The end of the 2016–17 Formula E season is upon us. In a few days time, the chequered flag will fall at the second round of the Montréal ePrix, and the champion of season three will be crowned.
Alastair Staley/LAT/Formula E
Mathematically speaking, there are still four drivers in contention for the title going into Montréal—Sébastien Buemi, Lucas di Grassi, Felix Rosenqvist, and Sam Bird. But as anyone who has followed this season will know, it would take something truly special to see three of those four drivers come out on top come Sunday.
Bird, who was propelled into the top four by his double victory in New York, would need to score every available point this weekend—both wins, both poles and both fastest laps—with Buemi scoring none at all if he has any hopes of taking the season three title. Nor does Rosenqvist have much more margin for error, sitting just four points ahead of Bird and 53 behind Buemi; in fact, this pair will be more concerned by Nico Prost, who at twenty points behind them will be a major threat for third overall.
Di Grassi has the best chance of sneaking through to the title, having both arguably the second-fastest car on the grid and only a ten-point deficit to overcome. However, that gap will likely feel more like a gulf psychologically, considering the opportunity he missed in Buemi’s absence to take the lead of the championship in New York. There is still time for di Grassi to turn things around, but it would take a level of performance the Brazilian has frankly yet to show this season.
Alastair Staley/LAT/Formula E
In the teams’ championship, the top spot is unsurprisingly safe in the hands of Renault e.Dams. ABT Schaeffler Audi, however, will have their hands full fending off Mahindra for second place in what has been by far the Indian team’s best season yet; with just twelve points separating the two squads, another podium for Rosenqvist or Nick Heidfeld could be enough to lift Mahindra to an outstanding best-of-the-rest come Sunday evening.
DS Virgin could move up to take third, providing Bird or José María López can build on the team’s dominant New York performance and recover the 29 points by which they trail Mahindra. The series’ two Chinese teams, Techeetah and NextEV, look set to finish fifth and sixth respectively—an impressive result considering the former is in its debut season and the latter finished last year in last place.
Behind them, the US outfits Andretti and Dragon Racing are locked on thirty points apiece and will both be desperate to break that tie. António Félix da Costa will be especially hungry for points, having yet to score since the season opener in Hong Kong whilst his teammate Robin Frijns sits in twelfth with double the Portuguese driver’s points total.
Steven Tee/LAT/Formula E
But as well as each other, Andretti and Dragon will need to keep their eyes on Venturi and Jaguar, who lurk just two and nine points behind respectively. For Jaguar, the opportunity to finish their first season in Formula E as high as seventh will be a major inspiration for the team, and in particular for Mitch Evans, who has acclimatised to the series quickly in his rookie season and scored the lion’s share of his team’s points.
Jaguar will no doubt need Evans, and Adam Carroll too, to have a strong weekend in Canada if they are to finish above Venturi at the very least. Like Jaguar, the Monegasque team enjoys its own pairing of points-capable rookies in Maro Engel and Tom Dillmann, and Engel especially will be someone of whom the lower midfield teams will be very wary: pumped up from his maiden DTM win in Moscow last weekend, the German should have all the necessary momentum to hunt down those few points his team needs to beat Andretti and Dragon.
Sam Bloxham/LAT/Formula E
Although the sharp end of the two championships looks to be a foregone conclusion in Buemi’s and Renault’s favour, 2017’s inaugural Montréal ePrix still has plenty of room to spring a few surprises. Stay tuned to ThePitCrewOnline for all the action and updates across the weekend.
The last round of the Formula 2 season before the summer break takes place at the Hungaroring circuit just outside of Budapest, a track which traces its history back to 1986. We are now past the halfway point in the championship, with Charles Leclerc storming ahead at the top of the driver standings after another strong showing in the two back to back race weekends at Spielberg and Silverstone. But it’s all change in the standings below him, with Russian Time’s Artem Markelov moving into second place, and DAM’s Oliver Rowland falling to third, just three points separating the two drivers. Their respective teammates; Luca Ghiotto and Nicholas Latifi, could very easily come into contention as the season progresses, as they trail not far behind. But if Leclerc continues his prodigious form, then his fellow competitors will have to dig deep to threaten him.
Prema showed impressive form in Budapest last year, with eventual champion Pierre Gasly taking pole and the win in the feature race, and Antonio Giovinazzi coming in second to give the Italian team a double podium. If Charles Leclerc can score his seventh successive pole on Friday, then he will set a new record for the most consecutive pole positions in GP2/F2, inheriting that title from Stoffel Vandoorne. And a good weekend in Hungary would set the young Monegasque driver up well, not only for the month off, but also for the day of testing he will do for Ferrari next week, also at the Hungaroring. While his Prema teammate, fellow Ferrari junior driver, Antonio Fuoco, looked like he had made positive steps forward in Austria, scoring his first podium of the season, another pointless weekend in Silverstone showed he is still a long way off his teammate. Prema have retaken first place in the team standings, but only by three points.
Credit: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2
DAMS occupy second in the team standings, with Russian Time just a single point behind them in third. With two of the strongest driver pairings on the grid, it will be a tough fight until the end of the season to see who comes out on top, particularly with their sets of drivers so close together. If Nicholas Latifi had started his season as well as he is performing now, then he may have been up there with his teammate Rowland, but there is still plenty of time for him to close the gap. Meanwhile Russian Time’s Ghiotto is still in search of that race win, but has been stringing together a series of consistent results, perhaps leading many to overlook and underestimate the Italian driver. All four drivers from these teams have certainly proved that they are capable of performing, but it is qualifying that is the area where they are still looking for that perfect result.
After fielding three different drivers in one seat so far this season, Trident announced that Haas development and current GP3 driver Santino Ferucci will race in the number 17 car in Hungary alongside Nabil Jeffri. While the last two drivers to fill that spot; Raffaele Marciello and Callum Ilott were only drafted in for a single round, there is no indication as to whether Ferucci is a permanent addition to the team. The young American driver will be forced to miss this weekend’s GP3 round, but the call up does offer a better opportunity to impress those who have eyes on him in the Formula 1 paddock.
French team ART have the potential to pull off a good weekend in Hungary. GP3 graduate Alexander Albon secured victory at the track last year, and despite his overall weaker season in 2016, Nobuharu Matsushita qualified well at the Hungaroring, and managed to score points in one of his best finishes of the season. Albon will be looking to make up lost ground, his points tally still suffering from missing the round in Baku and a disappointing weekend in Silverstone.
