Formula E - A mid-season review

Lucas Di Grassi during practice in Beijing

You lot may all be wondering why on earth I haven't yet done an article on Formula E, and there is a very good reason for that...the season had started way before I decided to even set up a blog. So, now I'm all up and running and the season is at (roughly) the mid-way stage, lets have a look at where we are at. But before all that, here is a spotter guide to the teams and drivers, as well as the tracks for this season, just in case you aren't quite familiar with them. This is the grid as of the last round at Long Beach, so it should be quite accurate for the next race in Monaco. 

There have been quite a few driver changes along the way, compare the current line up to what it was just before the start of the season...

As you can see, plenty of changes. A bit confusing eh? Right then, now you've familiarized yourself with the current grid line up, and my blog is all up and running, lets take stock of where we are at with the series so far...

The start of race one in Beijing

Formula E roared (not engine sound wise) into life at Beijing last September with a frenetic and action packed race. Nicolas Prost, son of 4 time F1 world champion Alain, took pole position for e-Dams Renault and lead the race throughout, hounded by the Abt Audi cars of Daniel Abt and Lucas Di Grassi, until the late stages when Venturi and former F1 driver Nick Heidfeld fought him hard for the lead. 

Nick Heidfeld for Venturi in Beijing

The race ended dramatically for both drivers, Heidfeld and Prost tangling at the final corner of the last lap as Heidfeld went for the lead, both cars out and Heidfeld being launched over a kerb into the air, allowing Lucas Dis Grassi to win and take the lead in the championship. A lot of the critics had already been silenced as the race produced some great racing on a not very inspiring track. Everyone eagerly anticipated the second round in Malaysia to see if the trend would continue.

Sam Bird leads Nicolas Prost and Daniel Abt in Putrajaya

The second round at Putrajaya, in Malaysia, was completely dominated by Virgin Racings Sam Bird. Bird had been runner up in GP2 in 2013 for Russian Time, and clearly had some great talent and he showed just how good he was in Malaysia, leading almost every lap of the race and putting in a great drive. 

Podium finishers Sam Bird, Lucas Dis Grassi and Sebastian Buemi congratulate each other after the race in Putrajaya

Equally impressive drives were put in by Sebastian Buemi for eDams and Di Grassi, who charged to 2nd and 3rd respectively after starting at or near the back of the grid. The series was showing it had great potential, with great racing and some big name drivers. The fan boost was working well to. Three drivers are voted by fans of the sport to have the boost, and they are allowed to activate that boost once per car in the race (two cars are required due to battery life, the drivers switching at the pit stop). Essentially, it is like IndyCars push to pass, unleashing more power, although only twice in the race, unlike the ten available in IndyCar.

Vergne on his way to pole position in Punta Del Este

Punta Del Este in Uruguay served up yet another great race, but qualifying as well was equally brilliant. Jean- Eric Vergne, recently dumped by the Toro Rosso F1 team, took over one of the Andretti seats and took pole position for his first ever race in the series, ahead of an equally stunning effort for China Racings Nelson Piquet Jr. It was an impressive effort from Vergne, who had only started to drive and learn how to drive the Spark chassis in Free Practice for the race.

Piquet takes the lead at the start of the race in Punta Del Este

By all rights the race should have been Vergnes. Piquet got the lead at the start but he managed to find a way past just before his first pit stop. Unfortunately for him, a crash for Sam Bird brought out the safety car, meaning he dropped behind Buemi but maintained 2nd place. After more frenetic action down the field and another safety car, the green flag was waved again with two laps to go, but just as it looked like Vergne would take the lead again, his rear suspension failed, a cruel end to one hell of an impressive weekend, allowing Buemi to take the win.

Buemi on his way to the race win in Uruguay 

The weekend though effectively sealed a deal that will keep Vergne with Andretti at least until the end of the current season, and maybe into next season? Who knows. Vergne was obviously disappointed but he could take a lot of satisfaction away from the weekend. 

