Formula E, 2018-2019

Mr Jack · 15 Dec 2018 at 07:51

Anyone following Formula E this year? We're going to go to the race in Berlin this year so I'm pretty excited, let's see what the changes bring.

Qualifying at the first race is currently delayed...

Mr Jack · 15 Dec 2018 at 13:40

.:MBK:. said:
Some of the format decisions seem...klunky. Also hope they can get the production sorted, audio, screen info, camera direction was all over the show.

Yeah, the graphics seemed off, and the director did a poor job of following the action. More driver name captions would help too, so we know who we're following. Still, I rather enjoyed the race. Plenty of action throughout, and the "Attack Mode" didn't feel as contrived as I thought it would but rather a more tactical element. Fan Boost sucks though.

Mr Jack · 12 Jan 2019 at 15:30

This is an impressive fightback from Vergne.

Mr Jack · 26 Jan 2019 at 22:33

Sadly, I couldn't watch this one live. I thought I'd be able to watch it later on YouTube but no joy

Mr Jack · 27 Jan 2019 at 09:53

this_is_gav said:
Your location says you're in Germany, but iPlayer has it if you're in the UK (or presumably use a UK VPN): https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episo...-201819-formula-e-championship-santiago-eprix

Unfortunately, the Beeb has been blocking VPNs again and I haven't been able to get iPlayer for a while.

Judging by the last race it looks like they upload the full race to Youtube the day after, so it might be available later today.

Cool. I'll look later.

Mr Jack · 29 Jan 2019 at 21:25

EVH said:
Interestingly, Formula E have the exclusive rights for all-electric vehicles until 2039.. so this could very well become the more relevant series if/when manufacturers sway toward battery power.

Exclusive rights from whom?

Mr Jack · 29 Jan 2019 at 21:31

EVH said:
FIA

How much power do the FIA have to stop anyone simply running a motor racing formula without them?

Mr Jack · 16 Feb 2019 at 22:11

Mexican eGP is off to a dramatic start!

Mr Jack · 16 Feb 2019 at 23:29

D'Ambrosio 4th. That's a stunning result.

Mr Jack · 10 Mar 2019 at 07:50

Pole looked exciting in the wet. Looks like the track I still damp for the race.

Mr Jack · 10 Mar 2019 at 08:24

They need to do something to improve/speed-up these red flag sequences. They're not a pretty part of the formula.

Mr Jack · 10 Mar 2019 at 13:30

andicole0 said:
Sadly too much like the touring cars on street circuits. Cars are too similar and street circuits are too narrow. Just a procession, maybe that's what we have to expect these days. All the attempts to promote overtaking are silly maybe we should go more towards remote racing where no driver gets hurt in an accident? The crashes could then be spectacular

There were plenty of overtakes throughout the race, as there nearly always are in Formula E, but the TV director was terrible at showing them

Mr Jack · 10 Mar 2019 at 14:16

andicole0 said:
Were they driver implemented or did those overtakes come from fake advantages? Have they implemented that phone in boost I read about or the in track boost to make the cars go over particular parts of the track?

Most were real. Some were from "attack mode" that is activated by going over some part of the track. Personally, I don't mind Attack Mode as it's a tactical resource that is used by the drivers to gain an advantage at a particular time, it's certainly a lot better than DRS. The phone-in boost you talk about is also there - "fan boost" - and it's as much garbage as you'd expect. Fortunately, however, it doesn't seem to have very much effect, since it's only there for 5 seconds.

Mr Jack · 10 Mar 2019 at 15:47

Sam Bird has been given a five second penalty for hitting Lotterer, drops him to sixth.

Mr Jack · 23 Mar 2019 at 07:49

Another race, another poorly organised red flag.

Mr Jack · 13 Apr 2019 at 15:08

Looking slippery as all hell in Rome. Should be good.

Mr Jack · 13 Apr 2019 at 15:38

I don't mind the narrower circuits but I have no idea why they can't do these red flag periods faster: Clear the blockage. Reform cars on grid. Race. Why all this pfaff instead?

Mr Jack · 13 Apr 2019 at 15:43

Mr Jack said:
I don't mind the narrower circuits but I have no idea why they can't do these red flag periods faster: Clear the blockage. Reform cars on grid. Race. Why all this pfaff instead?

Actually, in this case, it looks like they're repairing a safety barrier - so, fair enough.

Mr Jack · 24 May 2019 at 12:29

I'm at the Berlin race weekend today. There's actually a surprising amount to do here as well as the various race events. We've watched the shakedown and the iPace practice so far, and are going to see if the virtual race is fun.

Mr Jack · 26 May 2019 at 08:07

Well, I really enjoyed that. Motorsport is strange to watch live as you're often relying on the big screen to tell you what is going on but it was still a really enjoyable experience. I think we'll go to another race next year.

Watching Lopez limp over the line with the crowd cheering was pretty funny too.