Kieran McDonnell

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Formula E Season 11 Round 5: Wehrlein Takes The Top Step in Miami

Formula E returned to Miami and this race was a slow burner before we went from zero to ultimate hero due to 1 collision.

The race begun with Norman Nato claiming a debut pole position for Nissan and his first points of Season 11 with Jake Dennis beside him on the front row. Unfortunately, this race was a pack racing style race so no one was in favour of leading due to the energy loss obtained. Da Costa managed to sneak his way up to P2 ahead of Dennis before De Vries led the way from the Nissan of Nato and the Porsche of Da Costa on lap 2. Oliver Rowland suffered a horrific qualifying and was down to P14 after several laps with the Cupra Kiro of David Beckmann falling down from P8 to P11. As this race went on, it became clear that drivers at the rear of the field had much more energy than those at the front due to the overtaking nature. We were nearly a third of the way through the race before the Envision Racing car of Buemi pulled the plug and went for attack mode, a move which ultimately helped him to get up the field. The DS Penske of Jean-Eric Vergne decided to take a little detour across the grass.Vandoorne followed Buemi’s line into the attack mode which ultimately helped him. Beckmann had to pit due to a puncture and that was the end of his race.

We had a very odd situation as some drivers took attack mode, the Mahindra of De Vries stopped on track and that brought out the safety car. However, the Season 7 champ managed to get going again which was probably the shortest safety car in Formula E history! Wehrlein was leading from the restart but was 4% DOWN on Da Costa. As the race began again, a big crash happened at the chicane in sector 3. Hughes, Guenther and Evans were all caught up as Hughes went deep into the barrier, Guenther couldn’t stop in time and Evans then collided with Guenther. The Jaguar of Evans and DS Penske of Guenther managed to get going but Hughes had to retire. This, however, brought out the red flag. As drivers were in the pitlane, Cassidy received a 5 second time penalty for track limits. However, it became clear that due to the amount of time it would take to finish the laps, drivers with 6 minutes of attack mode remaining would end up receiving a penalty for not using all of their attack mode.

HOMESTEAD, FLORIDA – APRIL 12: Nico Muller of Switzerland driving the (51) Andretti Formula E Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 during the Miami E-Prix, Round 5 of the 2025 FIA Formula E World Championship at Homestead-Miami Speedway on April 12, 2025 in Homestead, Florida. (Photo by Andrew Ferraro/LAT Images) Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

As drivers took their positions for a sprint weekend in Formula E, everyone knew this was going to be a mad dash to the end. Da Costa led the race from Mortara and Wehrlein before Wehrlein took it away from his teammate. Da Costa had no attack mode remaining so he fell down the grid like a stone in water. However, due to the attack mode penalties, hope was not lost. Norman Nato took the chequered flag first but Nato, Rowland, Barnard, Bird and Frijns all later received 10 second penalties post race due to their attack mode incompletion. This meant that Pascal Wehrlein took the win ahead of Lucas Di Grassi in P2 who scored Lola Yamaha Abt’s first podium in Formula E with Da Costa finishing P3! Nico Mueller finished P4 in Andretti’s home race, Edoardo Mortara P5, Norman Nato P6, Dan Ticktum P7, Robin Frijns P8, Jake Dennis P9 and Zane Maloney P10. However, the boy from Barbados later received a 5 second time penalty for not following the race directors instructions so he did not score his maiden points. Oliver Rowland took the final points paying position.

Writers Predictions:

Before the weekend, I made some predictions! Lets see how they went:

Pole Position: Pascal Wehrlein

This one didn’t entirely come true considering he didn’t even make the duels. 

Race Winner: Taylor Barnard

I was hoping Taylor would pull something out of the bag but after his non existant duels appearance, I knew from then it was all over for the young Briton. 

Biggest Surprise: Andretti

I could try and argue that I was correct as they scored a P4 and a P9. Of course, at their home race they were hoping for more than this and I think Lola Yamaha Abt deserved this one more. 

Biggest Surprise: Mahindra

This one did not go too well either. Even Mortara scoring 5 points was a driver surprise but not a whole team surprise. 

See you all for Monaco’s double header WITH Pit Boost in a few weeks!

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Formula E Season 11 Round 5 Miami E-Prix: Preview and Predictions

After such a long and extended break following the cancellation of an E-Prix scheduled for March, Formula E is BACK this weekend at a new venue but returning city of Miami! Many sessions and improvements have happened over the spring break for all 11 teams so it will be interesting to see how this electric weekend goes. 

Schedule:

Free Practice 1: 4:30-5:25pm Local Time
Free Practice 2: 07:30-08:25am Local Time
Qualifying: 09:40-11:03am Local Time
Race: 2:05-3pm Local Time

Circuit Preview:

The Miami E-Prix will be held at the Homestead-Miami International Speedway which will consist of 15 turns at 3.551km. Energy management could be critical around here as there is no pit boost as this is a single round event. The start/finish straight for the pitlanes as well as the long straights between turns 5 and 6 and 7 and 8 could be vital for victory. 

