Call it a new phenomenon in the motor industry, and you won’t be wrong about that, given the unique innovation. Formula E is the newest in the car racing series sanctioned by the Federation International de l’Automobile or the FIA. Conceived in 2012 and its inaugural competition set for 2014-2015, Formula E is the world’s first fully-electric racing series. Ten host cities have been designated for the initial season and some of the races are intended for exclusive circuits.
For the inaugural season, 10 teams, each with 2 drivers and four cars, will go head-to-head in the championship format. The competition creates a unique, thrilling and exciting racing series designed to appeal to a new generation of motorsport fans. World leading cities – London, Beijing, Buenos Aires, and Los Angeles – are poised to play host to this car racing occurrence. But why should Formula Electric become a globally reckoned racing series among various car racing championships and perhaps, evolve racing?
At the Bloomberg New Energy Future Summit in New York, Formula E CEO Alejandro Agag, gave some thought provoking insights. “We want to change people’s perceptions of electric cars. People still think of electric cars as slow, non-cool. We want to change that completely and these cars racing.” Agag told CNBC News in an interview, shortly after the event. Perception isn’t the only issue at stake in this course as nature is the biggest beneficiary of this laudable invention.
Agag commented on the recent involvement of Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio as a co-owner of the Venturi GP Formula E Team. “He’s passionate about electric cars and about the environment and this championship. Formula e intends to change for good the environment in our cities. With more electric cars, we will have cleaner air, less pollution”, Agag said. “That’s something that appealed to DiCaprio and other partners.”
Luxury and entertainment are not the primary basis for this revolution, as industry experts and enthusiasts would have closely observed. This represents a vision for the future of the motor industry over the coming decades, a framework for Research and Development. This is all about a technological vista that may well take the front seat in driving change in our environment. It clearly offers a new way of thinking, possibilities and a scientific method of preserving nature.
Operating as an ‘open championship’, the series gives car manufacturers and constructors the opportunity to showcase their electrical energy innovations in a racing environment, designing cars to the technical specifications set out by the FIA. The entire world – beyond the motor industry – stands the chance of seeing the performance of these cars in one circuit.
Formula E Championship centres around three core values of Energy, Environment and Entertainment, revealing the dynamism of the car event. A fusion of engineering, technology, sport, science, design, music and entertainment – combining to drive change towards an electric future. This unique differential from the more conventional Formula One racing series, will run from September 2014 to June 2015.
Image: digitaltrends.com