Formula E season 7 (2020-2021)

[bella]

reminder that nobody is obligated to be interested in a series!

personally i don’t mind watching it but i also don’t take it particularly seriously. the people involved are all skilled, talented folk but the end product imo doesn’t do anybody any justice. the circuits i don’t have beef with because like others say, they’re not meant to be spa or even the hungaroring.

[Akrapovic]

Why doesn't World Rally Cross race on proper circuits? Why do they use silly little modified dirt things? It's so silly.

Motorsport fans: We're tired of Paul Ricard and Barcelona. It'd be nice to have something different.

Also Motorsport fans: Why is this not using the same as everyone else?

Also also motorsport fans: Loving having super advanced motorsports, but have absolutely no idea how they work or why.

Anyway, was good fun. I liked R2. Didn't get to see R1.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by peebee2

Had a watch of this on a rare weekend off.

Was like MarioKart but less interesting.

Are all the tracks a joke like this?

By F1 standards - isn't Monaco a joke of a circuit?

[BTCC frog]

Wow. That was absolutely legendary from Lucas Di Grassi and Audi. They pull off all the best wins in Formula e (Mexico City season 3), and then doing this is even better. I remember in Berlin last year Buemi and the Mahindras got away with doing this under FCY and then the loophole was closed, but I suppose it was not closed at that time for safety cars. Maybe Audi had known all this time but, knowing they will only be allowed to use it once, they saved it for the most effective time. I can imagine that the stewards were desperately trying to find a reason to disallow the victory because it would have made a mockery out of Formula e if they had pulled it off, but I still wish Di Grassi had indeed stopped properly so that he could have won that race. I half expect Audi to be banned from the Berlin races, but if they are, they can at least leave on a high with what was almost the Brabham fan car of Formula e tactics. Fantastic!

[peebee2]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

By F1 standards - isn't Monaco a joke of a circuit?

Perhaps, but the Excel track looked ridiculous.

I do like it down by the Royal Docks, but I’d still prefer Monaco!

[Greem]

Just got back from four days in orange in That London. Great weekend.

I had custody of what appeared to be the only stretch of track where nobody hit the walls (T21/22), saw some extremely audacious overtakes via the classic "stick the car up the inside" manoeuvre, and generally had quite a good time. Standing in the hole at the back of the grid when they started each race was just *awesome* - these cars might not have a super-high top speed, but by god they get off the line quickly.

ExCeL itself, inside (so I stayed dry!) looked like a massive theatre or concert venue with a race track down the middle. Very, very different.

Good job today's race was an hour earlier than yesterday, given the amount of water that fell on London half an hour after the flag fell. The drive back north was really rather challenging...

I'm yet to watch the full races, so I'll reserve final judgement until I do. But I enjoyed the weekend, myself.

[Derwent]

It was quite dreadful to watch on TV. There didn't seem to be many spectators there either. How is the thing funded?
The idea of taking racing to the people is completely false unless you live within 20 miles of the track. For other spectators you have to travel into a city with all the costs and hassle that involves. Remember that football fans go to away matches and that the big city teams have fans who travel long distances to watch their "team".
Where there any support races?

[bella]

another perk of having it in the city is that people can use public transport to get there which fits with the eco message. there’s a vast number of people living within 20 miles of excel.

there weren’t many spectators because iirc they couldn’t get clarity from the government early enough to be able to plan and sell tickets. so they decided not to confuse people, send mixed messages or sell tickets they ended up having to refund. new york was messy and iirc they wanted to avoid that confusion.

[Greem]

I was led to understand that HMG would not grant the event permission to run as an Pilot Event, so a decision was made a while back to only have hospitality people and invited guests - on Sunday, I think a lot of the folks outside by the T16 hairpin complex were key workers who'd been involved in the COVID response in London (although I may stand corrected on that).

Given that FE is a global series, they're still running to fairly tight restrictions. Everyone involved - team personnel, drivers, marshals, officials, ExCeL staff, security, hospitality hosts etc. were swabbed for PCR tests every 48 hours. Mine were Thursday and Saturday (both negative for me thankfully!). I understand that everyone attending as a guest had to also have some form of test but I'm not sure what, I didn't see much of that side of things.

Something that surprised us on Friday was the appearance of one Mr Masi, which put added pressure on my team during the shakedown as he came out to opposite my post when they ran the "red car" exercise - that's a full simulation of a car with a high voltage open electrical failure and an injured driver. When the car stopped with us, I had a bit of a "hair on neck" moment as I realised he was watching! No pressure

[Akrapovic]

There was no spectators during a global pandemic where we're still working out restrictions!? Oh no!

Dear lord. Formula E is far from perfect but people love to criticise it for things that other series have issues with too.

[crmalcolm]

Originally Posted by Akrapovic

Formula E is far from perfect but people love to criticise it for things that other series have issues with too.

I also think a lot of people criticise because it is different to existing series - but isn't that the point, that it is different?

It is not Formula 1 - so comparisons are meaningless.

We've seen enough posts discussing how to 'fix' F1, yet also see just as strong a claim being put forward for why a different series doesn't look / sound like a F1 race?

With a few exceptions, major series tend to run on tracks that suit the cars and fanbase.
F1 needs wide expanses with designs that allow cars to overtake without having to follow closely for a few laps.
BTCC needs short lap times, and tighter, twistier tracks to deliver close racing.
RallyX needs a change of surface over a short lap.
FE needs a tight twisty circuit with short straights, and near a populated centre.

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by crmalcolm

I also think a lot of people criticise because it is different to existing series - but isn't that the point, that it is different?

It is not Formula 1 - so comparisons are meaningless.

