CUPRA KIRO storms to top five finish in Tokyo
CUPRA KIRO capitalises in challenging wet weather conditions to finish fifth and score 10 points at the 2025 Tokyo E-Prix
CUPRA KIRO battled to a top five finish in Race 1 of the double-header 2025 Tokyo E-Prix, with driver, Dan Ticktum, fighting forward to score 10 points in a thrilling wet-weather race in Japan.
Due to extreme weather conditions, Qualifying was cancelled, with the grid for Race 1 being determined by the results from FP2. Dan lined up in seventh while David Beckmann started from 20th.
After getting overcut during the pit window, David used Attack Mode to fight back through the field but finished 18th after losing track position in the closing stages.
Remaining in the top 10 throughout and briefly leading, Dan performed a decisive final lap overtake on Edoardo Mortara to secure his best finish of the season to date.
Quotes at a Glance
Alex Hui: "We have another race tomorrow, and our ambition is simple: be faster, fight harder, and finish even higher."
Dan Ticktum: "The car is consistently good, we’re consistently fast, and I’m looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings."
David Beckmann: "The cancelled Qualifying session made my life harder today."
Russell O'Hagan: "We have hit our stride."
Alex Hui, Team Principal, CUPRA KIRO
“Dan delivered a very strong performance today, and it feels great to come away with fifth. With Qualifying cancelled, and with the schedule constantly evolving due to the weather, today was a true test of resilience. It could have been very easy to lose focus, but we kept our heads down and got on with the job. Dan and the entire team pulled together a fantastic performance, and after the Red Flag, his second stint in Attack Mode was pivotal to making our Pit Boost strategy work. Every point scored was earned the hard way, and I’m immensely proud of how we rose to the challenge. It’s the reward the team deserves after putting in a tremendous amount of hard work in so far this season, but we know that we’re capable of even more. Because of his starting position, David’s race was initially compromised, and he was unlucky with his second Attack Mode, but it would have been great to see him make more progress through the field. We have another race tomorrow, we know that the car has pace, and our ambition is simple: be faster, fight harder, and finish even higher.”
Dan Ticktum, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“Overall, not a bad day in the office. With Qualifying getting cancelled, the grid was made up using the results from FP2, which was okay for us. I started from seventh, and opening third of the race didn’t quite go to plan. A few drivers took Attack Mode early which meant that I lost a couple of positions, then [Sam] Bird hit me on the restart, and I dropped back. The Pit Boost strategy was excellent, and I had really good pace which meant that I was able to overcut a lot of people. I’m happy. It’s our best result of the year, and it feels like we’re getting there. The car is consistently good, we’re consistently fast, and I’m looking forward to seeing what tomorrow brings.”
David Beckmann, Driver, CUPRA KIRO
“Starting from 20th because of the cancelled Qualifying session made my life harder today. The race was difficult, and it’s tough to make up positions in the rain, on a street circuit, from the back. In the end, we finished 18th but I think a top 15 could have been possible if the strategy had worked out as we had planned. Tomorrow is a new day, it looks set to be dry, and therefore, it’ll be completely different. We’ll maximise each session, qualify well and hopefully have a better race.”
Russell O’Hagan, Chief Operating Officer, CUPRA KIRO
“Today we executed a well-delivered fifth place for Dan – a result that we set up by attacking FP2, knowing most likely that Qualifying would be cancelled. The race had a lot of aspects to manage, but the team delivered our strategy calmly and confidently to bring home the result. There’s a real feeling inside the team that we have hit our stride now, and we’re already looking forward to a strong day tomorrow.”