Credit: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2
Since moving to Rapax ahead of the Austrian round, junior formula veteran Sergio Canamasas has amassed enough points to move the Italian team into fifth place in the team standings. The Spanish driver scored his best results of the season at the British round of the Formula 2 season, a fifth and a fourth place (helped along a little by Oliver Rowland’s time penalty), and will hope to carry that momentum with him to Hungary. His teammate, Nyck de Vries, however, needs to bounce back from the previous round; one he walked away from almost empty handed. Despite his failure to start the feature race at Silverstone, due to a power problem, his impressive drive on Sunday from the back of the grid to score a pair of points proves that he might already have recovered from a spell of misfortune.
Since their race win back in Baku, Pertamina Arden have improved considerably compared their early season performances. Norman Nato’s podium in Silverstone, and Sean Gelael’s drive from eighteenth to ninth, indicate that this is one team on an upward curve. Nato performed well at the Hungaroring last year, scoring points in both races, and a podium in the sprint race – the kind of results he will want to replicate this weekend.
Down the bottom of the standings, MP Motorsport, Campos Racing and Racing Engineering have floundered in recent rounds, struggling to score more than a few points for the most part. Admittedly, MP Motorsport’s Jordan King has only failed to score points in races from which he has retired or been disqualified, but the handful he has secured is not enough to give his season any momentum. His combined struggles with the team have made for a disappointing season for the Brit, who lined up in Bahrain hoping that 2017 would be his year.
Credit: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2.
The underperforming is perhaps most disappointing for Racing Engineering, who came second in the team standings in 2016. Despite flashes of form in the early rounds, they have faded to the back of the field. The Spanish team achieved a double podium in the sprint race in Hungary last year and though that kind of result seems highly unlikely, the team could do with replicating some semblance of the form they had last year.
For those in the title battle, the Formula 2 season has very much turned into a game of catch up between Charles Leclerc and the rest of the front runners. But with two races each round, and points for pole positions and fastest laps, the season is deceptively long, and if Leclerc’s form was to slip, especially going into the summer break this weekend, then there is no shortage of drivers snapping at his heels.
July is now upon us, and with it the penultimate and most hotly-anticipated stop on the 2017–18 Formula E calendar—New York City.
It’s a shame, really, that given New York’s billing as this season’s headline event (sorry, Montréal), the championship leader Sébastien Buemi will not be present at either race this weekend. His Toyota WEC priorities have hardly come as a surprise, and in his place Formula E will get to welcome another exciting young talent in the form of Red Bull junior Pierre Gasly, but for one of the sport’s box office stars to miss an event like New York is still regrettable.
But on a more positive note, the impact of Formula E’s clash with the WEC’s 6 Hours of the Nürburgring has proven to be much less than first expected. Of the half-dozen drivers previously at risk of skipping the New York round, only Buemi and his Toyota LMP1 teammate José María López will in fact leave vacant seats—meaning Gasly and DS Virgin reserve Alex Lynn will be the only new faces on the grid this weekend. Sam Bird, Nelson Piquet, Nico Prost and Jean-Éric Vergne have all opted to forego the fourth round of the WEC and contest New York instead.
Alastair Staley/LAT/Formula E
The other upside to Buemi’s absence is that it naturally opens the way for a fresh change to the podium predictions. Lucas di Grassi will obviously be among the favourites to capitalise on his title rival’s double booking, and a pair of strong top three results would even see him assume the lead of the championship before the final round in Canada.
But if the previous round in Berlin is anything to go by, di Grassi will more than have his hands full keeping back the rapid Mahindra pair of Felix Rosenqvist and Nick Heidfeld, the former of whom scored his and the team’s first victory last time out and will surely be eager for more of the same. Vergne also ought to pose a major threat at the front in New York with his Renault-powered Techeetah, as will his former DS Virgin teammate Bird, and nor can Prost be discounted; although the Renault driver has yet to finish on the podium this season, Prost is the only man to have scored in every round so far and is a proven ePrix winner.
Zak Mauger/LAT/Formula E
The presence of two rookies at Renault and DS Virgin may also present an opportunity for some of the midfield teams to take a larger bite at the top ten than usual this weekend.
Such an opening will be especially attractive to Dragon Racing, currently languishing at the bottom of the standings and looking for a first points finish since Buenos Aires. But with only a handful of points splitting Dragon from Jaguar, Venturi and Andretti ahead of them, it will be a close fight between their respective drivers to see who comes out on top.
Jaguar and Venturi would seem to have the current edge in that regard, with Mitch Evans and Maro Engel contributing heavily to their teams’ rising points totals of late. But Andretti’s pairing of da Costa and Frijns is capable of brilliance on the right day, such as their fifth- and sixth-placed finishes in Hong Kong, and Dragon’s two-time ePrix winner Jérôme d’Ambrosio is no slouch either.
From the newest track on the calendar, Formula 2 travels to the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg – one of the more classic motorsport circuits. The Austrian track is used by a multitude of categories, so even those drivers who are new to the championship will likely have raced there earlier in their career. The 4.3km circuit has delivered some classic races in the past, though last year in GP2 it was characterised by the bizarre set of results owing to the two wet races.
2016 saw Mitch Evans—now racing for Jaguar in Formula E—and Jordan King take the two victories of the weekend, but the running was by no means predictable. The feature race was run in the kind of changeable conditions that are often seen at the Red Bull Ring, and saw many of the championship frontrunners crashing out, including 2017 contender Artem Markelov. And with a sprint race featuring torrential downpours, they were an unpredictable set of races. There is every chance that either Saturday or Sunday will be struck by adverse weather conditions, but as the first race weekend in a double header, getting good results will be crucial in gaining momentum to carry drivers over into Silverstone.
Andy Hone/GP2 Series Media Service
Charles Leclerc still leads the driver’s standings by a comfortable margin of 42 points, and it would take a lot of bad luck for the Prema driver—and a perfect weekend from second place Oliver Rowland—to threaten his first place position this weekend at least. The more interesting battle is between second and third place, between DAMS’ Rowland and the much improved Artem Markelov of Russian Time.
But Markelov’s teammate Luca Ghiotto is in hot pursuit, only twenty points behind, and vocal about his intentions to challenge for the title in 2017. While he may be some way off the leader, it is a long season that is yet to reach its halfway mark. If Ghiotto can keep up his consistent points scoring performances (Ghiotto has scored in all but one of his races this season) then he is well placed to bide his time and hope to capitalise on the mistakes of his rivals.