Buemi leads the charge into turn 1 in Buenos Aires

Next up was Buenos Aires and Argentina, and it was pole for Buemi this time. The race was a bit quiet for the first few laps but as it went on, the excitement started. First, Karun Chandok went off at the quick chicane before the finish line. Then, Buemi went off, handing Di Grassi the lead and unbelievably after that, Di Grassi hit the way as well thanks to suspension failure! All of this handed the lead to Nick Heidfeld but he was being hounded by a fast Sam Bird, who was aiming to be the first repeat winner of the series.

Sam Bird, Jaime Alguersuari, Nick Heidfeld and Antonio Felix Da Costa dice it out in Argentina

Bad luck though struck Bird to, as he was given a drive through penalty for driving out of the pits when a red light was on. It looked like Heidfeld would finally get some bad luck (his season had been awful up til now) and take his first win in the series, but no! Heidfeld was given a drive through for speeding in the pitlane, and all this mean that Antonio Felix Da Costa took his and Amlin Aguri's first win in the series! After a crazy scrap behind him, Nicolas Prost and Piquet Jr came home 2nd and 3rd to complete the podium with Da Costa.

Vergne leads the field into turn 1 in Miami

Next up was Miami, and Vergne took another fantastic pole position, two poles in the last three races! Bad luck hit him again though, he finished way down the order thanks to an overheating issue. The real star was his team mate for the weekend Scott Speed, who qualified lower down but fought his way up to 2nd place and took the fight to Nicolas Prost as the race reached its climax.

Scott Speed races on in Miami, a sensational debut in Formula E for the American

It initially looked like Sam Bird would be the one taking victory after taking the lead just before the pit stop, but a bad call strategy wise meant he had to crawl in on his in lap due to having virtually now power. That paved the way for the Prost vs Speed duel out front, Prost taking the win ahead of Speed and Daniel Abt.

Nelson Piquet Jr gets ready to take the lead from Daniel Abt at the start of the race in Long Beach

The last race before the upcoming Monaco ePrix in a weeks time was at Long Beach, and Nelson Piquet Jr took a commanding win, after jumping from 3rd on the grid to 1st at the first corner. Speed, who had stayed with Andretti but crashed into the wall at the turn 1/2 chicane early on, but there was joy for Andretti as Vergne finally had some good luck and took a fine 2nd place, behind Piquet and ahead of Di Grassi.

Nelson Piquet Jr races on to a dominant victory in Long Beach

After 6 of the 10 rounds, this how the championship looks;

Formula E has won over its critics with some great racing and a very close championship. Anyone in the top five could take it, and who knows what will happen in the final four races? Lets not forget as well, the finale, the British ePrix at Battersea Park, is a double header...who knows what will happen in Formula E's inaugural season. A season of drama and excitement. Roll on Monaco next week. Until next time folks. Ciao.

Jaime Alguersuari races on in Long Beach

All pictures in this article copyright of the FIA Formula E Championship

LMP1 2015 - Who has the upper hand?

After the first round of the WEC at Silverstone, many people were questioning who had the fastest car in the fields top echelon, LMP1. Porsche had qualified 1-2 for the race, but  Audi had what appeared to be the strongest race pace, and Toyota were up there to, but with Silverstone not really being a Toyota track it was difficult to judge where exactly they were. Nissan of course were a no show, so no one has any idea at all of there the radical front-wheel drive Nismo is in the pecking order. So who, if anyone, does have the upper hand so far in LMP1?

Porsche dominated pre-season testing at Paul Ricard, topping the timesheets on every single day and this trend continued at Silverstone as they took a 1-2 in qualifying. Mark Webber built up a huge lead in the #17 Porsche up until its retirement in the race, but the #18 dropped back into the clutches of the Audi's, yet wasn't troubled by the Toyota's. It is clear that they have made a step forward with the new 919, and the tyre management is a lot better than it was in 2014. The 8MJ of power gives the 919 great straight line speed to. However, the car does appear to lack a bit of overall pace relative to the Audi's, which appear to be very good in every part of a race track, apart from the straights where the Porsche just monsters them. So Porsche have a much better car, with better tyre life management and great straight line speed, but perhaps lacking a bit in the corners.

