It has been four months since Nelson Piquet Jr. was crowned 2014/2015 Formula E champion at Battersea Park, London, in June. In what was the inaugural season for the series, it proved to be very successful. Entertainment and a lot of track action made it an impressive opening year for Formula E. After a long summer break, Formula E is back with the season kicking off in Beijing this weekend.
Many familiar faces remain on the Formula E grid as Nelson Piquet Jr. remains at NEXTEV TCR to defend his crown. Partnering him is Oliver Turvey, who raced alongside the Brazilian at the season finale in London last season. Sebastien Buemi and Nico Prost remain at Renault e.Dams who will be hoping to improve on their four wins in season one.
Formula E welcomes some new faces to the grid. 1997 Formula One champion Jacques Villeneuve will race alongside Stéphane Sarrazin at Venturi. The series also welcomes Ex-Formula Renault 3.5 champion Robin Frijns and GP2 race winner Nathanael Berthon.
Track: Beijing Olympic Green Circuit
Circuit Length: 3.453km
Race Length: 86km
Laps: 25
2014/2015 Winner: Lucas Di Grassi (Audi Sport ABT)
The inaugural race in Beijing proved very popular with circa 75,000 spectators attending. The race win was decided on the final lap as Renaut e.dams’ Nico Prost collided with the Venturi of Nick Heidfeld while fighting for the lead of the race. This left Brazilian Lucas di Grassi to win the first ever Formula E event ahead of Frank Montagny and Sam Bird with Takuma Sato setting the fastest lap for Amlin Aguri.
For season two of Formula E, there have been several major rule changes which may impact the racing. The maximum power usage during the race will be increased from 150 kW to 170 kW. In addition, Teams will be free to pursue their own development of the powertrain, including the e-motor, inverter, gearbox and cooling system meaning the difference in performance up and down the grid may be wider than last season.
In terms of pre-season testing, it was difficult to properly gauge the true performance of the various cars. Renault e.dams, ABT and Virgin looked to be on the pace while Trulli struggled to get any laps on the board. Reigning world champion Nelson Piquet Jr’s team, NEXTEV TCR did not set any quick times through testing at Donington thus it remains to be seen whether the Brazilian will be able to defend his title successfully.
Due to the unpredictability of Formula E, it is impossible to predict a winner. On the basis of pre-season testing, the three drivers I would tip for the podium would be Lucas di Grassi, Sebastien Buemi and Sam Bird. But then again, this is Formula E, anything could happen.