Russian Time still lead the teams’ standings, as they have done for much of the 2017 season so far. But after a string of promising performances from Canadian Nicholas Latifi, DAMS now trail them by only three points. Ghiotto had an unfortunate outing in Baku, his weekend very much hampered by his shunt in qualifying, but the team still managed to score eighteen points thanks to Markelov. The Russian seems to have lost his all-or-nothing attitude of previous seasons, and will be hoping to do better than the no-points weekend he suffered in Austria last year.
DAMS on the other hand will be aiming for more consistency within their driver pairing to ease the threat from their rivals Russian Time. While both teams have a strong set of drivers, all of whom seem to be having their best seasons to date in 2017, Rowland and Latifi of DAMS seem to be taking it in turns to have winning weekends. While Rowland left Baku with a disappointing haul of points, Latifi probably left feeling rather satisfied after his double podium weekend.What DAMS really need from Austria and Silverstone is for both of their drivers to deliver in one weekend to consolidate their position on the top of the team standings.
Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2
Baku finally saw Campos Racing lift themselves from the bottom of the team standings, after circumstances played into Ralph Boschung’s hands and he succeeded in scoring five points over the two races; that relegates Trident to tenth. While none of the veteran Campos or Trident drivers performed well in Austria last year, Boschung, who was driving in GP3 in 2016, won the sprint race at the Red Bull Ring, also managing to secure the fastest lap of that race as well.
It was Racing Engineering who came away from Baku without scoring a single point, a continuation of what has been a very mixed season for the Spanish team. Rookie Louis Deletraz has seemingly struggled to settle into the series, something which has been a problem for many drivers in the past. Even Malja, who has scored a podium this year along with three other points finishes, seems to have trouble getting a handle on his machinery. It is difficult to say whether it is a problem stemming mostly from the car as neither driver has the consistency to suggest otherwise. Deletraz has performed well at Spielberg in the past, earning a second place there in 2016 while he was competing in Formula Renault V8 3.5 and winning at the track in 2015. But it would take his best weekend in 2017 so far to replicate that kind of form.
MP Motorsport driver Jordan King scored his first GP2 win at the Red Bull Ring last year, which he managed to follow up with a win in the Silverstone sprint race as well. With those two rounds coming back to back in 2017, a repeat of those feats would help him rise above his current ninth place in the drivers’ standings. It would also go some way to alleviate the disappointment of his disqualification from the sprint race in Baku, which brought his tally of consecutive points scoring finishes to an end.
Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2
Both Rapax and Arden made positive steps forward in Baku. Rapax, through their ever-improving rookie Nyck de Vries, finally managed to convert their impressive one lap pace into a feature race podium. If Rapax can continue to deliver the qualifying performances of recent rounds, then Austria presents an opportunity to prove they can reproduce the feature race result from Azerbaijan.
It was Arden who made the real breakthrough however, scoring that all important race win for Norman Nato in the sprint race. The victory was an important step for both the team and the Frenchman, who has been chasing results reflective of his ability since Bahrain. Like 2016 GP2 champion, Pierre Gasly, who only started really performing after his victory in Silverstone, the win could prove to be boost he needs to start challenging the likes of Leclerc, Rowland and Markelov.
Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2
Charles Leclerc’s near perfect weekend in Azerbaijan won Prema a massive 43 points, helping their battle in the team standings, where they sit in third place. But it will not have escaped their notice that once again, none of their points were scored by Antonio Fuoco. Though the Italian did perform well in qualifying, his chances of a decent result were dashed when he crashed out in the feature race, making it a struggle to recover on Sunday. Approaching the halfway point in the season, pressure will be mounting on Fuoco to perform.
While some consideration should be put towards the fact that he is only in his first season of Formula 2, the remarkable performance of his teammate—also in his rookie season—puts the two drivers in stark contrast.
While Leclerc can afford to relax considering the size of his lead, if he can continue his streak of pole positions in Austria then he will overtake Stoffel Vandoorne’s record of consecutive pole positions in one season. But it is the results that all too often come with those stellar qualifying performances that Leclerc will wish to carry with him. If he can maintain his momentum, then it won’t be long until he becomes uncatchable.
The Red Bull Ring is a track that Leclerc himself cites as one of his favourites, and if he hasn’t lost any form since Baku then most would agree that he is favourite to win at least one of the races this weekend. But riding on the back of his first win, Nato will also be dangerous, and those who have been strong all season—Rowland, Markelov and Ghiotto—will almost definitely be quick.
After a month’s break, Formula 2 travelled from one street circuit to another with the first ever Azerbaijan Grand Prix, and the second year at this circuit. Expectations were high for an action-packed couple of races, and Formula 2 proved itself to be as unpredictable as ever.
Qualifying on Friday saw Charles Leclerc continue his clean sweep of pole positions with his fourth of the season, topping the session half a second quicker than the rest of the field. Not only was it a formidable showing of pace, but also an incredible display of mental strength after the passing of his father earlier in the week.
Following the Monegasque were Nobuharu Matsushita, Nicholas Latifi and Nyck de Vries, who all posted impressive lap times to complete the first two rows of the grid. Leclerc’s Prema teammate, Antonio Fuoco also looked like he might be experiencing an upturn in form, qualifying in sixth position, an improvement he desperately needed after only scoring points in one race so far this season.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 4. Baku City Circuit, Baku, Azerbaijan. Friday 23 June 2017. Charles Leclerc (MCO, PREMA Racing) Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _54I0652
The feature race on Saturday morning didn’t fail to deliver the thrills everyone expected. Leclerc managed to maintain his lead off the line, but Matsushita alongside him could not get away cleanly and fell down the field, Latifi and De Vries being promoted into the podium positions by the first corner.
Fuoco also managed to work his way up to fourth place and looked set to score some well-earned—and desperately needed—points. There was one staller on the grid: Rapax’s Johnny Cecotto, who was into the pits immediately. But almost as soon as he exited, his cold tyres and brakes sent him into the barriers at turn two, and the safety car was deployed on only the third lap of the race.
The field followed the safety car for only a single lap, and Leclerc managed to keep his lead after a cagey restart. De Vries made up for the misfortunes of his teammate by sweeping around Latifi to take second place. As Leclerc continued to set new fastest laps, drawing out his advantage, the two Russian drivers in the field, Artem Markelov and ART’s Sergey Sirotkin, were on the charge, pulling off some aggressive overtakes.
