Formula E
 | |
| Category | Single-seater |
|---|---|
| Country | International |
| Inaugural season | 2014–15 |
| Drivers | 20 |
| Teams | 10 |
| Constructors | Spark-Dallara |
| Tyre suppliers | Michelin |
| Drivers' champion |
 Lucas di Grassi(ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport) |
| Teams' champion |
 Renault e.dams |
| Official website | FIAFormulaE.com |
 Current season | |
Formula E, officially the FIA Formula E Championship, is a class of auto racing that uses only electric-powered cars. The series was conceived in 2012, and the inaugural championship started in Beijing on 13 September 2014.[1] The series is sanctioned by the FIA. Alejandro Agag is the current CEO of Formula E.
Sporting regulations
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Overview
The Formula E championship is currently contested by ten teams with two drivers each. Racing takes place on temporary city-center street circuits which are approximately 2 to 3.4 km (1.2 to 2.1 mi) long.
Race day format
All events begin with two practice sessions in the morning, an opening 45-minute session followed by a further 30-minute session. Drivers each have two cars at their disposal with 200 kW available throughout.[2]
The qualifying session normally takes place at noon and lasts one hour. The drivers are divided into four groups of five, with each group having six minutes to set their best lap. Full power of 200 kW is available throughout with drivers only able to use one car. Since the second season, the five fastest drivers then go out again, one-by-one, in the Super Pole shoot-out to determine the top five grid positions.[2]
The race itself lasts for approximately 50 minutes with drivers making one mandatory pit stop to change cars with the two pit crew helping the driver change seat belts, and for safety reasons, there is a minimum required time for pit stops (which differs from track to track).[3] Tire changes, unless caused by a puncture or damage, are not permitted during this pit stop. In race mode the maximum power is restricted to 170 kW. Points are awarded using the standard FIA system.[2]
Fanboost
For each race, fans can vote for their favourite driver via various social media channels to give them an extra power boost. Voting starts about two weeks prior to an event and is also open during the opening six minutes of the race. The three winning Fanboost drivers each receive an extra 100 kJ of energy to be used in a power window between 180 kW and 200 kW.[2]
Point scoring
Points are awarded to the top ten drivers using the standard FIA system. Three points are also awarded to the driver securing the pole position, while the driver setting the fastest lap receives an additional point (two points during the first two seasons). The championship consists of both a drivers' and teams' championship. A driver's end of season total is made up a driver's best results. A team's total is made up by counting both drivers' scores throughout the season.[2]
Car
For the first season, all teams were supplied an electric racing car built by Spark Racing Technology, called the Spark-Renault SRT 01E. The chassis was designed by Dallara, with an electric motor developed by McLaren (the same as that used in its P1 supercar), a battery system created by Williams Advanced Engineering and a Hewland five-speed gearbox. Michelin was the official tyre supplier.[4][5][6] For the first season, 42 electric cars were ordered by the series, with four cars made available to each of the ten teams and two cars kept for testing purposes.[7]
An average Formula E car has a power of at least 250 horsepower (190 kW). The car is able to accelerate from 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) in 3 seconds, with a maximum speed of 225 km/h (140 mph).[8] The generators used to re-charge the batteries are powered by glycerine, a by-product of bio-diesel production.[9]
Since the second season regulations allow for new powertrain manufacturers, the manufacturers are able to build the electric motor, inverter, gearbox and cooling system. The chassis and battery stay the same. There were nine manufacturers creating powertrains for the 2016–17 season: ABT Schaeffler, Andretti Technologies, DS-Virgin, Jaguar, Mahindra, NextEV TCR, Penske, Renault, and Venturi.[10]
Seasons
2014–15
The calendar consisted of 11 races held in 10 different host cities: Beijing, Putrajaya, Punta del Este, Buenos Aires, Long Beach, Miami, Monte Carlo, Berlin, Moscow and finally London, where last two rounds of the championship took place.
The first Formula E race at the Beijing Olympic Green Circuit on 13 September 2014 was won by Lucas Di Grassi, after Nick Heidfeld and Nicolas Prost crashed out on the final corner. In the course of the season, there were 7 different race winners: Sébastien Buemi (three times), Sam Bird (twice), Nelson Piquet Jr. (twice), António Félix da Costa, Nicolas Prost, Jérôme d'Ambrosio and Lucas Di Grassi. The championship was decided with the last race in London, where Nelson Piquet Jr. became the first Formula E champion, only a single point ahead of Sébastien Buemi. Piquet, Buemi and Di Grassi all had a theoretical chance at winning the title in the final round. The team championship was decided on the second to last race, with e.dams Renault (232 points) winning ahead of Dragon Racing (171 points) who surpassed ABT in the final round of the championship.
2015–16
The second season of Formula E started in October 2015 and ended in early July 2016. The calendar consisted of 10 races in 9 different cities. For this season eight manufacturers were introduced, who were allowed to develop new powertrains. Sébastien Buemi won the championship with only 2 points more than Lucas di Grassi by claiming the fastest lap in the final race in London.
2016–17
The 2016–17 FIA Formula E season was the third season of the FIA Formula E championship. It started in October 2016 in Hong Kong and ended in July 2017 in Montreal. Lucas di Grassi won the championship in the last race of the season, 24 points ahead of Sébastien Buemi and 54 points ahead of third-placed rookie driver Felix Rosenqvist. The Renault e.Dams team successfully defended their team championship title.