As I said earlier, Audi appear to have the best overall package. Watching from Maggots and Beckets at Silverstone, the car looked mighty, and it did through every other corner of the track. the 4MJ of hybrid power hurts it down the straights relative to the Porsche, which can either pull away or blast past, depending on whether it is in front or behind the Audi, but the car then closes right back up in the corners, highlighted at Silverstone as the #18 Porsche blasted down the Wellington Straight, only for the #7 Audi it was dicing with to close right up through Brooklands and attempt to go round the outside of the Porsche. 2014 was a nightmare for Audi, winning only  at Le Mans, largely down to the fact the then #7 Toyota, which had dominated the race up until the early hours of Sunday, broke down, and the reliable (ish) Audi kept going, and in Austin, Texas, when heavy rain ruined Toyota's race and allowed Audi to capitalise on their misfortune. 2015 has started of with a great win for the R18 e-tron quattro. How many more can the manufacturer pick up this year?

Toyota is the hardest to read of the three LMP1 cars right now. Silverstone historically is a track that doesn't suit their car, and last year they won mainly down to the cooler and damp weather conditions, as well as Audi and Porsche being off the pace of the TS040. This year, the new TS040 finished 3rd with the #1 car, the #2 car finishing a lapped 4th, but they did lead thanks to Anthony Davidson during the middle part of the race, and the car was very good on its tyres. Spa is a track that suits the Toyota much more than Silverstone, and it is there that we should be able to get a clearer picture of where they are in the pecking order. Last year they dominated the championship, so don't expect them to lose that edge so quickly. This time though, they do have a fight on their hands.

Thanks to their absence from Silverstone, we are yet to see where Nissan's radical front wheel drive GTR LM Nismo is in the pecking order. Nissan have said they expect to 'surprise' the current established manufacturers, and the car has recently been racking up the miles. The GTR won't appear until Le Mans, therefore missing this weekends 6 Hours of Spa, but its appearance is eagerly awaited. It looks incredible, but will it go as good as it looks? Time will tell.

With the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship coming up this weekend at Spa, we may finally get an answer to the questions at Silverstone. At the moment, you would probably say Audi are leading the way, but you have to take into account that Silverstone is, as I have said many times already, not a Toyota circuit. The safest thing to say is that Audi and Toyota are the top two right now, with Porsche not quite up there but in the mix for wins for sure. The performance of all three teams at Spa will be interesting to see, but if you wanted to push me for who I think has the best car, I would say...Porsche. Stay tuned folks. Until next time. Ciao.

All photo's bar the Nissan GTR are copyright and courtesy of fiawec.com. Nissan GTR photo copyright nobraking.com

IndyCar 2015 - The Farse and the Furious

Okay, first off I'd like to apologise for the lateness of some of these race reviews. This is mainly down to the fact that, being a college student, life is incredibly busy! Also, in the case of IndyCar, I didn't feel I should waste my time reporting on NOLA, as it was a terrible race but I shall summarize this one, and Long Beach, before reviewing a thriller at Barber Motorsports park.

James Hinchcliffe leads the way in the latter stages of the race at Nola (Copyright: IndyCar)

After a race that was shortened drastically due to multiple cautions and the weather, and ended under caution thanks to a 3 car collision between Ryan Hunter-Reay, Simoan Pagenaud and Sebastian Bourdais, James Hinchcliffe took his first win for the Schmidt Peterson team, after an alternative strategy bumped him to the front of the field, ahead of Helio Castroneves and James Jakes.

Scott Dixon on his way to victory at Long Beach

At Long Beach, Scott Dixon put his demons there to rest, with a brilliant win, after Helio Castroneves was held up during the pitstops by Tony Kanaan. Dixon finished ahead of Castroneves and a great fight for third between Penske team mates Juan Pablo Montoya and Simon Pagenaud. However, it was at the following race at Barber Motorsports park. that the action really hotted up.