Lap seven saw Antonio Fuoco’s race brought to a swift end after getting caught out by Canamasas, clobbering into the back of him and sending him off the track with terminal damage. It was unfortunate for the young Italian, who seemed to be having a much-improved weekend, but it was a clear driver error. A self-inflicted injury to continue his underwhelming season.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 4. Baku City Circuit, Baku, Azerbaijan. Saturday 24 June 2017. Antonio Fuoco (ITA, PREMA Racing) in the pitlane after retiring. Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _56I7658
The first round of pit stops began on lap eight, with most of the leaders pitting together, with the exception of Markelov and Sirotkin. Leclerc managed to maintain the net lead of the race, but narrowly avoided both a collision in the pit lane and being overtaken by de Vries. After the two Russians pitted Ghiotto inherited the lead of the race, his medium tyres enabling him to race for much longer.
A second safety car made an appearance on lap thirteen as the marshals tried to recover Louis Deletraz’s car. At the restart on lap fifteen de Vries managed to make his way up to third place, and Markelov lost a position to Matsushita, who was still recovering from his poor start.
When Ghiotto finally stopped on lap nineteen, the battle for the lead turned into one between Leclerc and de Vries—but clear air for the Prema driver meant he could start to pull away from the Dutchman behind him.
By lap twenty-one Oliver Rowland—who had overcome brake issues earlier in the race—had made his way up to fourth place, with only his teammate Nicholas Latifi standing between him and a podium. It was a superb display of damage limitation, and showed that the Brit has tenacity and grit as well as talent behind the wheel.
With five laps left to run the race was disrupted by a spectacular crash at turn eight, right at the narrowest section of the track. Sean Gelael clipped the curb, hit the barrier and ended up parked sideways across the track. His shunt also collected Sirotkin and Gustav Malja, creating a three-car pile-up that blocked the entire track.
Race control initially sent out the safety car, but with it impossible to pass the scene of the incident, a red flag was brought out and the session was aborted with four laps to go, meaning Charles Leclerc earned his third victory of the season in the pit lane.
Nyck de Vries and Nicholas Latifi completed the podium with Rowland getting hit by a post-race penalty, demoting him from fourth to seventh. That meant Markelov took fourth place, followed by Nato in fifth, King in sixth, Boschung taking reverse grid pole in eighth, and Canamasas and Sirotkin finishing the top ten.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 4. Baku City Circuit, Baku, Azerbaijan. Sunday 25 June 2017. Ralph Boschung (SUI, Campos Racing) Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _54I3072
Whilst it did not have the dramatic ending of the feature race, Sunday’s sprint race did not fail to deliver a few surprises. Rowland, who started from second on the grid after his penalty, took the lead of the race almost immediately, determined to make up for the points he had lost the previous day.
The opening laps saw Markelov overtaking cars with an impressive speed, and Arden’s Norman Nato pulled off an aggressive move on Boschung to take second place, but not without losing a sizeable piece of his front wing. Fortunately for the Frenchman the damage did not seem to impede the drivability of his car. His move also allowed Latifi to follow him around Boschung, so that the Canadian now seemed to stand a good chance of scoring a double podium, which would be his first in Formula 2 or GP2.
Meanwhile, Leclerc found himself stuck behind a train of cars in the lower points-scoring positions, struggling to find a way past, while his rival Rowland was keeping a cool head out in front. Once Nato had passed Boschung, the Arden driver didn’t find it difficult to begin to to eat into Rowland’s lead. But in the end, he didn’t need to catch the Brit, who was struck by a suspected gearbox problem on lap eight which sent him down the order and ultimately forced him to retire from the race, destroying his chances of clawing back some of Leclerc’s championship lead.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 4. Baku City Circuit, Baku, Azerbaijan. Sunday 25 June 2017. Norman Nato (FRA, Pertamina Arden) Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _54I3499
Seemingly spurred on by the knowledge that his main rival was out of contention, Leclerc began to dispatch the cars in front of him, narrowly avoiding Artem Markelov, who defended hard, not willing to give up his position without a fight. His job was made a little easier when Nyck de Vries—who had been running in second place and also looked set to score a double podium—ran wide, picking up damage and putting him out of the race.
Nato began to extend his lead out in front as both Leclerc and Sirotkin made progress, the two of them performing a synchronised move on Ralph Boschung on lap ten, but with the Russian ultimately losing a place to the Monegasque driver. The Russian was clearly growing in confidence with each lap, flashes of his form from 2016 returning.
Lap thirteen saw Leclerc dispatch Latifi and begin chasing Nato, who by this point had a sizeable lead over the rest of the podium places. Now racing in clean air, the Prema driver was lapping about a second quicker than anyone else, including the man he was hunting down. He looked certain to emulate the double victory of Antonio Giovinazzi, who had driven for the Italian team in 2016.
But on lap seventeen the news came in that Leclerc had received a ten second time penalty, along with Sergio Canamasas, for failing to slow for yellow flags – a punishment very similar to the one Rowland had received in the feature race. Despite his superior speed, victory was near impossible, and though he was the first driver to take the chequered flag, second place was the best he could manage. DAMS’ Nicholas Latifi finished the sprint race in third, his second of the weekend.
There was a post-race penalty for MP Motorsport’s Jordan King for illegal tyre pressures, a disappointment for the Dutch team who could have used the decent haul of points his fourth place would have got them. That meant Sirotkin was promoted to fourth, followed by Markelov, Matsushita, Ghiotto and Boschung who collected the final points up for grabs.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 4. Baku City Circuit, Baku, Azerbaijan. Sunday 25 June 2017. Norman Nato (FRA, Pertamina Arden) Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _56I8525
Without the retirements of Rowland and de Vries the result of the race would have been very different. But it was a richly deserved win for Norman Nato who has failed to score points since his second place in Bahrain, and is a far more capable driver than his results suggest. It was an even bigger victory for the Arden team, who scored their first win at this level since 2012, and gave them a much needed boost in a season where they have been struggling so far. The recently revamped team were very much the winners of the weekend, even with two no-points finishes for Sean Gelael.
Charles Leclerc overcame his difficult circumstances outside of the car to deliver another outstanding weekend, increasing his championship lead to forty-two points. Russian Time also maintained their lead at the top of the team standings, and Markelov moves to within two points of Rowland in the driver standings. Credit has to go also to Luca Ghiotto who recovered from a difficult qualifying and feature race to finish seventh on Sunday.