Predictions for Round 5

Pole position: Pascal Wehrlein

The reigning champion of Formula E did not have the best of weekends in Jeddah with no podiums to his male and the Porsche power train competitors of Stellantis and Nissan both picked up 1 win each at the double header. However, with a new circuit comes new opportunities and chances for drivers and teams to excel which I believe Wehrlein will manage to do to keep his championship bid alive. 

Race Winner: Taylor Barnard

Prior to this season, I think putting any of the trio of rookies onto a prediction sheet for race winner would have been seen as insane given the performances of the teams last season. However, neom McLaren and Barnard have easily been the ones to exceed expectations given how young the F2 Monaco Sprint race winner in 2024 is and his inexperienced compared to Sam Bird. Miami will be a somewhat equal playing field as it is a new venue and I am expecting Barnard to capitalise. 

Biggest surprise: Andretti

This is Andretti’s home E-Prix so the team will be wanting to make a very strong performance here which I think they can do. Maybe a double podium is on the cards, Mueller’s first since joining the American outfit team.

Biggest disappointment: Mahindra

This one is purely a guy feeling. I was choosing between this team and Cupra Kiro but I think Beckmann and Ticktum will do well at Miami…unlike the Mahindra team.  This one is purely vibes as well but I have a feeling they may fall down and struggle to get back up.

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Opinion: F1-75 Achieved its Aim and was Pleasently Surprising Despite a few Questional Moments

When Formula One announced F1-75 as an event to officially start the 2025 season and celebrate 75 years of a pinnacle of Motorsport, the overlying reaction entering the event was….less than positive to say the least. This would be a major shake up in the traditional annual event with teams launching their cars and liveries at their own discretion throughout January and February of that year. However, I went into it with somewhat optimism and an open mind to see what Formula One and the teams could pull off. 

The Headline Event

To officially launch the season, it achieved their target. 10 liveries were officially launched by all 10 teams, the final year of 10 teams being on the grid before Cadillac joins this collective of teams for the 2026 season. 

Going in reverse world constructors championship order from the final results of 2024, Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber started off with a video and illuminated drumsticks which resulted in the overall build up to the reveal being longer than the conversation with drivers Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto who were accompanied by team principal Mattia Binotto. Longer conversations should have been a priority in order to satisfy the die hard formula one fans appeal for the event. 

Revealing next was Atlassian Williams Racing, showcasing their new title sponsor of the Australian software company which gets added onto the front of their team. A very less dragged on presentation from the British team as the team principal James Vowels appeared, revealed the livery and brought the drivers out. Quick, simple, to the point. Lovely. 

VCARB… Oops Visa Cash App Racing Bulls was next with a cheesy video of the team playing on their constant rebrands as they have gone from Toro Rosso to Alpha Tauri to Visa Cash App RB to Visa Cash App Racing Bulls within 7 years. 

Their livery, however, made up for this as the white version of the Red Bull livery from Turkey in 2021 came back from the dead to last for a full season on the sister team. Whenever I look at it, I think it makes the colours pop but it also reminds me of the Formula 2 cars of Hadjar and Marti in 2024 for some reason. I won’t complain. 

The American Team of MoneyGram Haas F1 Team were next with a slightly revised livery in comparison to the 2024 version. My view is that the team are trying to refine and tune this livery to perfection and this one is a step forward.

The enstone team of BWT Alpine F1 Team(rumoured to become HiTech after former HiTech boss Oliver Oakes took over) is one of the most striking liveries on the grid. The DJ used at the beginning has many people, myself included, confused towards the context, however, they are the same person who wrote the beloved F1 theme tune which is…..a fact. The livery really pops, however, with the bright pink and blue. 

The James Bond team of Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team easily had the best introduction. With musicians, Alonso and Stroll walking out to the James Bond theme, it fits the tone perfectly. Granted, even though the overall livery has not changed, the livery is still great, albeit a downgrade from previous years. 

Mercedes AMG PETRONAS F1 Team was next with not the start they wanted with a slow pitstop bringing the headlines compared to it’s unchanged 2024 livery design. The livery is not awful, however, I was expecting many changes, such as a move back to the all silver design. 

Oracle Red Bull Racing followed the Brackley team with a completely unchanged livery. *Shock face* I know it’s for brand purposes but I think many people….well me anyway, would have loved to see the white red bull return for Hona’s final year with the energy drinks team. 

The prancing horse of Scudaria Ferrari HP was up next with a basic but classic reveal. Hamilton and Leclerc revealing it with the livery being, in my opinion, probably my least favourite due to the HP logo. 

The reigning world champions of McLaren were the last to reveal their livery with a completely unchanged one from 2024. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?

Performances:

The musicians performing on the night were…good. Now, I am a BIG Take That fans so it won’t come as a surprise that I thought they were the best with renditions of Rule The World and Greatest Day. I think a song like Shine, however, would have been more appropriate. 

As for Machine Gun Kelly, Martin Brundles best friend, it surprised me how quickly they started with him. He immediately started blasting his guitar which….was expected but unexpected. 

The “half time show” (well, after VCARB) was an interesting performance. One Kane Brown, one microphone, many cameras. Nothing more to say really. Song was good too.