Josef Newgarden leads Helio Castroneves (Copyright: IndyCar)

The Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park proved to be the race that Josef Newgardern finally took his breakthrough first win, and he did it in dramatic style! Newgarden qualified 5th in his CFH Racing DW12, and at the start made his intentions pretty clear, diving down the inside of Pagenaud and Bourdais into turn 1, to go 3rd, behind leader Castroneves and 2nd place man Will Power.

Castroneves leads the field at the start of the race (Copyright: IndyCar)

It was an incredible move and he soon set about catching and passing the two Penskes infront of him. He then got infront of Castroneves during the first pit stops, as a runaway wheel nut ruined his stop. Power removed himself from contention leaving the pits, not understanding how to merge smoothly, swiping and spinning round Takuma Sato, bringing out the first full course caution for debris and earning himself a drive through penalty, which for some reason he was perplexed by. 'Typical' he shouted over the radio as he cruised through the pitlane. Might wanna watch the replay Will.

Rahal on track during the race (Copyright: IndyCar)

All of this left Graham Rahal out infront, ahead of Hinchcliffe, as they did not pit with the others during that caution. Whilst Newgarden and Castroneves were still the net leaders, Hinch and Rahal were still on for a very good result. Both had closed in on Newgarden and Castroneves after the first round of stops, and were doing a solid job out front.

Josef Newgarden leads Scott Dixon in the latter stages of the race (Copyright: IndyCar)

During the second round of stops Castroneves retook the lead from Newgarden, but the strategy didn't work out for him, as he soon ended up behind a recovering Will Power (who was doing a great job it must be said) and an equally impressive Ryan Hunter-Reay, who had gone off strategy in the early stages after qualifying way down the field. At the final stops, Newgarden retook the lead from Scott Dixon, but both would be under pressure in the final stages from Graham Rahal, who had used a different strategy to brilliant effect, able to push right up until the end thanks to having enough fuel to do so, whereas Dixon and Newgarden were saving their fuel, and their tyres. Despite being with Rahal early on, Hinchcliffe sadly didn't have the pace to fight like Rahal did.

Graham Rahal charges after Scott Dixon and Josef Newgarden (Copyright: IndyCar)

Rahal was on a charge, setting fastest lap after fastest lap, regularly lapping two seconds faster than both Dixon and Newgarden. He had already monstered past Castroneves, Hunter-Reay and Power and now had his sights on Dixons Chip Ganassi machine. Sadly for him, Newgarden was out of reach but on the final lap, Rahal made his move and took 2nd place away from Dixon, and even though he couldn't catch Newgarden, he still closed that gap even further on that final lap. Newgarden however had driven brilliantly all weekend and capped it off with one hell of a drive in the race, earning him his first ever IndyCar victory and first trip to Victory Lane in IndyCar. Rahal was a fine 2nd and Dixon an equally impressive 3rd, with Power 4th, and Hunter-Reay 5th, Castroneves running out fuel on the final lap. The full results are below.

The result also gives a very interesting drivers championship...

Josef Newgarden takes the checkered flag

After a disastrous race at NOLA, IndyCar bounced back at Long Beach, but went even better at Barber Motorsports Park. Josef Newgarden finally managed his breakthrough first win. Can he fight for the title this season? Lets wait and see. Until next time folks. Ciao.

The start of the race (Copyright: IndyCar)

Formula 1 2015 - The Iceman returns in the heat of Bahrain

In 2012, Kimi Raikkonen fought Sebastian Vettel hard for the race victory in Bahrain, to eventually finish 2nd. In 2013, he drove a brilliant race to finish runner up again to Vettel. However, in 2014, after returning to Ferrari after leaving Lotus, in a race that will best be remembered for the incredible fight between the two Mercedes drivers, and the other fights down the field, Raikkonen finished a disappointing 10th, in a season where his best result would be a solitary 4th place. However, one year on, things were all change once again...

