Convince me, I’m still open to it, but at the moment I am not a fan of Formula E.
Call me a purist but I like racing to have a start and a finish where competitors compete to see who is the fastest without outside influences. When it comes to motorsport you also need to have that raw engine sound as well.
The Formula E season comes to a conclusion this Sunday with their final race in Switzerland. It is a championship that has major backing from the FIA, from key manufacturers and some big sponsors. At the moment it is unsure whether it has a sustainable fan base. Those behind it are trying to bring a whole new class of motorsport fans into the sport, appealing to a wider audience, which has merit.
Well it would have too. None of my motorsport friends are ‘into’ it. My son’s mate had the chance to attend a race in London and says he wouldn’t go again. Too slow and no noise! The sound of an engine is so important, that’s why we love anything with a V8! Who says in conversation ‘did you see the Formula E race in the weekend’?
Heading to the 2018/19 season, Formula E adopts their next Gen2 car that will have a more powerful battery so no pitstop halfway through the race to swap cars. Races will now be 45 minutes plus one laps. ( Obviously that is the amount of time that the batteries will last for!)
Also announced last night, in order to provide a mixture of strategic options Formula E will adopt a ‘Mario Kart’ race format for the coming season. Mario Karts is a go-kart racing style video game initially launched and developed by Nintendo. A key feature is the use of driving your kart into ‘power-up’ items (mushrooms) on the course that give you extra boost.
Drivers will be able to access 225kW of power in a higher mode – as opposed to the standard 200kW available during the race – once they’ve passed through a single activation zone. The activation zone will be clearly visible and marked out on the circuit for fans trackside and those watching on TV. The two power modes on each car will be indicated using different colours on the innovative LED system on the halo head protection device.
The exact number of individual uses and relative duration of the higher power mode will vary at each event and will be determined by the FIA. It will be at the discretion of the teams and drivers when to activate the higher power mode throughout the race within the limits set by the FIA.
Joe Saward this week has written about the importance of F1 to Mercedes. A sports business conference in Berlin, Bild100Sport, had Mercedes F1 Team manager Toto Wolff presenting.
“Formula 1 is part of our core business,” Wolff told the delegates. “The first Mercedes was a racing car. Formula 1 is not just a marketing platform for us. There is a direct technology transfer from the championship. We also value the sporting nature of our brand. That’s why we want to stay in the series because it’s the only true global platform that counts for us. It is clearly the top class in racing.
“But electrification is happening, and it is a good message for every brand. Three years ago, I would not have given Formula E a chance but that has changed. The series is aimed at a young, urban target group. The organisers have done a good job. For us, it’s like a start-up we’re interested in. But it is complementary to Formula 1 for us, not a competition.”
There are plenty of big players behind Formula E and it has momentum. To me it is a product that is being pushed and promoted by its stake holders but in the end its sustainability and direction will be determined by its consumers.
I’m open to being convinced, but it’s unlikely.
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