In general, I think it is fair to say that the performances were fillers and a way to attract different audiences which certainly worked. 

The Future Of Formula One

I am a big fan of the ladder to Formula One, startng from F4, making the steps up to the top step so seeing Formula 2, Formula 3 and F1 Academy get its own specific section was great to see as this is ultimately where the future of F1 lies. Every single driver has come up the ranks, whether that being winning the championships like Gabriel Bortoleto and Oscar Piastri have done or showing talent and potential such as Alex Albon, Lando Norris and Liam Lawson. The mention of the FIA was met with….a mixed reaction which was expected but I was not surprised at the amount of negativity surrounding the FIA, especially after the increase of fines due to certain behavior.

Presenters and jokes:

Jack Whitehall is a well known presenter in the UK and Ireland (I am unsure how well he is known across other countries) but I think he handled the situation very well tackling some topics such as the FIA Swearing ban, George Vs Max and their beef as well as daydreaming over Charles Leclerc. 

While some jokes made me cringe such as the one over the rear of a Formula One car and Lando’s comment which Guenther Steiner would have made, the jokes were quite good and not as bad as people set them out to be. 

Final Verdict

The event did what it said on the tin. We got to see cars and liveries and mark the official launch of F1 2025. I can’t help, however, but feel like there was a missed opportunity to make more announcements such as the upcoming season for Drive To Survive, upcoming collaborations and a chance for teams to make announcements. Of course, I understand that this was a one off and the main target was achieved which was the primary goal of this event to start an eagerly anticipated season.

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Formula E Season 11 Round 3 & 4: Jeddah Produces New and Repeat Winners of Season 11

It is safe to say that rounds 3 & 4 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship was one of a kind with records broken and the debut of attack mode.

Round 3

Round 3 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship got underwear at the track of Jeddah with Maximilian Guenther leading the pack away from pole with a chaotic lap 1 esculating ehind the German. Nico Mueller and Antonio Felix Da Costa collided with the German being shot up and ultimately having to DNF. Mitch Evans also collided with champion Pascal Wehrlein and ended up causing a puncture for Wehrlein and his own front wing getting stuck on his tyre and having to pit to fix it.

The piece of Da Costa’s rear wing which came off emerged near the activation zone of attack mode and, with the addition to other carbon fibre scattered across the track, brought out a very brief safety car.

We went racing again on lap 9 which saw Guenther lead from Rowland and De Vries. As laps counted down, overtakes went up including Da Costa on Ticktum nd De Vries passing Barnard for P3.

Pit Boost then opened up for many drivers with Hughes, Barnard and Da Costa all being the first drivers to take pit boost. Ticktum and Mortara followed in their wheel marks, however Ticktum suffered an issue which ultimately compromised his race. Guenther dropped 2 places due to the pit boost and staying out longer while Barnard stayed ahead and actually jumped up by 2 places.

After everyone took their pit boost, Rowland had a big lead over Hughes and Barnard with De Vries managing to make his way up to P2. In the background, however, Guenther was flying his way through the field with the DS Penske German driver managing to pass De Vries for P2 and setting his sights on the race win.

As the race drew to a close, there were 2 major battle going on: De Vries vs Barnard for P3 and Rowland vs Guenther for P1. The latter of those 2 battles emerging victorious with Guenther making a 3rd last corner overtake on Rowland for the win.

Maximilian Guenther led Oliver Rowland from Taylor Barnard for the top 3. Season 7 Champion Nyck De Vries finished P4 with Maserati MSG Racing driver Jake Hughes in P5, Two Time champion Jean-Eric Vergne in P6, Edoardo Mortara in P8, Barnard’s teammate Sam Bird in P8, Antonio Felix Da Costa in P9 with Season 8 champion Stoffell Vandoorne in P10.

JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA – FEBRUARY 14: Race winner Maximilian Gunther of Germany and DS Penske Second placed Oliver Rowland of Great Britain and Nissan Formula E Team Third placed Taylor Barnard of Great Britain and NEOM McLaren Formula E Team on the podium during the Jeddah E-Prix, Round 3 of the 2025 FIA Formula E World Championship at Jeddah Corniche Circuit on February 14, 2025 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Joe Portlock/LAT Images) Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

Round 4

Round 4 begun with a record sitter: the younger ever Formula E pole sitter of Taylor Barnard. He set the record as 20 years and 259 days old. Before we went racing, we had a delayed start due to the Lola Yamaha Abt of Zane Maloney being out of position. After that was dealt with, we went racing with Barnard managing to stay P1 with Hughes moving up to P2 ahead of Rowland. Da Costa got a HUGE hit from the previous round’s winner of Maximilian Guenther and resulted in both of them retiring from the race.

