Beginner's Guide to Formula E

So, you're new to formula e.

Welcome! I'm glad you've found an interest in ABB Formula E and want to learn more about the series.

So what do you want to know?

What's the basics?

Formula E, officially the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, is a single-seater motorsport championship for electric cars. The inaugural championship race was held in Beijing in September 2014. Since 2020, the series has FIA world championship status. Racing takes place mostly on temporary street circuits, with a view to bringing the series easily to the fans in their cities. The Formula E championship is currently contested by ten teams with two drivers each. The sport features electric-powered race cars similar in style to the hybrid-drive cars of Formula 1 and other single seater categories. Unlike some other racing series, Formula E has one type of tyres (all weather tyres), which are now supplied by Hankook, and previously were supplied by Michelin. The cars used are more in line with a 'spec' series, given that the battery pack and chassis are of standard design rather than unique to a team, although some parts such as the powertrain can be made by a team or provided by a supplier/customer team.

How can i follow formula e?

You can find the Formula E social media here:

Website: https://www.fiaformulae.com/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/FIAFormulaE

Twitter: https://twitter.com/FIAFormulaE

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fiaformulae/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fiaformulae/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@fiaformulae?lang=en

Formula E app: Available for Apple and Android (race updates and unedited team radio)

How can i watch formula e?

There's a section on the FE website which tells you how to watch in your region. As I'm in the UK, I can advise mainly for my area: if you're not UK based I'd suggest putting your details on the link provided to see how to watch where you are. For the UK, a new TV deal was announced on 29 November where all 16 E-Prix and qualifying sessions for Season 11 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship will be shown live on ITV4 and ITVX. You can read more here.

What's the weekend format?

The weekend generally consists of two practice sessions of 40 minutes each, followed by a qualifying session and a race, for a single header race. Where a weekend has a double header race, there would generally be two practice sessions, a qualifying session and a race, then the following day a further practice session, qualifying session and race. Races from season 9 will run to a lap count rather than the previously used 45 minutes plus one lap. To maintain consistency with the switch to laps, Safety Car and Full Course Yellow interruptions to racing will now be compensated by added laps, replacing the additional racing time feature.

How does qualifying work?

From season 8 onwards (2021-22), Formula E are using a "knockout" Duels style qualifying format. Regulations were updated for Season 11 - We made you a video guide - click here!

What was fanboost?

Fanboost was a Formula E only feature. For each race, fans could vote for their favourite driver via the official website or app to give them an extra power boost which was activated by pushing an overtake button. Voting started 3 days before the event and closed after the opening 15 minutes of the race. The five winning Fanboost drivers each received an extra power burst that could be used in a 5-second window during the second half of the race.

On 18th November 2022, Formula E confirmed via an update to the sporting regulations that Fanboost was discontinued and will not feature from Season 9.

What is attack mode?

Attack Mode is a Formula E feature where drivers can activate a temporary power boost (from 300kW to 350kW) by driving through activation points on the circuit, which will take them out of the normal racing line. It is mandatory to use the total amount of time allocated for the Attack Mode. You could liken Attack Mode to the DRS feature in Formula 1, or Push-To-Pass in Indycar where it would be used either to attack or defend.

In each race, Competitors will be allocated with a specific quantity of Attack Mode to be published in a Bulletin at the beginning of each Competition.

What's Gen3 Evo?

Season 11 brings us a brand new racing car called Gen3 Evo - you can find more details here.

Key technical enhancements for the new GEN3 Evo race car include:

The quickest accelerating FIA single-seater race car – Capable of 0-60mph in 1.82 seconds (0-100kph in 1.86s), 30% faster than a current F1 car.
Faster, stronger, more agile – Performance upgrades providing an estimated 2% performance gain from GEN3, equating to a c.2 secs faster qualifying lap on the Monaco circuit, offering world-class racing on any track.
Leaner and meaner – An aggressive new body kit designed to be stronger, more robust and more aerodynamic, delivering closer wheel-to-wheel racing.
All-wheel drive (AWD) –A first for a Formula E car, available during qualifying duels, race starts, and ATTACK MODE. This feature maximises acceleration and control, elevating the thrill of critical race moments and intensifying driver rivalries. AWD enhances both performance and strategy, providing more exciting racing for drivers and fans alike.
Better grip – Optimised all-weather Hankook iON tyres providing 5-10% more grip, made from 35% recycled and sustainable materials (+9% vs GEN3 spec).

What's "pit boost"?

PIT BOOST is an innovative and mandatory mid-race feature that sees cars given a 10% energy increase (3.85kWh) through a 30-second, 600kW boost in the pit lane. It will be used during one of the two races across a double-header.

All drivers must stop during the race for this extra energy, however each team is only provided one PIT BOOST rig which prevents them from doing any double-stacking. This will also create plenty of drama and excitement, as each competitor navigates an additional element of race strategy and could potentially alter race outcomes and tactics. Drivers must serve a minimum pit stop time of 34 seconds, with 30 seconds of that being allocated for the charging itself. This new sporting feature is a huge technological step forward in EV charging, deploying significantly more power than current consumer superchargers.

Anything else you want to know?

If there's a question you still have and I've not already covered it, please feel free to get in touch via any of my social media pages and I'll see what I can do!