The fight at the front

The start of the race (Copyright:Mercedes AMG)

With Vettel splitting the Mercedes in qualifying  (Lewis Hamilton on pole, Nico Rosberg in 3rd) it looked like Ferrari may well give Mercedes a good run for there money and it looked even more likely at the start, with Raikkonen going around the outside of Rosberg in turn 1 to take 3rd. The challenge was expected to come from Vettel, but it was the other Ferrari that would take the fight to the Silver Arrows.

Hamilton leads the two Ferrari's (Copyright:Mercedes AMG)

Rosberg very quickly got past the two Ferrari's, with some brilliant out breaking moves into turn 1. Rosberg was showing much better skill in wheel to wheel combat and was very impressive in how ruthless he went about his racing. He had watched the 2014 race to learn from his team mate, and learn he did. However, during the pitstops he was repeatably undercut by Vettel, therefore having to repass the Ferrari again.  Indeed after the first stops, Vettel was ahead of Rosberg as Hamilton came out of the pits. Rosberg took the moment to dive down the inside of the Red Bull, getting very close to his team mate but no contact was made.

Rosberg and Vettel do battle as Hamilton exits the pits (Copyright:Mercedes AMG)

Whilst all this was going on, Raikkonen had stayed out during the first round of pitstops before pitting for the medium tyre, whilst his rivals had stayed on the softs...this is where things got interesting...

Raikkonen locks up during the opening sting

Now you'd normally expect Raikkonen to drop back from Hamilton, Rosberg and Vettel wouldn't you? He was on the medium tyre after all. However, that didn't  happen. Raikkonen was closing in on Vettel and Rosberg and was also matching the pace of the leader Hamilton! This caused a stir on the Mercedes pit wall, and it begged the question of what could Raikkonen do in the final stint? It was clear he would run the softs as the others ran the medium...could he split the Mercedes or, even worse for the Mercs, win the race?

Rosberg races after Hamilton, with Vettel following him (Copyright: Mercedes AMG)

The leaders came in for their final stops...Vettel on lap 32, Hamilton on lap 33 and Rosberg on lap 34. Raikkonen however took the lead and stayed out until lap 40, although by then his medium tyres were destroyed, and he lost the lead to Hamilton on lap 39 and was even unlapped by Fernando Alonso's McLaren. He came in for his final stop and on went the soft tyres. From then on, he hunted down his team mate and the Mercedes. But Vettels race wasn't to end on the podium...

Bottas holds of Vettel for 4th place (Copyright:Williams Martini Racing)

Vettel ran wide at turn 15 on lap 35, instantly being passed by Rosberg and having to pit for a new front wing. This allowed Valtteri Bottas to take fourth place in the Williams, and no matter what Vettel did, he could not pass Bottas. Proof that Williams had taken a step forward over the weekend. It was a great drive by  the Finnish driver and his best result of the year so far. 

Hamilton prepares to pass Raikkonen on lap 39

Back up front the bottle was getting interesting. After making his final stop Raikkonen was making huge inroads on Rosberg, taking nearly 2 seconds out of the Mercedes at one stage. By lap 55/57, he had closed right in and going into turn 1, Rosberg ran wide, suffering a brake-by-wire failure. Raikkonen didn't need a second invitation, and took Rosberg into turn 3 for 2nd place. He chased after Hamilton, who suffered a brake by wire failure of his own on the final lap, which gave him a bit of a scare but he cruised gently to his second win in Bahrain and third of 2015. However, the big talking point was the return to form of Raikkonen. It had been a welcome return to form for the Iceman, his first podium since Korea 2013. Hopefully he can soon end his win drought, which goes back even further, to Australia 2013...

Hamilton takes the victroy

The battle behind the top five

Ricciardo leads Grosjean, Hulkenburg and Ericsson (Copyright:Red Bull)

Red Bull didn't have a great race. Daniel Ricciardo finished a solid 6th for the team but at on the run to the flag, his Renault engine expired in spectacular fashion. This was his third engine of the year already gone up in smoke, and he is now on his fourth for Barcelona in two weeks time. The rule change that should boost the limit back up to five (which is expected to be confirmed soon) will ease things a little for the team, but penalties will be coming very soon.