Battles commenced up and down the grid with Hughes very near the rear wing of Barnard and Ticktum going against De Vries while Di Grassi went for an EXTREMELY early attack mode which saw him overtaking driver after driver and ending up leading the race after Rowland took over the lead from the McLaren of Barnard. Buemi ended up pitting which ultimately ruined his race too. Maloney ended up having 5% more energy than everyone but was over 50 seconds behind the leader. Soon, the leader was Frijns due to his attack mode and Bird later received a 5 time penalty for not following the race director’s instructions. A few brief yellow flags appeared during the race due to pieces of debris. The Jaguar of Mitch Evans had to pit during the race which was a disaster for the debut winner of Season 11.

Barnard managed to go for an overtake for P2 on Hughes and make it stick, however, Hughes was putting a battle on Barnard who had a slide. Hughes then goes for an overtake on Barnard for P2 but gets pushed wide and has to go over the turn 1 run off. Positions remained as they were as Rowland won the E-Prix after being denied win the previous day.

Oliver Rowland led Taylor Barnard with Jake Hughes making a jump up to the podium, his first with the Monaco based team. Season 9 champion Jake Dennis finished P4 to make it al all brit 1-2-3-4. Nick Cassidy scored his first points of the season in P5, Stoffel Vandoorne finished P6, Jean-Eric Vergne in P7, reigning champion Pascal Wehrlein in P8, Cupra Kiro’s Dan Ticktum finished in P9 with Edoardo Mortara finishing the points positions of this double header.

JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA – FEBRUARY 15: Sebastien Buemi of Switzerland driving the (16) Envision Racing Jaguar I-TYPE 7 leads Pascal Wehrlein of Germany driving the (1) TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 during the Jeddah E-Prix, Round 4 of the 2025 FIA Formula E World Championship at Jeddah Corniche Circuit on February 15, 2025 in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Mark Sutton/LAT Images) Image Credit: Formula E Media Bank

Writer’s Predictions

Before the weekend began, I (Kieran) attempted to predict the weekend’s results and….they didn’t exactly go to plan. My pole position predictions were Wehrlein and Evans which…wasn’t ideal. I was close for Wehrlein but I wasn’t so for Evans. 

My winner predictions, however, turned out to be a jinx. I predicted an Andretti driver to win round 3 and they both retired from that race. For round 4, I went with Antonio Felix Da Costa and he retired too.

For the podium in round 3, I went with a Cupra Kiro and a Nissan powered car. There were 2 nissan powered cars on the podium but not a singular one. As for Cupra Kiro….I’m sorry Cupra Kiro fans. Round 4 then went worse as there was only stellantis and nissan powered cars on the podium all weekend. 

What did you think of the 2 rounds? Formula E’s World Championship resumes in April with the Miami E-Prix. Let us know on our social media or on the writer’s social media which is linked below! 

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Blue Sky: Kieran/Mega (@megavsprimus.bsky.social) — Bluesky 

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“On The Grid” Review: A Collective Of Stories Which Every Motorsport Fan Should Know

Within the book category family, there are many subtopics. Fiction, non fiction,sci-fi and drama, for example. For On The Grid, the category is non-fiction. However, it changes when the stories are specific and certain stories which are not known to the general fans.

On The Grid covers many stories such as Lance Stroll’s bike accident to Esteban Ocon’s dedication from himself and his family in order to hit the pinnacle of motorsport as well as the diversity issues which many categories such as F1 Academy and Mission 44 aim to eliminate with the teams’ and drivers’ enviornmental impact.

The Context To The Story:
There are many plots within Formula One; McLaren vs Ferrari at the end of 2024, Max Verstappen and Red Bull’s domination in 2023 and the huge championship battle at the end of 2021. The subplots, however, have gone under the radar in the eyes of the motorsport family which is a shame. Thankfully, Smith dives into these storylines such as Lance Stroll’s bike accident ahead of the 2023 season and Esteban Ocon’s fascinating story in order to make it to the top step of the podium. Both of these stories, a subset of the collectives available in the book, show the determination of 2 drivers whos reputations have been thrown into question within the last few seasons.

Lance Stroll couldn’t get better than P17. Image courtesy of Pirelli F1 Press Room

Memories Of Those Who Have Passed
Its fair to say that Formula 1 is an incredible sport, form of entertainment or just an escape from those realities of life. Unfortunately, however, with that thrill and entertainment contains a loss. Smith addresses the hard and sad passing of Antoine Hubert and Jules Bianchi, the two most recent Formula One drivers who have lost their lives doing the sport they love. Explaining this situation to young viewers or veterens of the sport is never an easy task. Smith tackles this by talking to two drivers which have been heavily impact by these two talented drivers’ passing; Pierre Gasly and Charles Leclerc respectfully. The impact this has had on the overall book is, ironically, positive in the way it can encourage these drivers to not only talk about the memories but of how these drivers can be remembered, especially to Charles who ultimately owes his Formula One career to his godfather.

The Inequality Battle:
One section which was fantastic to see was the feature of F1 Academy and Lewis Hamilton’s fight against racism. First on the F1 Academy conversation and the talks Smith had with Suzie Wolff, CEO of F1 Academy, and Jamie Chadwick, 3 time W Series Champion, really brought to light the impact F1 Academy is having on the female representation in motorsport, not only for racing but also the further career opportunities such as STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths). I never actually realised this but I am so glad that I did.

