So after what feels like an eternity Formula E’s Round 5 is only now a few weeks away and will take place on Saturday 14th March along the coast of Biscayne Bay in the heart of downtown Miami. As you’ll see from the track layout it doesn’t look the most exciting of tracks but the racing has been close in the previous rounds so it might be more exciting than you think.
It’s a massive weekend for the Formula E championship for two reasons. The first is that it will be a great indicator on the fanbase of the series as to whether they can match the viewing figures they’ve achieved on previous rounds after such a long break from racing. The cancelation of Rio was unavoidable but I’m sure the series organisers are biting their nails wondering if people will still remember the series. The other is that Formula E has now arrived in North America and this will be a big tell for the series. So far the series has managed to attract quite an interest for the US market with big Hollywood names sponsoring teams and well known American race teams entering. The proof, however, is always in the pudding and it will the be the 2 races in the US that determine if there is fan interest and therefore if that investment will continue. If it does then Formula E is very much on a good footing as an international series. It was recently reported that the viewing figures in Japan were huge as well so things are looking fairly good for them but lets remember that the F1 season is about to kick off again and people could very well lose interest. It seems a strange coincidence to me that the F1 season opener just happens to fall on the same weekend that Formula E arrives in the US. That your doing Bernie?
If the last couple of races are anything to go by then if they can get people to watch they won’t have problems keeping them watching. All the races have had multiple leaders and dozens of overtakes with drivers being rewarded for daring to go off line and go deep into breaking zones. Also with them all being street circuits we are seeing drivers paying a heavy price for errors and going off track which, personally, I think is what racing should be about. As for race winners and contenders it appears that the series is so close up that if a team and driver get it right on the day they are capable of winning. No one would have predicted that Felix Da Costa would have won the last race in the Amlin Aguri which had previously spent most of the time at the back of the field but he did. In fact the only things that seem predictable in Formula E is that Nick Heidfeld will look like he’s on to a good result before some disaster will strike and that Bruno Senna will win the fanboost before sticking it into a wall before he can use it.
The man leading the championship at the moment is Lucas Da Grassi and probably deservedly so. He has impressed me more than I thought he would and he was certainly the best driver out there at the last race before his suspension failure. Some of his overtakes and the way he pressured Buemi into a mistake were pretty amazing. Buemi (or Moose as he is to us) himself probably has the best overall package but doesn’t appear to get it right on the day and the last two times he’s lead a race he’s been pressured into errors (he got away with it in Uruguay). The other championship contender is Sam Bird in the Virgin car who has always been there and there abouts pace wise and will be cursing himself for the Hamilton style error of missing the red light at the end of the pitlane last time out which almost certainly cost him a race win.
I’m a little confused by the championship race itself right now as the organisers have failed to clarify (so far) how its going to adjust to the changing calendar. The original idea was that with a 10 race season the drivers would drop 2 results from their totals but with Rio going that took it down to 9. However a round at Moscow has now been added taking it back to 10 again which would bring the normal system back into play however its just be announced that the final round in London will be a double header with races on Saturday and Sunday. Will they now drop 3 results or will 9 results now count. Every driver apart from Prost has had at least one no score so if only one result was going then it would be a level playing field. If it is now 3 results going then Di Grassi’s lead is actually much larger than the championship table makes out as he has managed a podium at every race other than the last one. I’m hoping we’ll get clarification.
Any others to watch out for? Well, as much as he is a panto villain, Nelson Piquet Jr appears to be consistently quick in the Team China car and is edging ever closer towards the front of the points tally. The Andretti cars are also usually quick but its never certain who will actually be driving the things. Its been announced that Marco Andretti will not continue to race for them due to Indy Car commitments which I believe will mean they’ll put Matty Brabham back in the car. Brabham (American by birth, Australian by name) was last seen crying on the curb side in Uruguay but has looked pretty quick when he’s come in. The other driver who could be in the Andretti car is the ever popular JEV but with him possibly having 3rd driver duties with the Ferrari F1 team that weekend its unclear as to whether he’ll be there for not.