It was a mixed weekend for Nyck de Vries, who can take positives from the fact that he succeeded in converting his qualifying pace into feature race results. Though it has taken the Formula 2 rookie a few rounds to find his feet, the McLaren junior driver is improving round by round.
DAMS have continued their recent resurgence, now a strong second in the team standings, with Nicholas Latifi having his best season in single seaters by a fair way. But there is no disguising the missed opportunity for Oliver Rowland, who was in with a real chance of going top of the drivers’ standings going into the weekend. Though much of it was down to factors beyond his control, he now leaves Baku with a substantial margin between him and Leclerc and at risk of losing his second place to Markelov.
Formula 2 has only a two week break before the next round at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, a track which even some of the rookies should be familiar with, on account of the GP3 championship also running there. The rain soaked races of 2016 threw up more than a few surprises, but even in normal weather conditions, it should be an entertaining weekend to see if Rowland, Markelov or any other driver can stop Charles Leclerc from running away with the championship.
After a month off, Formula 2 returns this weekend in Azerbaijan for the fourth round of the championship, which takes place at the Baku City Circuit. Despite only being on the calendar for a year, Baku has already earned itself an unpopular reputation, thanks to the less-than-enthralling F1 race that took place last year.
But its GP2 counterpart was anything but, with two chaotic and action-packed races. Out of the twenty-two cars that started both races last year, only twelve finished the feature race, and only fifteen in the sprint race. The high chance of crashing out, especially in the tight section of the track that runs through the older part of the city, adds an element of total unpredictability to this round.
2016 GP2 Series Round 3 Baku, Azerbaijan. Saturday 18 June 2016. Sean Gelael (INA, Pertamina Campos Racing) Photo: Andy Hone/GP2 Series Media Service. ref: Digital Image _ONZ0910
As the second street circuit of the year, Baku presents a different challenge to Monaco. Though avoiding traffic and the walls will be difficult in parts, overtaking should be easier, thanks in part to the long start-finish straight—the longest of any track, at over two kilometres. Last year it was also the site of Antonio Giovinazzi’s double winning weekend, which well and truly launched his championship campaign. This suggests that if any driver’s performance has been underwhelming so far, there is still time to earn back those lost points.
The biggest change going into the weekend will be the absence of ART’s Alexander Albon, who is out for the weekend with a broken collarbone. He will be replaced by Sergey Sirotkin, Renault’s test driver, who drove for ART last year and finished third in the 2016 GP2 championship. It is definitely a blow for Albon, who was proving to be a consistent driver, having scored points in every race this season thus far, but the team seems confident that he will be able to drive at the Red Bull Ring in a few weeks’ time.
Bringing in a new driver for the weekend shouldn’t place ART at a disadvantage however. Sirotkin managed to score himself a double podium last year at Baku, so the team can feel confident when the Russian arrives, fresh from racing at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
(L to R): Mark Slade (GBR) Renault Sport F1 Team Race Engineer with Sergey Sirotkin (RUS) Renault Sport F1 Team Third Driver. Russian Grand Prix, Friday 28th April 2017. Sochi Autodrom, Sochi, Russia.
By contrast, Matsushita had a nightmare weekend in Baku last year, despite having good pace and leading much of the sprint race. The Japanese driver struggled on the safety car restarts, and his driving was erratic enough to earn him a race ban. He will be looking to learn from the mistakes of last year, but with one win and a podium under his belt, he seems to be having a better season already.
Some drivers will be heading into this weekend with recovery at the forefront of their mind after disappointing results in Monte Carlo. Norman Nato is one such driver. The Frenchman started the year full of promise, and his potential is definitely that of a race winner, but after failing to score any points in Monaco, he needs a strong showing in Baku to get his season back on track. His teammate Sean Gelael, who has trailed Nato so far, had a solid qualifying performance in Monaco, but failed to convert that into race results.
Prema’s drivers will also be looking to bounce back from less than ideal results last time out. Leclerc, who does still lead the championship, will need to show that he can recover mentally from the double retirement in his home race, something which will prove essential if he is to carry his challenge for the duration of the season. Antonio Fuoco’s battle still remains one of proving he can measure up to his teammate, and increasingly, proving that he deserves his race seat and his place in the Ferrari Driver Academy. The track suited Prema last year, who managed to nail setup, earning them a pole position and a second place, as well as Giovinazzi’s two wins.
Rapax, after a slow start to the season, achieved a season’s best in Monte Carlo with a first and second place in the sprint race. Carrying that momentum to Baku may be difficult considering neither of their drivers have driven the street circuit before, but rookie Nyck de Vries seems to have gotten over his early season struggles with adjusting. If this race weekend is similar to last year’s then luck in staying out of trouble will probably be a large factor, so there is no counting the Rapax drivers out.
2017 FIA Formula 2 Round 3. Monte Carlo, Monaco. Saturday 27 May 2017. Johnny Cecotto Jr. (VEN, Rapax) Photo: Zak Mauger/FIA Formula 2. ref: Digital Image _54I7139
Both DAMS and Racing Engineering had a mixed weekend in Monaco, with one of their drivers delivering promising results – with a win for Oliver Rowland (DAMS) and a third place for Gustav Malja (Racing Engineering) – and the other failing to score any points. Both teams have machinery that seems capable of delivering race winning results, and with mostly experienced drivers, they stand a good chance of performing well at Baku. DAMS’ Rowland will be particularly anxious to do so as he now sits only three points shy of championship leader Leclerc, and if he can outperform the Monegasque and avoid any incidents, then his chances of leaving Baku as the new leader of the drivers’ standings are high indeed.
Based on points alone, Russian Time were the top team out in Monaco, and succeeding in taking a fourteen-point lead in the teams’ standings from DAMS. Artem Markelov and Luca Ghiotto also occupy third and fourth in the driver’s standings, and if fortune plays into their favour, Baku presents them with the opportunity to close the gap to Rowland and Leclerc.
There is every chance that we will leave Baku with a new points leader—but more than that, the venue offers the chance for one of the most entertaining, and maybe a little crazy, races of the year. If you are yet to see last year’s GP2 races, I would recommend doing so. They’re carnage, but entertaining nonetheless.
Australian Will Power triumphed in an action packed race at the Texas Motor Speedway. This was his 31st overall victory in the Indycar series and his second in Texas, although he is more known for his road and street course skills. He led 180 of the 248 laps, which may show that it was a breeze for the Penske driver but it was far from it.