We've seen enough posts discussing how to 'fix' F1, yet also see just as strong a claim being put forward for why a different series doesn't look / sound like a F1 race?

With a few exceptions, major series tend to run on tracks that suit the cars and fanbase.
F1 needs wide expanses with designs that allow cars to overtake without having to follow closely for a few laps.
BTCC needs short lap times, and tighter, twistier tracks to deliver close racing.
RallyX needs a change of surface over a short lap.
FE needs a tight twisty circuit with short straights, and near a populated centre.

Perfect post IMO. 10/10.

Also, I do enjoy FE. I enjoy the electric part. People assume you want that for everything. I don't. I want my FE electric and different. I want my GT3s big loud and shouty. I want my F1 screamy etc.

FE is different. Stop trying to make it the same as other things.

[Greem]

One thing I will say about FE: when the lights go out, the acceleration is breathtaking. Except for Mortara yesterday, whose drivetrain made a horrible noise when he moved up to take the grid position just before the start and didn't move when the lights went out. He was only just missed by the two cars immediately behind him.

Marshalling a race meeting indoors. More of that, please!

[BTCC frog]

The final double-header of the season takes place in Berlin this weekend. I feel that this season has, in general, been a bit of a lottery, and the season finale is surely going to be no different. Unless there are changeable conditions, I think the championship will most likely be won by whichever member of group two qualifying (7th-12th in the points) in the final qualifying session of the year happens to string together that one good lap on the day to put themselves at the front of the grid, which is not really the best way for a championship to be decided. Next year, the group qualifying format should definitely be scrapped, and replaced with a more conventional one. It would be great if they were allowed to copy the Formula 1 qualifying format, but if they are not, a simple x minutes of who can get the fastest lap time would be fine (and superpole can stay).
But if I had to choose a worthy champion based on the performances over the entire season, I would say Robin Frijns deserves it the most. He has been consistently up there in group one qualifying but never seems to drop out of it, as he has fought through the grid many times, and still lies second in the championship. The second-most deserving champion would be Antonio Felix Da Costa, in my opinion. However, I will be supporting the Audi drivers, as usual, and think they have a decent chance, as Berlin has traditionally been a strong track for the team. Rene Rast is another who has been strong all season and deserves to be in with a shout. He has been one of the worst qualifiers, but has always fought through impressively and arguably has the best racecraft on the grid. And if anybody is going to attempt to finish in exactly the right position to go into the final race seventh in the points it will surely be Lucas Di Grassi, although he may be a bit too far back.

[Derwent]

Formula E is just dreadful. The tracks are too narrow for a start. The whole TV team are hopeless and or annoying and the racing processional unless they run into each other.
I'd like to see then race on a proper track.
The whole environmental thing is untrue in that the track has to be created but lorries and cranes all powered by fossil fuels.

[Akrapovic]

Originally Posted by Derwent

Formula E is just dreadful. The tracks are too narrow for a start. The whole TV team are hopeless and or annoying and the racing processional unless they run into each other.
I'd like to see then race on a proper track.
The whole environmental thing is untrue in that the track has to be created but lorries and cranes all powered by fossil fuels.

I don't think I've disagreed with a post as much as I disagree with this one.

Also, I don't like MotoGP. So I don't watch it.

[Adam43]

I thought we’d moved on from that kind of, er, insight. I think that we need to keep those kind of posts out of the thread that discusses what actually happens in a season. It is just disruptive and hurts discussion.

That doesn’t mean you can’t discuss these things if you need to. Feel free to start another thread on it where it won’t derail the race and season thread.

Thanks.

[BTCC frog]

Final race of the season tomorrow. Fourteen drivers and nine teams are still in title contention, which has to be some kind of motorsport record.

[BTCC frog]

1. Nyck De Vries 95
2. Edoardo Mortara 92
3. Jake Dennis 91
4. Mitch Evans 90
5. Robin Frijns 89
6. Lucas di Grassi 87
7. Antonio Felix Da Costa 86
8. Sam Bird 81
9. Jean-Eric Vergne 80
10. Alex Lynn 78
11. Nick Cassidy 76
12. Rene Rast 75
13. Pascal Wehrlein 71
14. Max Gunther 66


1. Jaguar Racing 171
2. DS Techeetah 166
3. Envision Virgin 165
4. Audi Sport Abt 162
5. Mercedes EQ 158
6. BMW iAndretti 157

[NaBUru38]

I couldn't watch either race.


Out of 15 races, De Vries got 2 wins, 2 runner-ups, 3 additional points finishes, 4 non-points finishes and 4 retirements. That's quite unusual for a FIA world champion.

[billy bleach]

Just channel hopped onto the New York race - my God who watches this stuff…..

[AnnoyedMoose]

I don't mind it at all. It's not my favourite motorsport but it's not my least either. I must admit that the racing this year hasn't been as good as previous years which I suspect is down to the new qualifying format.

[Greem]

Day one at ExCel London over and done with. I'm trying to leave my magnet at home but I seem to have attracted the Red Car Exercise again today (I got it last year too). This is a full scale extrication, rescue, medical and fire test - simulated - but using a show car and FIA driver.

The changes to the track seem to have made it rather quicker; the cars have a bit more room and the double hairpin is now a "bus stop" style double chicane.

Tomorrow will be interesting, especially given how close they kept getting to my bit of wall in FP1!

[Derwent]

I watched but it leaves me cold. I would like to see them race on a proper race circuit though to see if it was ant better. It worries me when the presenters and commentators are always trying to hype up something that is boring. Why any manufacturer would be involved I don't know. Were there any spectators.

[Akrapovic]

If you race them on normal tracks then it's just another single seater series. We have a thousand series racing on Barcelona and Paul Ricard. I don't want another one.