with pride to see him on the podium, especially with it being such a long wait for him personally. This milestone wouldn’t have been possible without the performance and reliability of our package, the Porsche 99X Electric WCG3, that propelled us to the top three. Without the late Safety Car, I think we could have fought for victory and potentially had both cars inside the top 10. Unfortunately for David, the timing also coincided with his final Attack Mode and restricted his progress. But this is our moment, today is our day, and it’s a result we’ll remember for a very long time.”
Dan Ticktum, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“It feels pretty good to get my first podium in Formula E – it’s a big boost and a huge result for the team. This season, we’ve been waiting for our breakthrough moment and today was it. We’re competing at the top consistently now, across all conditions, and the team executed a flawless weekend. I’m already thinking about what we could have done differently to win, but there isn’t a huge amount we could have changed. I spent a lot of time leading which wasn’t ideal for energy, and when me and Pascal [Wehrlein] took Attack Mode, [Oliver] Rowland got between us. It didn’t quite work out for first or second, but it feels great to finish on the podium.”
David Beckmann, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“I was very unlucky today. In Qualifying I had a double yellow flag during my final push lap which meant that I had to lift and couldn’t improve my time. I then had a grid penalty and with the starting position, we decided to be very conservative and to save a lot of energy. My first Attack Mode was disrupted by the Full Course Yellow, and at the end, our strategy was paying off until the Safety Car came out during my second Attack Mode. It really screwed my race. We should have been in the points easily, but Dan did a mega job to finish on the podium today. We know that the car is fast and I’m looking forward to Shanghai.”
Russell O’Hagan, Chief Operating Officer, CUPRA KIRO
“It’s been a long journey to reach this moment, and I want to say a big thank you to the team and our partners at Porsche Motorsport for collectively getting us to this point. We were very well prepared today, we had a clear strategy and did a brilliant job in executing it. I am proud of what we achieved, we will enjoy celebrating it this evening and most importantly use it as a springboard for the rest of the season.”