L-R: Jamie Chadwick, Sarah Moore, Abbie Eaton, Abbi Pulling, Alice Powell, Jessica Hawkins (Courtesy of W Series Racing)

Final Conclusions:
This book has been a real treat to gain more and a deeper knowledge of Formula One and gain a deeper understanding and meaning of not only the pinnacle of motorsport but also the people behind the scenes and understanding the true story of Formula One. While I have not covered everything detailed in this book, it is definately worthy of a read!

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Formula E Season 11 Round 3 and 4 Jeddah E-Prix: Preview and Predictions

Formula E has returned from another hiatus for the first double header of the season! However, this double header will be very different as one of the races will have a new mechanism: pit boost!

Schedule:
Rookie Free Practice:

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Round 3:
Free Practice 1: Thursday 13th February 6pm-6:40pm UK Time

Free Practice 2: Friday 14th February 10am-10:40am UK Time
Qualifying:Friday 14th February 12:20pm-1:40pm UK Time
Countdown to Formula E Season 11 Round 3 Race:

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DAYS
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HOURS
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MINUTES
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SECONDS

Round 4:
Free Practice 3: Saturday 15th February 2024 10am-10:40am UK Time
Qualifying: Saturday 15th February 2024 12:20pm-1:40pm UK Time
Countdown to Formula E Round 4 Race:

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What is Pit Boost?

Pit Boost is the reintroduction of pit stops since Gen1 era of Formula E. This pit stop allows a 10% increase of energy (3.85kWh) through a 20 second 600kW ultra-fast boost through the pitlane. As you can expect, teams will have to be on their peak performances in order to look at both the pit boost and attack mode for a strategic benefit and optimise the result.

This is a major achievement for Formula E as the electric pinnacle and FIA describe it as “race-to-road” ttechnology platform and addressing certain problems such as charging speed and efficiency.

This is a compulsary method for only ONE of the two races with an extremely strict set of protocols which include only one car per team is allowed in the pitlane at a time so there is no “double stacking” in the pitlane. There can also only be 3 pit crew members allowed at the car at a time: two for working on the car and one for stopping and releasing the car.

MADRID, SPAIN – NOVEMBER 07: Sebastien Buemi of Switzerland driving the (16) Envision Racing Jaguar I-TYPE 7 stops in the pit lane to be Fast Charged during day three of Formula E Pre-Season Testing at Circuito del Jarama on November 07, 2024 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by Alastair Staley/LAT Images) Image Credit: Formula E

Formula E Rookie Free Practice: Lineup and Session Explained

As well as introducing a new strategic element into this weekend, on Thursday, 13th February 2024 there will be a rookie session for every team. Each team has to submit 1 driver who has participated in less than 2 E-Prixs. This session will be Below is the list of rookies confirmed:

TeamRookie Participating in RFP
Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E TeamThomas Preining
Andretti Formula EJak Crawford
Jaguar TCS RacingJamie Chadwick
Envision RacingZak O’Sullivan
Nissan Formula E TeamGabriele Mini
Neom McLaren Formula E TeamAlex Dunne
Mahindra RacingKush Maini
Cupra KiroMikkel Jensen
DS PenskeDaniil Kvyat
Maserati MSG RacingTheo Pourchaire
Lola Yamaha Abt Formula E TeamTatiana Calderon

Preview of Jeddah E-Prix

This years E-Prix at Saudi Arabia has been switched from the typical Diryah E-Prix to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, which currently hosts a classic Formula 1 and Formula 2 weekend and formerly a F1 Academy weekend.

Image Credit: Formula E’s Website

As the image above shows, this circuit has similarities to the classic track such as the turns 1 and 2 as well as the fast nature from turns 6 to 13, minus the chicane from turn 8 to 11 which is presumably due to energy saving, which is why the additional sections of turn 14 to turn 19 also appears on the long start/finish from turn 13.

Predictions for Round 3 and Round 4

Pole Position for Round 3: Pascal Wehrlein.
The reigning world champion surprised me in Mexico City with putting in a strong pole position and fighting for the win and could have fought for the win against Da Costa until Rowland has extra attack mode. With this being a new circuit and only Maloney, De Vries and Barnard having experience around this track (not the layout).

Pole Position for Round 4: Mitch Evans.
When qualifying takes place for round 4, every driver (minus any injuries and reserve drivers have to take their spot) will have a full practice session, qualifying and race under their belts so with that, I have a feeling Evans will be able to get the second pole position of the weekend.

Winner of Round 3: An Andretti Driver
Is this an easy way to get out of deciding on a driver? Yes. However, I think as this is the first level playing field for everyone that both Mueller and Dennis will be able to optimise and make a strong impact on the first race around Jeddah with either one collecting their first victory of Gen3 Evo and this would be Mueller’s first win in Formula E overall.

Winner of Round 4: Antonio Felix Da Costa:
The current championship leader has not scored a win all season but due to the only 2 winners scoring both a win and a DNF, I think Da Costa will find his pace around Jeddah and manage to pick up his first win of the season, an arguably important one given that Andretti are the customer team to Porsche power trains.

