Nine years – that was the gap between Pascal Wehrlein’s last title in DTM and his maiden Formula E triumph in July.
Two years in Formula 1, a DTM return, and six Formula E seasons later and the German prodigy has finally earned himself a single-seater crown.
Four years with the Porsche outfit have slowly netted improvements, which amounted in an unlikely title win at the London E-Prix.
The margin behind to Mitch Evans’ Jaguar was just six points at the chequered flag, as both finished on the podium to round off the championship fight in style.
Pascal Wehrlein compared to F1 champion after triumph
But, Wehrlein was level on points with Evans approaching the final two races in London, at a track which has historically suited his Jaguar rivals.
His ability to stay in championship contention despite being quite far behind at one stage, reminded Tom Brooks of a Formula 1 champion.
“I remember talking to Allan McNish in the commentary box and we both sort of agreed before we went on air that we thought Porsche were working at their maximum operating window,” he said on The Race’s Formula E season review podcast.
“I think this was in Portland or something like that and we thought maybe they don’t have that little bit there for what it takes to get over the line for the title.
READ MORE: Every Formula E team’s confirmed 2024/25 line-up and driver’s contracts
“Then we went to London and it just turned completely on its head and given the fact its been a Jaguar track traditionally, then we saw Porsche just pulling it out of nowhere, but for the pole positions obviously.
“It was mega. Really really strong performance from the team and obviously from Pascal [Wehrlein] to be there when it mattered. It was almost a Kimi [Raikkonen] Brazil 2007 sort of sneaking up and taking advantage of misfortune, but being there, ready to take the prize when it mattered.”
Will Wehrlein return to defend his crown?
It would be a major surprise if Pascal Wehrlein was to opt out of returning to Formula E to defend his crown in 2025.
The only man that has done that in recent memory is Nyck De Vries, who went off to race for AlphaTauri full-time in Formula 1 following an impressive stand-in performance for Williams.
There are very few Formula 1 seats left, and although he has experience in the field, it’s largely irrelevant to the machinery of today and Wehrlein would be required to learn a lot.
He has a contract with Porsche and they are delivering the car to compete currently, so what more could the 29-year-old ask for?
Not much, so 2025 could be the year that he becomes just the second man to successfully defend a Formula E title – after Jean-Éric Vergne.