Everyone sees Indianapolis as the pinnacle of the Indycar season, but Texas is often overlooked, as it is a 600 mile race from dusk into the night on a smaller 1.44 mile high banked oval, resulting in 248 laps compared to 200 at Indy.
Charlie Kimball looked strong, securing pole after a lengthened delay due to bad weather, unlike Indy the race begins in a two by two formation, alongside him was his team mate Scott Dixon. Tristan Vautier was filling in for Sebastian Bourdais, the third driver since the Frenchman’s horrific crash at Indianapolis. His first Indycar race in two years, he secured fifth place. It was a relatively clean start, the top five kept mixing between themselves but Kimball was in control. Penske drivers Will Power and Josef Newgarden towards the end of the first stint began to make their moves. Lap 29 Vautier managed to past Kimball for the lead, and he began to tumble down the field. Alexander Rossi who qualified third, has been very impressive this season, but today was not his day, he got the wrong side of Kanaan and lost control going up high on Lap 37.
The pit lane opened and Newgarden won the race off pit road ahead of the field ahead of Power. Hinchcliffe exiting the pits lost control, hindering the exits of Indy 500 winner Sato and runner up Castroneves. They all managed to continue, during the period early-leader Kimball suffered technical issues and had to retire. Various penalties were given out to new race leader Newgarden for speeding in the pits and Hinchcliffe for the collision he caused. This resulted in the restart with Will Power in the lead when they went green on lap 47.
Will Power began to pull away, Vautier and Dixon hot on his heels, and the field began to mix and match going two/three wide on rare occasions, still a bit dirty on the edge of the oval. Late 60’s reigning championship Simon Pagenaud, not known for his ovals, began to make a move and catch Power. Pagenaud moved to second to push pressure onto Power, but towards the end of the race the field began to struggle with blistering on tyres. These came to further fruition when Castroneves front tyre failed resulting in an accident at Turn 2 on lap 91. Power won the race off pit lane, and due to the caution the likes of Sato and Newgarden managed to return onto the lead lap. The race went back off well, but Ed Carpenter who is known for his oval skills as he tends to only race them in the season made contact with Vautier resulting in the third caution of the day.
The caution period was very short, and near enough instantaneously went back to green flag, Power continued to lead, whilst the top five behind chasing him would always mix and match every other lap or so. Pagenaud, expert Tony Kanaan and very impressive Vautier were amongst the battle for the podium positions behind Power. He was dominating the event, always having a few lengths over the competition. On lap 139 the fourth caution came out for the day, this time for debris off one of the cars, this allowed a chance for everyone to pit, just over half distance. Max Chilton tried to mix things up, and was the sole person not to pit, resulting in himself taking the lead from Power. We went green 10 laps later, and with a lighter car Chilton began to gap himself to Power, but the fresh rubber Chilton lost ground with Power passing back into the lead.
The biggest event of the night happened on lap 152, resulting in a massive collision wiping out the majority of the field, Tony Kanaan being the catalyst for the 8 car pile up. Vautier’s return ended in the crash, an impressive showing for his first race in two years, the likes of Hildebrand, previous champion Hunter-Reay and rookie Ed Jones were also part of the eight retirements. Ed Carpenter and Hildebrand managed to slowly get back to the pits, and rejoin albeit considerable laps behind the leader. Huge amount of debris on the track resulted in a red flag, a 30 minute period whilst they cleaned up the track, Kanaan in that time was dealt with a 20 second stop and go penalty from the result. Kanaan as a result went two laps down upon the restart. The tyres were also reviewed, and the amount of blistering the Firestone tyres received for safety reason they elected if green for 30 laps we would have mandatory pit stops.
We went green on lap 159, and 30 laps later onto lap 189 we went to the caution for pits, Kanaan managed as a result regain one of his laps he fell behind because of his penalty. Hildebrand was struggling massively and had to pit prior to the period, and went laps down just like Kanaan. Scott Dixon managed to beat Power off the pit lane, a new race leader was placed, but Power was in Dixon’s shadow ready to pounce. Pagenaud and Sato behind him, with Graham Rahal managing to move himself up the field, albeit due to previous crashes, we had half the field racing. After the period near enough Power managed went around Dixon to retake the lead, he was unbeatable tonight. Newgarden tried to move over, he had great pace, going three wide, but the track out wide in certain areas had still very little grip, resulting in him hitting the wall with caution issued. Only a few laps after the previous caution no one decided to pit. Kanaan managed to return to the lead lap with this caution.
Racing continued following the clean up on lap 210, Power continued to lead, the likes of Pagenaud and Sato continued to battle over the final podium positions. Kanaan now on the lead lap begun to make himself up the field. On lap 229 we had the last tyre change which Firestone agreed due to the blister scenario on the tyres. The top five remained the same, no changes amongst the pit lane, Power winning off the pits, unlike the previous. We went green for the last time, Dixon seemed to have better pace towards the end, and managed to overtake Power. It seemed Dixon timed the pass brilliantly as we head towards the last 10% of the race. Power was having none of it, and they traded the lead for multiple laps, Kanaan had moved up and Indy champion Sato were closing in on the two. Sato tried to pass Dixon on the front straight, but Texas isn’t like Indianapolis a slight dogleg on the start/finish straight, he clipped the grass losing his car into the side of Dixon. Chilton who was amongst the battle for top five had nowhere to go, ending his race, with only five laps to go.
The race was agreed to end under yellow flag, Power took the line first, for victory. Remarkably Kanaan who was two laps down at lap 209 managed to take the line second, with Pagenaud in third. Only six drivers finished on the lead lap, but only eight
Photo courtesy of Eric Barnes
were technically still running, albeit Ed Carpenter being so many laps down, the likes of Chilton, Kanaan and Dixon were classified ahead of him. Dixon continued to lead the championship, Pagenaud moved back up to second, increasing his chances of retaining the championship, whilst Power moved up to fifth.
A truly amazing action packed race, we return to a road track next time out, the legendary Road America in a fortnight’s time, expect to see the likes of Dixon, Power and Pagenaud strong, more race/street experts than ovals.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Round 7 – Berlin ePrix, Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany. Saturday 10 June 2017. Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Mahindra Racing, Spark-Mahindra, Mahindra M3ELECTRO, celebrates after winning the race. Photo: Andrew Ferraro/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _FER1353
When the Formula E circus arrived at Tempelhof Airport for the double-header Berlin ePrix, there were few who would have bet against Sébastien Buemi running away into the lead and adding another two ePrix victories to his season three tally.