2nd and 3rd in Round 3: A Cupra Kiro and a Nissan powered car.
Probably my most amitious prediction yet but with the pit boost debuting, I think that will bring up so much chaos and that a cupra kiro being on the podium is not out of the ordinary.

2nd and 3rd in Round 4: Porsche Power Train Drivers:
Another “loophole” but I think the 2nd race of the weekend will allow the Porsche power trains to allow any drivers from Porsche, Andretti or Cupra Kiro to be on the podium.

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Opinion: Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc’s partnership at Scudaria Ferrari is the most emotional one in Formula 1’s History

IMPORTANT: This article contains important regarding the passing of several people. Continue at your own convenience.

1st February 2024-Rumours emerged of the 7 time world champion leaving the UK based Mercedes team to join the most famous team in the world: Scudaria Ferrari. Rumours like this have circulated for years. However, this one felt different: accredited journalists and news outlets started reporting it. This was happening. 


I remember hearing about it and being shell shocked, surprised at the move. Talking to people online, everyone was denying it. When it was announced that evening, everyone was so surprised. The most successful driver in F1 history across multiple eras of the sport, the most recognisable driver was leaving the Silver Arrows to join the prancing horse. 

While I have been watching the media covorage of Hamilton’s first few days at Maranello, I became overthrown with emotion and which I could not understand why. As I thought about it more and more, I realised how emotional this partnership and lineup genuinely is.

Carlos Sainz’s Seat Removal


Of course, this meant that 3 into 2 didn’t go so sadly Carlos Sainz had to depart the legendary team to join Williams Racing. I don’t think Williams Racing, with all due respect, was the highest team on Sainz’ radar given the obviously vacant seat left by Hamilton at Mercedes or even the Red Bull seat of Sergio Perez which had a contract expiration at the end of 2024. Sadly, those pieces fell short for Sainz but there is one major positive to leave behind for Sainz: he did nothing wrong. Sometimes in life, things don’t work out for one reason or another. I don’t think Sainz has any bad blood at all with Hamilton, Leclerc, Vasseur or Ferrari. In fact, apart from Hamilton, Verstappen and Alonso, Sainz never would have left that seat. He left his mark at the team and I would never rule out a move back to Ferrari.

Back to Hamilton now and up until now, I didn’t think it was real. It felt like a F1 24 Career mode move with Hamilton to Ferrari, Leclerc to Aston Martin and Dino Beganovic to Mercedes.  Seeing the images of Hamilton in Italy, dressing head to toe in very fancy clothes (which I am jealous of) and impressively speaking Italian so naturally it shows that he wants to make this move work. By work, I of course mean Hamilton getting that 8th Drivers Championship title with Ferrari which I think it will happen. 

A Formula 1 Butterfly Effect?

Personally, I am strong believer of “Everything happens for a reason” and when I cast my mind back to 2021 and to Abu Dhabi, I remember Lewis Hamilton and Anthony Hamilton (Lewis’ father) going up to Max Verstappen and Jos Verstappen (Max’s father) to shake their hands. That showed me what kind of person Hamilton is like. Despite all of his effort, and fighting so much, he lost by so little. The reason that event links up to “Everything happens for a reason” is if Hamilton won that title in 2021, he may have retired and never get to live out racing in red and for Ferrari. Of course, these are all what ifs and sure, Hamilton would more than likely before an 8th title over racing for Ferrari; but it feels like something good will come of this. 

Lewis Hamilton meeting staff at Scudaria Ferrari in Maranello. Image Credit: Scudaria Ferrari’s Media Centre

Charles Leclerc’s Emotional Barriers to and in F1

I want to reflect on Charles Leclerc, Hamilton’s teammate for 2025 and beyond. Since I started watching Formula 1, stories of how drivers either came from nothing and built their way up or drivers who suffered grief and heartbreak and always attached and stayed with me. Charles’ story of losing his god father Jules Bianchi after a horrific crash in 2014 is one which still looms over not only Formula 1 but Leclerc as Bianchi told Ferrari to give his godson a chance. That is not the only tragedy Charles’ has faced in his life, however. Charles’ father, Herve Leclerc, passed away from an illness. Before his father passed, Leclerc told his father that he signed the contract to race in F1 which, at the time, was not true. Sadly, Charles told his father this as he knew he would not survive to see it come to reality. However, this was not the final grief Charles or the entire Formula 1 family would have suffered as sadly, in 2019, Antoine Hubert lost his life in a crash in Spa during a Formula 2 Sprint Race. Hubert passed away on the same day of the accident and Leclerc went on to take his debut win the following day.

An emotional era for the Scudaria

I am sure you are wondering “Kieran, what does 2021 and Charles’ personal griefs have to do with Hamilton going to Ferrari?” Well, I am glad you asked! To circle back to the main point of this article, Formula 1 has not been easy for Leclerc or Hamilton. Performances, cars, emotional factors or just bad luck in general. While yes, this happens in general in F1, the loss of anyone, especially a relative or parent is something which can tug at your heartstrings so much. While Hamilton has both of his parents’ alive, he has had his fair share of emotional abuse while not directly at grief but in relation to racial comments which started since he was a young boy first getting into kart racing. While I, a white male, cannot begin to understand the emotional toll this could take on anyone, I do understand Charles’ pain of losing a relative. The emotional impact this can have on someone so close to you not knowing you’ve partnered with one of the best drivers ever seen in Formula 1 history truly makes this an emotional but inspirational era at the Maranello based team.