Kvyat holds of Massa, with the two Manors fighting in the background (Copyright:Red Bull)

On the other side of the Red Bull garage, it had been a miserable weekend for Danil Kvyat. He qualified in 17th place, after a miserable weekend which saw him spin off in FP3. However he drove a fine race to 9th place, but the car was clearly not at its best. This time last year, Red Bull were up there with Williams for best of the rest for the Mercedes. Not only are they now behind Williams, but they are behind Ferrari, as well as the Mercedes, and are currently only in the midfield. Improvements, mainly to the engine, will need to be made to drive them up the grid.

Maldonado leads team mate Grosjean (Copyright:Lotus F1 Tean)

It was a day off mixed fortunes for Lotus. Romain Grosjean had a fine race to 7th place but Pastor Maldonado had a horrible race, finishing in 15th after qualifying 16th. He was set for a good 7th place ahead of his team mate after a great drive but stalled the car coming into the pits, putting him way down the field. Maybe #13 wasn't a good choice for your F1 career Pastor...

Perez leads Massa and Kvyat, as the two Mercedes come up to lap them all

Force India had a good day. Nico Hulkenburg had qualified 8th, although he would end up finishing in 13th, but Sergio Perez, who qualified 11th, managed his tyres to perfection and scored a solid 8th place for the team. It was a good race for the team who are will be struggling until they can bring some big updates to the VJM08, but a better showing in Bahrain will certainly boost the teams morale.

Massa blasts past Verstappen, with sparks flying (Copyright: Williams Martini Racing)

You may be wondering why I haven't yet mentioned Felipe Massa. Well thats because as the formation lap got underway, Massa...didn't. They had been unable to start the car on the grid but they started it in time for him to start from the pitlane. He initially recovered to 8th, which he and the team would have been very happy with, but earlier contact with Maldonado damaged his floor, and he only finished in 10th,behind the Red Bull of Kvyat.

Verstappen and Maldonado do battle (Copyright:Red Bull)

Toro Rosso had an awful race, with both cars retiring. This though wasn't as puzzling as their lack of pace, which puzzled even the team, especially as Sainz had managed to qualify a great 9th place. The team pointed the finger of blame at Renault. Now Toro Rosso are starting to get a little annoyed....

Alonso on his way to 11th place (Copyright: McLaren Honda)

McLarens weekend went no worse than expected...unless you're Jenson Button. The Brit stopped out on track in both of friday's free practice sessions and also at the start of Q1. Of course, he was permitted to start at the back of the grid but didn't make the start, an ERS problem being found when they fired the car up. Fernando Alonso though finished an encouraging 11th, after getting the car into Q2 for the first time on Saturday. Alonso said that Bahrain would be the last race the team didn't score points...with plenty of upgrades coming, Barcelona awaits.

Nasr leads a train of cars in the early stages (Copyright:Sauber F1 Team)

Sauber should have scored points with at least one of its drivers, but didn't. Nasr and Ericsson finished 12th and 14th, Ericssons race was ruined by a terrible first pitstop. The team will no doubt have put this behind them and will be determined to come back stronger in Barcelona.

Stevens and Mehri do battle (Copyright:Manor Marussia F1)

Finally, Manor Marussia again got both its cars to the end of the race, Will Stevens finishing 16th and Roberto Mehri 17th. Another solid weekend for the team, as they continue to run the 2014 MR03. The 2015 car should appear by the time F1 reaches Spa, hopefully that will lift them into the midfield.

The podium

It may have been another Mercedes victory, but Ferrari are well and truly back, and not just with Vettel. Kimi Raikkonen is now back to his best, and surely a victory or two will come his way later on in the season. With Nico Rosberg now showing the aggression he needs, Hamilton will have good reason to worry. Stay tuned folks. Forget what some people are saying. This championship is far from over. Until next time folks. Ciao.

Will Stevens on his way to 16th place (Copyright:Manor Marussia F1)