But instead the weekend saw Buemi forced onto the back foot almost immediately, as his Renault powertrain appeared to suffer a serious lack of drivability around the Tempelhof circuit compared to the likes of Mahindra and DS Virgin. Buemi was fastest in first practice but only a scruffy ninth in the second session, and when qualifying for race one came around he was not only knocked out in the group stages but lined up well off the mark in fourteenth position.
His woes were compounded when title rival Lucas di Grassi went on to claim his second pole position of the season, thus taking three points out of Buemi’s lead before the first race had even begun.
When the lights went out it looked as though it was only a matter of laps before di Grassi took another bite from that lead to the tune of 25 points for victory. The Brazilian was unopposed off the line thanks to second-placed starter José María López faltering and slipping back down the order, and with free air ahead of him set about stretching his legs ahead of Mahindra’s Felix Rosenqvist and Nick Heidfeld, who duly assumed the remaining podium positions at the start.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Round 7 – Berlin ePrix, Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany. Saturday 10 June 2017. Lucas Di Grassi (BRA), ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport, Spark-Abt Sportsline, ABT Schaeffler FE02, leads at the start of the race. Photo: Alastair Staley/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _X0W8808
But although di Grassi was able in the early stages to lead by over two seconds, he was forced to back off as high battery temperatures and tyre wear began to affect his ABT Schaeffler-Audi. As the race approached its midway point, di Grassi’s lead over Rosenqvist had been reduced to nothing, and on the lap before they entered the pits the Swede went around the outside of Turn 1 to assume the lead of the race.
Rosenqvist then held on to that lead for the remaining laps, even extending it to two seconds by the end as di Grassi continued to struggle with the handling of his ABT, and at the end of 44 laps crossed the line to take his and Mahindra’s maiden Formula E series win. Di Grassi held on to second and edged another eighteen points closer to Buemi, and Nick Heidfeld finished third to complete Mahindra’s first-ever double podium.
Initially, Buemi looked to ward off di Grassi’s advances in the standings by making a supreme recovery drive from fourteenth to fifth, netting him ten points. But after the race it was found that all eight tyres on both his cars were below the minimum pressure and Buemi was excluded from the results. With grip and degradation playing such a key role in the race, there’s little doubt that these lower tyre pressures gave Buemi a huge helping hand in passing half the field—though quite how a team as well-oiled as Renault e.Dams allowed such a costly mistake to occur is something of a mystery.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Round 7 – Berlin ePrix, Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany. Saturday 10 June 2017. Sebastien Buemi (SUI), Renault e.Dams, Spark-Renault, Renault Z.E 16. Photo: Sam Bloxham/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _J6I8087
Sam Bloxham/LAT/FIA Formula E
This left Buemi with it all to do in the second race, with the possibility looming over him of losing not only points but even the championship lead to di Grassi. But any signs that the defending champion was feeling the pressure had apparently disappeared overnight. In the second round of qualifying Buemi looked his usual self again as he planted his Renault on the front row of the grid—despite there being nothing he nor anyone could do to stop Saturday’s winner Rosenqvist from storming to Sunday’s pole.
Nevertheless, that front row start turned out to be all Buemi needed to return to the top step of the podium. Although Rosenqvist remained out in the lead from lights to flag, a strategy stumble in the Mahindra garage saw the Swedish driver almost collect his teammate as he exited the pits, and the resulting ten-second unsafe release penalty meant Buemi had only to keep sight of Rosenqvist’s gearbox to inherit his victory.
Unfortunately for Buemi, however, he and Rosenqvist were also joined on the podium by Lucas di Grassi—the Brazilian had a quiet but profitable second race, rising from seventh on the grid to third at the flag, although he was too far adrift from the front to pick off another position from Rosenqvist’s penalty. Di Grassi’s double podium means that, even with Buemi’s 25 points on Sunday, the gap at the top of the standings has dropped to 32 points, and that could well be enough to change the lead of the championship when Buemi misses the next round in New York.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Round 8 – Berlin ePrix, Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany. Sunday 11 June 2017. Felix Rosenqvist (SWE), Mahindra Racing, Spark-Mahindra, Mahindra M3ELECTRO, congratulates Sebastien Buemi (SUI), Renault e.Dams, Spark-Renault, Renault Z.E 16. Photo: Alastair Staley/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _X0W1575
Rosenqvist also benefited enormously this weekend, not only in taking his first win but in scoring more points in Berlin than at the previous six races combined, and he has surged from sixth to third in the championship. With four races left to go it would take something spectacular for the rookie to form a title bid off the back of his maiden ePrix victory, but there’s no doubt now that he will continue to be a serious contender for seasons to come.
DS Virgin also had an encouraging weekend in Berlin—despite missing out on the podium, both Bird and López made it into the Super Pole shootout on both occasions and converted those starts into two double points hauls for the team, López leading them home with a fourth- and fifth-place finish respectively.
By contrast, Techeetah had an off-colour weekend at best as its cars suffered the same drivability issues as the factory Renault machines. Jean-Éric Vergne could only manage two lower points finishes from his dual Super Pole appearances, whilst new signing Stéphane Sarrazin was unable to get to grips with his new car in time to score points, and took a best finish of eleventh on Saturday.
With the usual form-book shaken up in Berlin, the Formula E title race now heads into the unknown as it prepares to close out with inaugural races in New York and Montréal. There will be many questions over the coming weeks as to whether Renault’s Tempelhof form was a temporary blip, or if Mahindra and ABT can get close enough to the front to spoil Buemi’s party—but whilst we wait for answers, we can at least be sure that the fight for the 2016–17 Championship is still far from over.
The calendar is now in June, and that means the 2016–17 Formula E championship has reached its halfway point. Having passed through Hong Kong, Marrakesh, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Monaco and Paris, there remain only three more rounds and six more races, in the form of double headers in Berlin, New York and Montreal.
2014/2015 FIA Formula E Championship. Formula E Race. Berlin e-Prix, Berlin, Germany, Europe. Saturday 23 May 2015 Photo: Adam Warner/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _L5R8477
Last year, the Berlin ePrix represented a massive swing in the championship stakes, as Sébastien Buemi put a halt to Lucas di Grassi’s streak of wins and closed up to one point behind the Brazilian going into the final round in London.
With Buemi’s win tally almost perfect this season, it’s hard to imagine the championship leader doing anything other than repeating that result again this weekend, perhaps even in both races. What makes things even more ominous for the rest of the field is that Buemi also comes to Berlin off the back of two pole positions in Monaco and Paris.
