FIA Formula E Championship: Round 1 - Beijing Race Report

2014-09-15 13:02:13

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FIA Formula E Championship: Round 1 – Beijing Race Report

The excitement was tangible at the start of the inaugural FIA Formula E championship race being held in Beijing around the very streets that were once (in)famous for hosting the 2008 Summer Olympics.

The starting grid was absolutely jam-packed with driver support teams, dignitaries, celebrities, colleagues from the press and other hangers-on. The world was on the cusp of seeing the first ever FIA Formula E World Championship race – the only race series where pure electric cars compete with others on street circuits. There were perhaps as many supporters of Formula E as there were critics. This was going to be a big event, whatever your opinion.

As the minutes counted down, the FIA President Jean Todt done the rounds, meeting the drivers and the teams on the grid. Meanwhile, Formula E Chief Executive, Alejandro Agag was schmoozing the corporate attendees in the hope of extracting more sponsorship for the Championship. Even supermodel Bar Rafaeli was strutting around as if the grid was some gigantic catwalk.

At last, the whistles blew to clear the grid and the cars began to move. This was the formation lap. For the first time we were witnessing 20 all-new pure electric Formula E cars going round the circuit for the first time. Never had so much been riding on a new motor racing series as it was today.

Formation lap complete, the cars began to line up on the grid for the very first Formula E ePRIX … in total silence.

The lights went on. The world waited with anticipation as the cars were about to compete with each other over 25 laps.

Suddenly the trackside music began pumping out from the trackside from the Formula E resident EJ. The lights went out. And all were off.

Nearly all, anyway … Jarno Trulli (Trulli Racing) and Ho-Pin Tung (China Racing) couldn’t get going. Meanwhile, everyone else went cleanly around the first corner. The second corner proved to be more a mess though as Amlin Aguri’s Takuma Sato collided with Mahindra Racing’s Bruno Senna. The Brazilian snapped the left-hand front wishbone, buckled his wheel and put him immediately out of the race. The first scalp had been claimed.

The e.dams-Renault of Nico Prost snatched a narrow lead from the two Audi Sport ABT drivers, Lucas di Grassi and Daniel Abt. The opening lap provided us with an insight into what we could expect to see in the rest of the Championship races – cars sliding sideways around corners as the drivers struggled to adapt to the near instantaneous torque at their disposal. Franck Montagny nearly put his Andretti Autosport teammate Charles Pic into the wall whilst the two scrabbled for the same position.

The excitement continued to grow. Senna picked a fight with the wall and the BMW i8 Safety Car was deployed, providing the other drivers with an opportunity to conserve their battery power. This effectively would help them to extend their pit stops for an extra lap or two before they would have to come in and jump into their spare car.

But for now, they sat behind the Safety Car. Nico Prost was 1 ^st, followed by di Grassi in 2^nd, Daniel Abt in 3^rd and Nick Heidfeld for Venturi in 4^th who had got a tremendous start from the grid and had already moved up one place.

The Safety Car and Marshalls had done their jobs and the track was cleared. We were back to racing. Prost began to get some air between him and the rest of the pack but in 4 ^th, Heidfeld had bolted himself onto the back of Abt, perfectly demonstrating his ability to conserve and manage his power.

Further back, things were still exciting and we were seeing some brilliant, but still clean racing. Montagny somehow squeeze past Virgin Racing’s Jaime Alguersuari despite some defensive moves to keep him at bay. Montagny’s move, however, meant that Alguersuari’s team mate, Sam Bird, also got by his Virgin Racing teammate whilst China Racing’s Nelson Piquet Jr done his best to get a look in too.

Sébastien Buemi, representing e-dams-Renault, unfortunately was ruled out of contention of gaining any points in the race after his car inexplicably lost its back wheel cover, damaging his rear wing in the process. This resulted in him having to pit to have it repaired.

The minor points were being contested by a clutch of different racers going wheel-to-wheel and nose-to-tail. It involved Sato, Piquet, Servia, Ambrosio and Sarrazin. It was nail-biting, edge-of-the-seat stuff with spots being regularly exchanged and positions lost, regained, lost again or swapped. But the Amlin Aguri car of Sata couldn’t maintain the frenzy of the battle and his car stopped on the track, ending his chance of winning any points – but not necessarily of his race day just yet.

The first mandatory pit stop window was rapidly approaching. Prost was being hauled in by the Audi Sport ABT boys with Heidfeld never far adrift. But the fighter was Franck Montagny – somehow he managed to get himself into 5 ^th position from having started 8^th on the grid. Only two seconds was separating the top four drivers.

Prost, di Grassi and Abt headed for the pits. Bird stayed out. Heidfeld seemed to drop back before he entered the pits. What was he doing?