I cannot help but feel that this was written in the stars. A young, thriving driver who has been impacted by life’s punishment for love and a vetern of the sport who has had been to hell and back due to outside forces is one partnership which is willing to prove the critics wrong. 

As Enzo Ferrari once said: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”

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All Image Credit: Scudaria Ferrari’s Media Centre

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Formula E Season 11 Round 2: Rowland Takes Victory in Mexico City After Sensational Safety Car Restart

The Nissan driver of Oliver Rowland managed an unlikely victory at Mexico City for Round 2 in Formula E Season 11. How did it happen? Lets look into it!

The Race:

We went racing in Mexico City with Pascal Wehrlein holding the start from his teammate Antonio Felix Da Costa. Vergne managed to hold P3 ahead of Oliver Rowland. Ticktum had an unfortunate spin after being tagged by the Maserati of Jake Hughes, falling down the grid and his race ultimately coming to an end.

Rowland was able to make his way up to P3 and then set his sights on P2. Bird, Mortara and De Vries had a little fight going into turns 4 and 5 with Bird ultimately getting a 5 second time penalty for this as Mortara had to pit. Mueller meanwhile was taking advantage of his attack mode usage, making moves and managing to catch up to his teammate and join in on the battle with Vergne. The 2 Andretti’s of Mueller and Dennis played the team game with Mueller holding the pack back so Dennis could take his attack mode.

An insane fight broke out between the Porsches, Andrettis and Rowland. After the scrap, Wehrlein led from Rowland, Dennis and Vergne with Dennis then attempting to make a move on Werhlein after passing Rowland. Da Costa then set his sight on the lead of the race with him managing to get the place before a yellow flag was brought out. 

The yellow flags were for the Cupra Kiro of David Beckmann who got hit by Zane Maloney as both of them attempted to make the corner leading into the stadium. Due to this, a safety car was brought out with many drivers having active attack mode, including Rowland. 

MEXICO CITY, MEXICO – JANUARY 11: Oliver Rowland of Great Britain driving the Nissan Formula E Team Nissan e-4ORCE 05 leads Nico Muller of Switzerland driving the Andretti Formula E Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 during the Mexico City E-Prix, Round 2 of the 2025 FIA Formula E World Championship at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez on January 11, 2025 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Simon Galloway/LAT Images for Formula E)

We went green after the safety car on lap 31 with Rowland having active attack boost and putting his foot down to overtake Dennis into turn 1, Wehrlein into turn 5 and Da Costa at turn 12! However, another safety car was brought out for Mitch Evans who ended up colliding with the Andretti of Nico Mueller.

Once the safety car came in again, there were no added laps and Rowland managed to hold off the 2 Porsche cars to win the Mexico City E-Prix! Da Costa took home the silver trophy and the lead in the drivers championship while Wehrlein took home the bronze. Jake Dennis took home P4 and the fastest lap, DS Penske finished P5 and P6 with Vergne leading Guenther, Vandoorne finished P7, De Vries P8, Mueller P9 and Jake Hughes P10. Taylor Barnard crossed the line in P10 but was given a 5 second time penalty due to leaving the track and gaining an advantage. 

Prediction Review:

Pole Position: Oliver Rowland

This prediction was close-ish as Rowland got through to the semi finals but ultimately got beaten by the 2 Porsche cars and Vergne. 

Winner: Antonio Felix Da Costa

This prediction was….quite close  until Rowland decided to make monumental moves after the first safety car restart.

Biggest Shock: McLaren

The papaya based team certainly did not have a good time this race compared to Sao Paulo.

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Formula E Season 11 Round 2: Mexico City E-Prix Preview and Predictions

A new year, a new round of Formula E in Mexico City! The previous 2 rounds held at the Autodromo Hermandas has crowned the next Formula E champion of that season. Will that happen again? Who knows but what we do know from Sao Paulo is that every single round in Season 11 will be a must watch!

Schedule:

FP1: 5:00pm-5:40pm Mexico City Time

FP2: 7:30am-8:10am Mexico City Time

Qualifying: 9:30am-11:10am Mexico City Time

Countdown to Formula E Season 11 Round 2 Race

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DAYS
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HOURS
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MINUTES
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SECONDS

Circuit Information: 

Formula E Season 11 Mexico City Track Map. Image Source: Formula E Media

This 2.628km circuit has an altered layout in comparison to Formula 1. The run down to turn 1 sees a sharp turn towards turn 2 and turn 3 which is a sharp left. Leading to a narrow section of turn 4,5,6,7 and 8 before leading to a chicane of turn 9, 10 and 11. Turn 12 then shows the stadium section which allows drivers into turn 13,14,15,16,17, and 18. Attack Zone is at turn 15 which will be very important this year due to the all wheel drive which will allow drivers a MASSIVE advantage out of the stadium, into turn 19 and out to the start/finish straight.