However, even with the level at which Buemi is currently performing, his and Renault’s rivals can draw some inspiration from the fact that the championship leader will be under supreme pressure to win this weekend. After Berlin the calendar moves to the infamous WEC-clashing round in New York, from which Buemi will be absent and leaving a considerable open goal so late in the title race.
And although Buemi’s buffer to di Grassi in the standings is currently the largest it’s been all season, at 43 points it’s still not enough to cover off the possibility of di Grassi taking away a maximum points haul in New York.
That makes it imperative for the championship leader to win at least one, if not both, of the races in Berlin—but as we’ve seen many times before, when the pressure mounts Buemi often becomes overwhelmed, allowing his more collected rivals to land some heavy blows amidst his distraction.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Qatar Airways Paris ePrix, France. Saturday 20 May 2017. Sebastien Buemi (SUI), Renault e.Dams, Spark-Renault, Renault Z.E 16, on the grid. Photo: Sam Bloxham/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _J6I9038
But of course, it’s not all about Buemi and di Grassi this weekend, and of the eighteen other drivers heading to Tempelhof Airport, Stéphane Sarrazin will certainly be one to watch. The Frenchman has scored points only twice this season and sits last of the full-time drivers in the standings, but this weekend his chances of a top ten finish will be vastly improved as he moves up from Venturi to Techeetah, taking over the former car of Esteban Gutiérrez as the Mexican leaves Formula E to join the IndyCar series.
Sarrazin’s move means rookie Tom Dillmann gets another chance to show his abilities following his eighth-place finish substituting for Maro Engel at the last race in Paris. Dillmann had been eyeing up a full-time drive in Formula E for season four, and with Sarrazin on the move it looks like his future at Venturi is secure for now.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Qatar Airways Paris ePrix, France. Saturday 20 May 2017. Tom Dillmann (FRA), Venturi, Spark-Venturi, Venturi VM200-FE-02. Photo: Sam Bloxham/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _W6I9760
Also worth keeping an eye on both in Berlin and for the rest of the season are those drivers in and around the top ten in the standings. Mahindra’s Nick Heidfeld and Felix Rosenqvist are matched closely with Jean-Éric Vergne in the battle for fourth place, whilst two points separate Sam Bird and Nelson Piquet in seventh and eighth respectively. Bird’s teammate José María López has launched himself into the top ten at last after taking his first podium in Paris, and is just two points clear of a consistent Daniel Abt.
Below them, Robin Frijns and Oliver Turvey are in a fight to head the second page of the standings with Jaguar’s Mitch Evans. Although the British marque has had a slow start to Formula E, neither Evans nor Adam Carroll can be discounted from the points anymore now that Jaguar appears to have settled into the demands of the series and is hunting Andretti for seventh in the Teams’ Championship.
2016/2017 FIA Formula E Championship. Qatar Airways Paris ePrix, France. Saturday 20 May 2017. Mitch Evans (NZL), Jaguar Racing, Spark-Jaguar, Jaguar I-Type 1. Photo: Sam Bloxham/LAT/Formula E ref: Digital Image _W6I8428
After the recent rebranding of Formula 2 following the Liberty Media takeover, the first whisperings have appeared of the technical changes that are to follow. Series boss Bruno Michel has revealed some details of the new spec car that will be introduced for the 2018 season, which will bring them more in line with the new model of F1 car launched for 2017. While the finer details of the new specifications are yet to be released, there is the need to question whether or not these changes are what Formula 2 needs to move forward as a series.
Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. Thursday 30 March 2017 Norman Nato (FRA) Pertamina Arden Photo: Malcolm Griffiths/FIA Formpula 2 ref: Digital Image MALC8799
The most dramatic change will be the engine. Though it will continue to be supplied by Mecachrome, from 2018 onwards, engines for the Formula 2 series will be V6 rather than V8. The new six-cylinder specification will bring the regulations in line with GP3 and, more importantly, with Formula 1 as well. In an effort to keep costs down, the engines will not follow the hybrid model of F1, but will be turbocharged.
This marks the first change in engine specification since GP2 was founded in 2005. Motorsport purists, who enjoy the sounds of F2’s current V8 engine, will be disappointed to hear that go, but the real problem lies in the potential cost.
Keeping down the price of Formula 2, and other feeder categories of motorsport, has long been in the mission statement of the FIA, and so long as the upgrade is handled correctly, then the financial repercussions of the new regulations should not impact upon teams too much. However, the risk is there, and it will be up to the FIA, working together with Mecachrome, to ensure that Formula 2 still remains accessible for teams and drivers alike.
Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir, Bahrain. Thursday 30 March 2017 Antonio Fuoco (ITA) PREMA RACING Photo: Malcolm Griffiths/FIA Formpula 2 ref: Digital Image MALC8251
Plans for a new aerodynamic package have been vague for the time being, though Michel did indicate that they would replicate the new 2017 F1 regulations more closely than they currently do. Such a move is entirely necessary if Formula 2 is to act as a step ladder for Formula 1, since the difference between the two categories is currently rather striking.
It is unlikely that in 2018 the drivers will be facing the levels of G-force that F1 drivers do, but the experience of driving the two sets of machinery will become more comparable. Ideally, these aero regulations would have been introduced for the 2017 season, as there is now the threat that F2 will be placed in a cycle whereby they are constantly playing catch up with F1, always a season behind.
While there will be changes to the engine and aerodynamics, statements made by Bruno Michel suggest that the Pirelli tyres run by Formula 2 will remain largely unchanged. Michel has been vocal about wanting to maintain the high degradation tyres currently used by the series, and ruling out a move towards the much wider models that are now being used in Formula 1. This is one decision that definitely poses a problem for drivers graduating from F2 to F1, and other categories with lower degradation tyres.
Such was the case for 2016 GP2 runner-up Antonio Giovinazzi who filled in for Pascal Wehrlein at Sauber F1 team for the first couple of races of the 2017 season. After the Australian Grand Prix the Italian admitted he drove too conservatively on the supersoft tyres, on account of expecting the degradation to be similar to that which he had experienced in GP2. While high degradation tyres are part of the excitement and appeal of Formula 2, keeping it as its current levels runs the risk of providing young drivers with the wrong kind of preparation for their senior racing careers.
The announcements by Michel do make it clear that the FIA is committed to developing Formula 2, following their acquisition of the series earlier in the year. In the meantime, we will have to wait until 2018 to see whether or not these changes will be a step in the right direction.