In the pits the switch from one car to another was made. The drivers must have felt frustrated that having accomplished this manoeuvre in 37-seconds or so, they had to wait for the minimum 50-seconds to pass before they could be safely released. Heidfeld’s earlier unexplained self-inflicted gap management turned out to be an inspired move, because this meant he leapfrogged both Audi Sport ABT drivers and exited the pits in second position behind Prost. Montagny also managed to use the enforced pit-stop to his advantage and got the jump on Daniel Abt.

The running order after the pit stop was Bird who was still to come in, Prost, Heidfeld, di Grassi, Montagny and Abt.

Prost retook the lead after Bird eventually pitted. By this time Prost had established a fairly commanding lead between him and the now second-placed Heidfeld. Surely there was no way Prost could be caught unless he’d do something completely stupid – or his car suffered a major malfunction.

Meanwhile, further down the field, Piquet Jr for China Racing continued his charge, challenging then securing 8 ^th position from Charles Pic. It was to be a bad day for the Trulli Formula E team as Michela Cerruti, down in 14^th position, was given a drive-through penalty. This came on top of Jarno’s early exit. The team will need to be having some serious thoughts about how they make themselves more competitive for the next race.

The second woman driver, Katherine Legge also suffered a drive-through penalty for crossing the pit-lane exit and went on to suffer a disappointing afternoon contributing no points for her Amlin Aguri team. Further back, Sato had rejoined the race in 17 ^th and recognising that he was out of contention for scoring any points by being placed, became almost obsessed with posting the fastest lap of the race which would secure him and his team a much-needed championship point.

Back at the head of the field, the leading four – Prost, Heidfeld, di Grassi and Montagny – were all racing, as though their lives depended on it.

With just five laps to go, Mahindra Racing’s Karun Chandhok took 6 ^th place from Sam Bird. Unfortunately for him, the move seemed to be a short-lived one as his car subsequently ran into power troubles.

Two more laps passed and with just three remaining, just two-and-a-half seconds was separating the top four positions. This was a nail-biting race and was going to be a fitting finale to the inaugural race. It was open to anyone to win. Whilst there was still positions being swapped further back in the field, all eyes were on the top four.

Then Prost, with Heidfeld chasing began to open up some air between them and di Grassi and Montagny. It looked as though the Audi Sport ABT and Andretti Autosport drivers were now going to have their own battle for the final podium spot. Prost meanwhile looked like he would take the podium with Heidfeld taking the second spot.

Sato’s mission was completed when he posted the fastest lap. But it was Heidfeld who became the focus as he suddenly appeared to be closing in fast on Prost. Could there be a last-minute battle for the podium? Heidfeld had clearly conserved enough battery power to mount a final battle. Would he try and take it or would he settle for second? If he was going to challenge, where would this be?

The last few corners came – and went. Corner 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17. Out of 18 then down the long straight towards the final corner.

Heidfeld senses his chance as he gets a good exit out of 19. He pushes to the inside of Prost. Prost meanwhile looks to his right. Heidfeld isn’t there but unbeknown to Prost, Heidfeld is pulling past him on the opposite left side. Without checking Prost instinctively turns to block Heidfeld – noooooooo!!! In a WTF! moment, the two cars collide.

Prost snaps his inside front left wheel. But all eyes are on Heidfeld’s car as he clearly loses control, careens towards the barrier, launches over the sausage kerb and is catapulted into the air, his car finally coming to rest upside down.

The gasps from the crowd in witnessing what has just happened on the final corner between first and second place drivers, is clearly audible on the television footage. Everyone is in shock, not least the support guys from both teams who just look at their monitors in total disbelief.

Heidfeld is still in the car. There is no obvious movement. Is he okay?

Yes – eventually Heidfeld moves and begins to crawl out of the wreckage. He sweeps past a Marshall who comes over to see if he is okay and runs towards Prost who is already walking away with his helmet removed. Are we about to see Heidfeld lump Prost? Phew – no, but clearly a few choice words are exchanged.

But, hang on – the race is still going on. Lucas di Grassi is now in first place and negotiates his way through the carnage and onto cross the line. He is the very first winner of the Formula E championship race – he will be recorded in the history books as such. Montagny in our opinion must go down as the holder of the “Driver of the Race” award for storming through the field and rewardingly secures 2 ^nd place. Daniel Abt follows over in 3^rd with Sam Bird in 4^th, Charles Pic in 5^th and Karun Chandhok in 6^th.

But the controversy and surprises don’t end there. Oh no – not in this race.

Almost heartbreakingly, Daniel Abt failed to carry out a drive-through penalty because his team were unable to communicate it to him, rendering him a demotion to 10 ^th position. So this elevates Bird to the final podium position.

So – that was the first race of the FIA Formula E Championship completed. And what a race it was. With such close fighting, excitement and tension in such a short space of time, surely the critics have been silenced about how electric car racing cannot really be seen as true motorsport. Pardon the pun when we say that the Championship has got off to a flying start – but was there really a better way to start?

Come on Malaysia!!!

Reported By

Andrew Merritt-Morling

Chief Editor