Predictions:

Pole position:

Oliver Rowland

The Nissan British driver got very unlucky in Sao Paulo with a software issue causing a drive through penalty for an over use of power. Last race in Sao Paulo, Rowland was beat by Wehrlein by just over 1 tenth! So it seems to be clear that the Nissan and Porsche power trains are strong at the hand of Wehrlein and Rowland.

Race Winner:

Antonio Felix Da Costa

As I mentioned already, the Porsche powertrain seems to be very strong in the hands of Wehrlein. However, that doesn’t mean Da Costa and Nato should be ruled out. With Wehrlein having suffered a big crash in Sao Paulo which resulted the number 1 car being turned upside down, I don’t expect him to be at his peak of this year primarily due to that.

Antonio Felix da Costa, TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team, Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 Credit: Simon Galloway and Formula E Media Bank

Podium finishers:

1 Jaguar and 1 Kiro

I know what you might be thinking: Kieran, are you okay? Well, yes….I think. Anywho, I am expecting a Jaguar driver and a Cupra Kiro driver to complete the podium at the Mexican capital. I am not saying which driver as it could be any 4!

Other predictions:

Shock: Neom McLaren. With them finishing a massive 3rd and 4th finish in Sao Paulo, I am not expecting the British team to follow this up with a similar performance primarily due to the track and the amount of time between Round 1 and Round 2.

What predictions do you have for round 2 of Formula E Season 11? Let us know on our social channels or on my social channels linked below!

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Formula E Season 11 Round 1-Mitch Evans On Top After a Drive From The Back To The Front

Formula E returned this past weekend and we were treated TO A RACE AND A HALF! SO MANY THINGS HAPPENED! Lets dive into what happened:

The race started where last season ended: Reigning world champion Pascal Wehrlein on pole ahead of Oliver Rowland which is how they ended in London last year, only reversed. Before the race got underway, the Envision Racing of Robin Frijns had an issue which caused the start to be delayed. Frijns was taken off the grid and the lights eventually went out! They took off from the grid with all wheel drive towards turn 1 which was neatly done. Rowland managed to get the jump on Wehrlein at the start with the DS Penske of Vergne attempting to pass Dennis. Mueller and Hughes both collided then which brought their debut race with their new teams to an end and the safety car being deployed. While this was all happening, the jaguar of Mitch Evans made his way from P22 to P12!

After the safety car came in, Di Grassi stopped on track due to an issue but then he managed to get going again. Cassidy took the lead due to attack mode which has had a MASSIVE advantage over his competitors. Moves happened up and down the field with Bird, Barnard and Nato ALL receiving drive through penalties due to overuse of power. That did not give good hope to Rowland, the remaining Nissan powered car who did not overuse on power. Once many attack modes were taken, it was Porsche vs Porsche for the lead with Da Costa winning over Wehrlein. However, Dennis then suffered a red car which caused the race to be red flagged. Mueller and Hughes were no longer under investigation for racing incident collision and the lapped cars were able to go around again due to their excess of energy.

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL – DECEMBER 07: Nick Cassidy of New Zealand driving the Jaguar TCS Racing Jaguar I-TYPE 7 at Sao Paulo Street Circuit on December 07, 2024 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Simon Galloway/LAT Images for Formula E)

Cars went back onto the grid to lineup for a standing start! Rowland managed to take the lead with Guenther shooting up the grid to take P2. Maloney received a drive through penalty as Rowland was then placed under investigation for overuse of power, similar to his Nissan counterparts. Cassidy managed to make moves with attack mode with his teammate Evans managing to get up to P6. We then had 4 added laps due to the safety cars with Rowland receiving a drive through penalty!

Towards the latter stage of the race, Evans lead from Cassidy, a Jaguar 1-2 with Da Costa P3! Disaster struck for multiple drivers, however as Guenther went into the wall, he collided with Cassidy, who couldn’t steer the car and he and Wehrlein collided which caused the Porsche driver to go UPSIDE DOWN and bring out the red flag. Thankfully, Pascal Wehrlein was alright.

This red flags brought everyone close again with Cassidy,seemingly, having to retire from the race too due to damage. However, he then got into his car which confused a few people.

We went green once again with Evans leading and managing to hold onto the lead to win after starting from P22! It was an extraordinary result from the Kiwi after a disasterous qualifying. Antonio Felix Da Costa finished in P2 with Taylor Barnard scoring his first Formula E podium at his 4th attempt! Sam Bird was P5, Edoardo Mortara was P5, Norman Nato was P6, Nyck De Vries was P6, Sebastian Buemi was P7, Dan Ticktum was P9 and Jean-Eric Vergne was P10! However, after the race, Norman Nato got a penalty which dropped him outside of the points. promoted everyone below him down to P13 up a place with Stoffel Vandoorne getting the final points paying position.

What did you think of the race? Did you think if was a good race and a good debut for Formula E Gen3 EVO? Let us know on our socials!

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