Its all fun and games in Formula E and I will encourage you to watch it just for the brilliant close racing. Race starts at 4pm local time which makes it 11pm European time.
It’s a massive weekend for the Formula E championship for two reasons. The first is that it will be a great indicator on the fanbase of the series as to whether they can match the viewing figures they’ve achieved on previous rounds after such a long break from racing. The cancelation of Rio was unavoidable but I’m sure the series organisers are biting their nails wondering if people will still remember the series. The other is that Formula E has now arrived in North America and this will be a big tell for the series. So far the series has managed to attract quite an interest for the US market with big Hollywood names sponsoring teams and well known American race teams entering. The proof, however, is always in the pudding and it will the be the 2 races in the US that determine if there is fan interest and therefore if that investment will continue. If it does then Formula E is very much on a good footing as an international series. It was recently reported that the viewing figures in Japan were huge as well so things are looking fairly good for them but lets remember that the F1 season is about to kick off again and people could very well lose interest. It seems a strange coincidence to me that the F1 season opener just happens to fall on the same weekend that Formula E arrives in the US. That your doing Bernie?
If the last couple of races are anything to go by then if they can get people to watch they won’t have problems keeping them watching. All the races have had multiple leaders and dozens of overtakes with drivers being rewarded for daring to go off line and go deep into breaking zones. Also with them all being street circuits we are seeing drivers paying a heavy price for errors and going off track which, personally, I think is what racing should be about. As for race winners and contenders it appears that the series is so close up that if a team and driver get it right on the day they are capable of winning. No one would have predicted that Felix Da Costa would have won the last race in the Amlin Aguri which had previously spent most of the time at the back of the field but he did. In fact the only things that seem predictable in Formula E is that Nick Heidfeld will look like he’s on to a good result before some disaster will strike and that Bruno Senna will win the fanboost before sticking it into a wall before he can use it.
The man leading the championship at the moment is Lucas Da Grassi and probably deservedly so. He has impressed me more than I thought he would and he was certainly the best driver out there at the last race before his suspension failure. Some of his overtakes and the way he pressured Buemi into a mistake were pretty amazing. Buemi (or Moose as he is to us) himself probably has the best overall package but doesn’t appear to get it right on the day and the last two times he’s lead a race he’s been pressured into errors (he got away with it in Uruguay). The other championship contender is Sam Bird in the Virgin car who has always been there and there abouts pace wise and will be cursing himself for the Hamilton style error of missing the red light at the end of the pitlane last time out which almost certainly cost him a race win.
I’m a little confused by the championship race itself right now as the organisers have failed to clarify (so far) how its going to adjust to the changing calendar. The original idea was that with a 10 race season the drivers would drop 2 results from their totals but with Rio going that took it down to 9. However a round at Moscow has now been added taking it back to 10 again which would bring the normal system back into play however its just be announced that the final round in London will be a double header with races on Saturday and Sunday. Will they now drop 3 results or will 9 results now count. Every driver apart from Prost has had at least one no score so if only one result was going then it would be a level playing field. If it is now 3 results going then Di Grassi’s lead is actually much larger than the championship table makes out as he has managed a podium at every race other than the last one. I’m hoping we’ll get clarification.
Any others to watch out for? Well, as much as he is a panto villain, Nelson Piquet Jr appears to be consistently quick in the Team China car and is edging ever closer towards the front of the points tally. The Andretti cars are also usually quick but its never certain who will actually be driving the things. Its been announced that Marco Andretti will not continue to race for them due to Indy Car commitments which I believe will mean they’ll put Matty Brabham back in the car. Brabham (American by birth, Australian by name) was last seen crying on the curb side in Uruguay but has looked pretty quick when he’s come in. The other driver who could be in the Andretti car is the ever popular JEV but with him possibly having 3rd driver duties with the Ferrari F1 team that weekend its unclear as to whether he’ll be there for not.
Its all fun and games in Formula E and I will encourage you to watch it just for the brilliant close racing. Race starts at 4pm local time which makes it 11pm European time.
was thinking the same thing, then I remembered 
