Santiago ePrix: Presentation and Stakes

An inseparable trio for the lead, former champions with different paths

After three races, it’s Felix Rosenqvist who leads the championship with the conquest of a second consecutive victory in Marrakech after the one won on a green carpet (disqualification of Daniel Abt) during the second race in Hong Kong. The Nordic seems to be full of confidence and will certainly do everything to maintain his level of performance and widen the four-point gap he currently holds over Sam Bird.

Precisely for Sam Bird, the key to his second place in the championship lies mainly in his exemplary consistency in every race held so far. As proof, a victory and a fifth place in Hong Kong, followed by a third place in Marrakech. This good run should not stop there, thanks to a DS Virgin that allows him to easily fight for the leading positions on the grid.

A little further back in the standings, we find a very in-form Jean-Éric Vergne since the start of the season, at the wheel of a car that has had very few testing days due to its Renault customer status. The Frenchman is finally managing to convert his aggressiveness into significant results. His goal for this round will certainly be victory to keep his chances of fighting for the title at the end of the season.

The other drivers to watch are Nelson Piquet, who has regained a good level of performance since joining Jaguar, Sébastien Buemi, who finally scored with a fine second place in Marrakech despite leading for most of the race, Daniel Abt, who has faced disappointments for the past two races even though he’s finally ahead of his teammate, and Lucas Di Grassi, who is struggling to get his season going due to an Audi that is quite fast but not very reliable.

A spicy premiere in Chile

Formula E will discover a new circuit on the occasion of the Antofagasta Minerals Santiago ePrix, which will be held for the first time in Chile, a country not very accustomed to car racing. Competitors will vie for victory on a 2.46-kilometer track composed of 12 turns. The track will start on Santa Maria Avenue before crossing the Mapocho River towards Baquedano Square, then go through the Forestal Park to complete a loop in the South American capital. This sets the scene for the fourth round of the 2018-2019 championship.

The latest information to remember

The second-generation single-seater unveiled:

The chassis that will form the second generation of Formula E that teams will use next season, has been unveiled to the public. Formula E officials had promised an innovative and futuristic style, and it can be said that the promise has been kept. The front wing is quite complex but remains single-plane, the wheels are faired to facilitate overtaking, and the integration of the halo is quite successful. At the rear, there is a large diffuser that creates enough downforce to eliminate the need for a traditional rear wing. This single-seater also features a two-part rear wing that does not join, creating a V shape. This entirely new Formula E will be equipped with batteries supplied by McLaren Applied Technology, allowing the entire race to be completed on one car. The power authorized in qualifying will increase to 250 kW, a rise of 50 kW (approximately 335 deployable horsepower in total), and in the race from 180 kW to 220 kW. The actual race car will be revealed next March at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show.

Want to see it for yourself? The Geneva Motor Show – March 6 #Gen2 #FIA #ABBFormulaE pic.twitter.com/3I8WM6ksxl

— ABB Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) 30 janvier 2018

End of minimum time for pit stops:

Last season and since the beginning of the championship’s existence, the change of single-seaters mid-race was subject to a minimum time to prevent hasty detaching and attaching of driver harnesses. For the first round of this season in Hong Kong, this minimum time had been lowered to 35 seconds. It was planned to eliminate this rule starting from the Marrakech race, but in response to drivers’ protests, this change was postponed to the Santiago race. The main concern of the drivers was that removing this minimum stop time could push teams to rush and potentially fail to secure them properly, in an attempt to save a few seconds. The debate will be short-lived anyway since this procedure will no longer be necessary starting next season.

No replacement for the Montreal ePrix:

The double Canadian race that was supposed to take place this year and was canceled by the Montreal municipality will not be replaced on the calendar due to a lack of credible candidates. The possibility of a race in Birmingham was mentioned but did not materialize due to the short time frame for organizing an event. Therefore, this season’s calendar will feature 12 races instead of 14, resulting in a loss of 750,000 Euros for each team. Indeed, each point scored in the championship brings money to the teams, but since no points will be awarded, this sum will not be shared among the teams.

Extension of the partnership between Mahindra and Pininfarina:

The Indian company bought the Pininfarina group in 2014, but this partnership will expand and apply to the Formula E team with immediate effect. This will allow the team to use the Italian company’s wind tunnel and all its infrastructures to develop next year’s single-seater and improve the areas open to development on the current single-seater. Additionally, it will provide access to CFD (computer simulation) to properly correlate the simulations with reality. However, this large-scale partnership is not expected to lead to the development of a powertrain with the Italian brand. The association should enable Mahindra to be better equipped to face the current and future manufacturers in Formula E. Pininfarina is currently developing an electric hypercar and is increasingly interested in non-polluting cars.

The TV program

Due to the time difference, the Santiago ePrix qualifications will be broadcast live on Eurosport and Canal+ Sport starting at 3:50 PM. However, only Eurosport will offer the race live starting at 7:50 PM. On Canal+ Sport, the race will be broadcast delayed at 12:55 AM and again at 6:05 PM on Sunday.