Environmentally unfriendly as Formula E race runs out of juice
Issued on:
24/04/2021 - 19:44 Energy conservation: Mercedes Stoffel Vandoorne (right) and Nyck de Vries with team principal Ian James Tobias SCHWARZ AFP/File 2 min
Paris (AFP)
Electrically-powered Formula E racing fell flat on Saturday when 12 of 24 cars taking part in the Valencia Grand Prix ran out of energy and failed to finish.
On a wet track where collisions were frequent, the safety car was called upon five times.
However, the regulations provide that the level of energy available to the single-seaters is recalculated downwards during such pauses in racing.
Having underestimated the distance of the race (the regulations providing for 45 minutes plus one lap) and therefore the amount of energy needed to complete it, half of the field ground to a halt on the last lap.
Formula E - De Vries wins in the most bizarre end to an E-Prix
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Formula E
Rome, Italy
Rome E-Prix 2 – Stoffel Vandoorne took Mercedes EQ’s second win of the season as he banished thoughts of his bad day yesterday.
For the second E-Prix in a row the race was started behind the Mini Electric Pacesetter, even as the track didn’t appear to be as damp as yesterday. However, Jean-Eric Vergne and Sam Bird expressed concerns about the positioning of the start grid in yesterday’s post-race press conference, and that the potential for an incident was high, so perhaps it was a combination of that and the damp that lead to the decision.
Formula E
Rome, Italy
Rome E-Prix 2 – Nick Cassidy took his first Formula E pole position for Envision Virgin Racing as he mastered the tricky conditions in Rome.
Heading out in the final qualifying group, Cassidy had the best of the conditions and he was one of three drivers who progressed from that group to Super Pole. The Kiwi’s 1:56.006 was just out of reach from ROKiT Venturi’s Norman Nato, who had topped group qualifying, as the Frenchman had the fastest sector 2 but tapped a wall and lost time in the final sector.
Aside from both rookies getting to start from the front row, they both now have their first points of the season thanks to the points for being fastest in group qualifying and pole.
Mercedes’ Vandoorne victorious at Rome ePrix
Date published:
April 11 2021
Mercedes Formula E driver and Formula 1 reserve Stoffel Vandoorne secured his first win of the season in race two at the Rome ePrix.
The opening race of the weekend at the Circuito Cittadino dell’EUR saw Vandoorne finish in the barriers after a collision that also involved his Mercedes team-mate Nyck de Vries, but the Belgian bounced back in style by finishing the weekend atop the podium.
There was drama after the Safety Car start around a damp Rome as Nick Cassidy, starting from pole, spun his Envision Virgin Racing car while leading on the opening lap.
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