The first impressions of Formula E's brave new era

OPINION: Formula E kicked off its Gen3 era at Mexico City with keen anticipation - and anxiety - surrounding its new, more powerful cars. Here's how the new machinery got on in its first race, and what could be open to improvement later down the line

Updated Jan 17, 2023, 11:51 AM

The Hankook tyres wailed like banshees as the drivers tortured the last ounce of grip from them through the medium speed corners. And, through the Peraltada, they were on a knife-edge; Rene Rast and Edoardo Mortara went beyond the limits in practice as the cars bucked under load and threw them into the wall.

Others corralled the new Formula E cars into complying with their inputs. In the qualifying semi-final shootout between Jakes Dennis and Hughes, the latter driver began to feel the rear of his Nissan-powered McLaren stepping out through the 180-degree Peraltada. It should have been a one-way ticket to the outside wall, but Hughes managed to put enough steering in to coax his car through the corner.

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Author Jake Boxall-Legge

Jake studied engineering at university, as his original ambition was to design racing cars. He was bad at that, and thus decided to write about them instead with an equally limited skillset. The above article is a demonstration of that. In his spare time, Jake enjoys people, places, and things.