What does Mitch Evans’ charge from last to first mean for Formula E Season 11?

It was certainly a sub-optimal start for the reigning champions when Cassidy could only manage tenth on the grid, and Evans was forced to stop without setting a time when he suffered a brake issue.

Jaguar has put together a substantially new car for Season 11, and it looked as though some early teething troubles might set back its title challenge.

Then, Cassidy took the first Attack Mode of the new Gen3 Evo era, and suddenly the status quo was restored as he stormed into the lead of the race. Mitch Evans made similar progress in the early stages, climbing from 22^nd to 15^th on the first lap. He was up to fourth by lap 13, and embedded into the battle for the lead thereon.

His eventual victory was a first for any driver starting from the back of a Formula E grid. Before Evans’ feat, 15^th was the lowest grid slot from which a race had been won, which is somewhat surprising when you consider how often Formula E races can be chaotic and unpredictable.

Saturday’s São Paulo E-Prix was another action-packed race that displayed each of Formula E’s strengths, chief among them being a relentless stream of entertainment that did not let up until the very end.

It does appear, though, that Jaguar has once again developed a remarkable car that’s head and shoulders above the competition. Both Evans’ and Cassidy’s charges to the front of the field were alarmingly forthright, but it was far an ideal weekend for the reigning teams’ and manufacturers' champions.

Evans’ victory has distracted from the team's hugely disappointing qualifying, and Cassidy’s own championship challenge got off to a pointless start after a big shunt with the defending drivers’ champion Pascal Wehrlein, so there’s work still to be done at Jaguar.

But who else is in a position to challenge? Well, frankly anyone, if Saturday’s race is anything to go by. Porsche looked strong, with Antonio Felix da Costa getting off to a far better start than he did one year ago, while Nissan, Andretti, DS, McLaren and Mahindra were all involved in the fight at the front.

The potency of the new four-wheel-drive-powered Attack Mode has given absolutely anyone on the grid the opportunity to make an impact on any given race weekend, so trying to predict any one of this season’s 16 rounds will be near impossible.

Formula E is rarely dull, but Season 11 promises to be the most intense yet. It’s a long old wait until round two in Mexico City on 11^th January, but we’ll be looking forward to more of the same when the lights go out.

Images courtesy of Motorsport Images.