The worrying calendar trend that can’t simply be solved by a gimmick

OPINION: A recent calendar change has created a two-month break between races on Formula E’s upcoming schedule. While organisers plan to create a fan event to plug the gap, it risks being nothing more than a misjudged stunt

“I wouldn’t put it in as a TBD with the date secured if I wasn’t highly confident that we’re over the line already; at least technically over the line, if not contractually over the line. I have high confidence that it will go ahead.”

As comments go, those made by Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds back in June have perhaps not aged the best with the passage of time and after yesterday’s calendar announcement.

When the original 2024-25 Formula E calendar was revealed, this writer asked why a TBD remained on the calendar and just how confident Dodds was that a race would in fact be announced for the proposed 8 March date, thus creating a 17-race schedule for the first time.

Fast-forward four months and the latest World Motor Sport Council meeting held on Thursday has confirmed that the upcoming Formula E campaign will comprise of 16 races, with no venue found for the TBD slot.

On the face of it, 16 races at 10 different locations, comprising of city street and permanent race tracks that also includes the Homestead-Miami Speedway and a truncated version of the Jeddah circuit used by Formula 1 – both for the first time – represents a diverse and strong offering. But there can be no missing the chasm, quite literally, that losing a race in March has created as a two-month gap now exists between the double-header in Saudi Arabia and the standalone US outing.

What’s just as concerning is this is the second year in a row where a race has been lost from the calendar. Back in January, it was announced that the second running of the Hyderabad E-Prix would not take place during the 2023-24 season, as the newly elected local government, which had vehemently opposed the race, came into power. Even with contracts in place and the ramifications that would bring, Indian officials backtracked, and Formula E was left with no choice but to cancel the race.

In that instance, a gap of six weeks was created, which understandably left drivers, teams and fans frustrated. Any momentum built from the opening rounds seemed to ebb away. Generating ‘noise’ has been both one of Formula E’s strengths and weakness, especially since Dodds took the helm 18 months ago.

For six months of the year, races and the storylines produced by them have helped to create headlines and bring the all-electric championship to the world’s attention. But for the other half of the year when no racing takes place, the championship almost seems to go into hibernation and be forgotten about by large swathes of the motorsport universe.

Not having a race for two months during the season is certainly not going to help with that, even if it allows teams more time to get on top of the new Gen3 Evo machines.

A variety of options are on the table, some more likely than others, the most outlandish of which could be a non-championship race

“None of us want to see that size of gap during the season,” McLaren team principal Ian James tells Autosport. “Will we use it to our advantage? Of course, we’ll do whatever we can to continue to develop and in a way, it’s an opportunity to learn from the first events that we’ve had with this new [Gen3 Evo] car and new approach.

“So we won’t waste any opportunity that comes through that, but would we rather be racing? Of course, we would.”

Formula E organisers were quick to spin the news about the lack of a 17th race on Thursday, boasting about the 16 confirmed races and insisting that “work is already under way to build and maintain engagement with fans all season long, with more details to be announced in the coming months”.

It amounted to a vague statement, in part due to things still being very much up in the air about an as-yet-unannounced event that will be held on the originally slated TBD date. A variety of options are on the table, some more likely than others, the most outlandish of which could be a non-championship race.

Given F1 looked at the idea with regards to an all-rookie race at the end of the current season, it’s not beyond the realms of possibility that Formula E would look down the same route. The championship is already hosting an all-female session on the final afternoon of Valencia pre-season testing next month and offering those same drivers the chance to compete in a race, even if unofficial, certainly would be one way to generate headlines.

All of this remains speculation, however, and given that no suitable venue was found anywhere in the world for a championship race, it would seem even more outlandish for a non-championship event to be held instead.

The fact of the matter is it could easily, and probably most likely, will be a fan event of some kind where drivers sign autographs, pose for pictures and talk about how much they would rather be racing. Another option is an Esports event of a similar ilk to those held during the Covid pandemic - which were treated seriously enough that Daniel Abt lost his drive with the works Audi team when it emerged that he had employed a sim ringer to race on his behalf.

“Discussions have been ongoing [between Formula E and teams] about how we can ensure we don’t lose too much momentum, especially from a championship perspective during that time,” adds James. “I’m confident we’ll find a good solution for the fans and for the championship itself that will help to make up somewhat for the fact we’re not going to be racing on that day.”

As proven over the last decade, Formula E is not afraid to go against convention and push traditional boundaries that included the introduction of initiatives such as Fan Boost, whereby fans could vote for a driver they would like to see get an extra power surge in racing conditions.

It’s a delicate line, though, where novel concepts can be applauded or seen as nothing more than cheap gimmicks. The jury is still out on just what side of the fence the 8 March event will fall on, but the bottom line is there can be no real substitute for a race, all of which means Formula E’s second decade is off to a bumpy start before the season has even got under way.