Future seasons
On 11 July 2017, it was confirmed that BMW will join Formula E as an official manufacturer for Season 5 (2018–19), building a powertrain to be used by the Andretti Formula E Team.[11] This news was followed on 24 July 2017 by the announcement that Mercedes-Benz will join the series starting from Season 6 (2019–20) alongside Porsche, who announced their involvement in Season 6 on 28 July 2017.[12][13]
Support series
FE School Series
During the first season, the FE School Series for student teams that developed their own electric car took place as support races at selected events.[14] However, the series was not continued during the second season.[15]
Roborace
Planned to start in the fourth season (2017–18), there will be a support series called Roborace for autonomously driving, electrically powered vehicles.[16] This will be the first global championship for driverless cars.[17]
Records
Records correct up to and including the 2017 Berlin ePrix Race 2.
Champions
| Season | Championship for Drivers | Championship for Teams | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | Team | Car | Team | Car | ||
| 2014–15 | Nelson Piquet Jr. |
 NEXTEV Team China Racing |
Spark-Renault SRT_01E | e.dams Renault |
Spark-Renault SRT_01E | |
| 2015–16 |  Sébastien Buemi |
Renault e.dams |
Spark-Renault Z.E 15 | Renault e.dams |
Spark-Renault Z.E 15 | |
| 2016–17 | Lucas di Grassi |
 ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport |
Spark-ABT Schaeffler FE02 | Renault e.Dams |
Spark-Renault Z.E 16 | |
Wins by driver
Key
| Driver is a series Champion | |
| Bold | Driver has competed in the 2016–17 season |
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Wins by team
Key
| Team is a series Champion | |
| Bold | Team has competed in the 2016–17 season |
Television
Formula E provides comprehensive live television coverage shown via major broadcasters around the globe (FOX Sports, Channel 5, CCTV-5, Eurosport, Viasat, Canal+ / Sport+, Energy (Spain), TV Asahi, Tring , Ziggo Sport Totaal[18]).[19][20] Production is carried out by Aurora Media Worldwide.[21]
Four-time IndyCar champion and three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti joined the host television commentary team for the FIA Formula E Championship.[22] Franchitti acts as co-commentator alongside lead commentator Jack Nicholls.[23] Pitlane reporter is Nicki Shields.[24] Allan McNish, Bob Varsha and Scott Speed have all previously covered for Franchitti and Nicholls during the first two seasons.
See also
- FIM eRoad Racing World Cup
- Electric GT
- Formula Lightning
- Electric motorsport
- Solar Splash
- List of Formula E driver records
- List of Formula E ePrix
References
- ↑ Telegraph Sport (13 September 2014). "Formula E opens with spectacular crash involving Nick Heidfeld and Nicolas Prost as Lucas di Grassi claims win". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 13 September 2014.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Guide – Rules & Regulations". fiaformulae.com. Retrieved 12 December 2015.
- ↑ Rdmack2 (18 June 2015), Comparing Pitstops Across Motorsports, retrieved 10 June 2017
- ↑ "Michelin confirmed as official tyre supplier for FIA Formula E Championship". Formula E Operations. FIA Formula E Championship. 28 March 2013.
- ↑ "Renault signs with Spark Racing Technology and Formula E Holdings as Technical Partner in the FIA Formula E Championship" (PDF). Formula E Operations. FIA Formula E Championship. 15 May 2013.
- ↑ "Williams partners with Spark Racing Technology to provide battery expertise for the FIA Formula E Championship". WilliamsF1.com. Williams F1. 11 June 2013.
- ↑ "Formula E buys 42 electric racers for 2014 circuit". green.Autoblog.com. 18 November 2012.
- ↑ "Guide to – Car – Specifications". Retrieved 24 November 2015.
- ↑ "Formula E power generation". Archived from the original on 12 February 2015.
- ↑ "FE–Ten teams entered for the third Formula E season". 1 July 2016.
- ↑ "BMW confirms Season 5 entry to Formula E – Formula E". fiaformulae.com. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- ↑ "Mercedes-Benz to enter Formula E in Season 6 – Formula E". fiaformulae.com. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
- ↑ "Porsche set to compete in Formula E from Season 6 – Formula E". fiaformulae.com. Retrieved 28 July 2017.
- ↑ "Formula E's School Series begins in Buenos Aires". fiaformulae.com. 19 December 2014.
- ↑ "Exclusive: schools series axed". current-e.com. 5 October 2015.
- ↑ "Formula E & Kinetik announce driverless support series". fiaformulae.com. 27 November 2015.
- ↑ "Formula E is planning the first racing series for driverless cars". engadget.com. 28 November 2015.
- ↑ FIA Formula E. "Television".
- ↑ "Formula E goes free-to-air in China". Current E : Your guide to Formula E.
- ↑ FIA Formula E. "CANAL to televise Formula E live for three seasons – Official FIA Formula E Championship".
- ↑ "FIA Formula E Championship". fia.com.
- ↑ FIA Formula E. "Dario Franchitti joins Formula E TV commentary team".
- ↑ http://www.jacknicholls.co.uk/
- ↑ "Nicki Shields – Scientist, TV Presenter & Broadcaster".
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to FIA Formula E Championship. |
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Nissan GT Academy |
Autosport Pioneering and Innovation Award 2014 |
Succeeded by McLaren Applied Technologies |