London: Mahindra Racing is no stranger to the spotlight, but this week, the Indian motorsport powerhouse turned the dial firmly to “electric red.” At an exclusive event in central London, attended by Mahindra & Mahindra Chairperson Anand Mahindra himself, the team pulled the covers off its newest creation — the Mahindra M12Electro, a machine built to electrify Season 12 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
And if Formula E is the future of motorsport, Mahindra wants to make sure it arrives ahead of schedule.
History Wrapped in High Voltage
The M12Electro comes wearing its heart on its aluminium-carbon fiber sleeve. The car’s tri-tone metallic red, gloss white and carbon black livery isn’t just aesthetic—it’s history in motion. Twelve stripes run across the bodywork, one for every season Mahindra has raced in Formula E since the championship’s birth. The Indian tricolour proudly rides alongside, reminding the grid which country is still the only one competing at the world championship level in all-electric racing.
It’s a visual statement. Think “flashy streetwear meets aerospace engineering.”
From GEN3 Evo to Revenge Mode
Beneath the paint, the M12Electro is the product of a relentless engineering summer. The Banbury-based team re-tooled, re-tested, recalibrated, and then did all of that two more times. Last season’s resurgence — five podiums in Monaco, Jakarta, Berlin and double joy in London — wasn’t luck. It was hard-core regulation mastery.
Season 11 delivered three times more championship points than the previous year and a fourth-place finish overall. That’s the motorsport equivalent of going from quiet neighbour to overnight rockstar.
But the ambitions this time are unapologetically bolder: break into the top three.
“Belief has carried this team a very long way over the last 18 months,” said CEO & Team Principal Frederic Bertrand, insisting that the M12Electro continues a philosophy of upward momentum rather than a cosmetic facelift.
Anand Mahindra added a little philosophical voltage: “As the Mahindra Group expands into electric vehicles on the road, our race cars Rise to new heights on the track.” One can almost imagine him trademarking “Rise to win” on the way home.
Drivers: Stability Is the New Speed
Formula E is a game of brains and lightning reflexes. And Mahindra has retained a duo that has both: Nyck de Vries and Edoardo Mortara.
Between them sits a record no other pairing can casually replicate:
- 181 race starts
- 10 wins
- 22 podiums
- 5 poles
- And yes, a World Championship title (courtesy of de Vries, no big deal)
They return for their third consecutive season together—rare stability in a sport that usually shuffles seats like a casino blackjack table. De Vries called the project “exciting” and hinted that the car “can compete at the front.” Mortara? He just wants to go faster in Valencia.
Backing them up is Kush Maini, India’s brightest single-seater talent and now three seasons deep with the team. Expect him to pounce on rookie tests like a tiger discovering a buffet.
Valvoline x Mahindra: Motorsport Royalty Meets Electric Future
Every superhero has a sidekick. For Season 12, Mahindra’s is none other than Valvoline Global Operations, announced as the team’s Official Partner.
With 150+ years of lubrication expertise — F1, IndyCar, NASCAR — Valvoline is now dipping its seasoned hands into the most electrifying paddock on Earth. Their mission? eFluids, gearbox tech, and systems that increase efficiency, durability, and performance.
“Formula E is the ultimate testing ground,” said Jamal Muashsher, CEO of Valvoline Global, adding that the collaboration will prove performance and sustainability can be teammates, not rivals. In short: make it fast, keep it cool, run it forever.
Road to Season 12
The first checkpoint is Valencia’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo from October 27–31, where Mahindra will test alongside the rest of the grid (and host the annual Women’s Test). After that, the global circus heads to São Paulo on December 6.
If last season was the comeback tour, Season 12 is the headline act. The question isn’t whether Mahindra Racing will be noticed—it’s whether everyone else can keep up when the M12Electro stops taking notes and starts writing them.
