From the narrow streets of EUR to the bends of Emilia-Romagna: the change of venue for the Italian E-Prix upsets the dynamics of the race. A race full of position exchanges takes place in Misano, a show very different from what Formula E was used to and more similar to the Portland E-Prix of last season. On that occasion the championship channels were activated to celebrate the hundreds of overtakings recorded in the race, figures however taken out of context which not only do not do justice to the uniqueness of the category, but damage its image.
Wrong expectations
On permanent circuits like Misano, Formula E has to deal with long straights and high speeds. The winning tactic is therefore to travel in the slipstream of another car to reduce battery consumption, moving away from first position and giving rise to group races with cycling sections. Every lap we witness reversals of the rankings, but rather than overtaking we should talk about exchanges of position, as it is the presumed defender who facilitates the passage of those following. Selling them as overtaking is not only inaccurate, but even harmful to public perception of the category.
Focusing attention on overtaking means focusing on an element of traditional motorsport, encouraging a comparison with Formula 1 from which Formula E can only emerge defeated, being of a very different nature. Promoting the category as an inexhaustible source of real and hard-fought overtaking generates wrong expectations, with the effect of alienating the public when they discover that promises are not kept when tested by facts. The hope is that this time the Misano show will be promoted as something unique in the motoring panorama, which Formula E actually is, making an effort to explain it to help newcomers appreciate it. Conversely, still focusing on the count of fake overtaking would be a guarantee of failure
Always on the edge
There is certainly no lack of charm in the first race staged in Misano, with many valuable ideas for promoting the championship. The group races are something not found elsewhere, with 22 cars lapping for over 20 laps in less than 5 seconds, separated by a few millimetres, always on the verge of disaster and with the spectator ready to jump. Furthermore, although they are not traditional overtaking, it is difficult not to get excited when faced with drivers who in a single braking move fall from sixth to first position, juggling the peloton and slipping into gaps that open and close on the move. Thus there are those who find themselves at 200 per hour with two wheels on the grass, those who rear up on the external curb and those who make a mistake.
It is precisely the most experienced who fall into the traps of Misano, like Sam Bird, the winner of the San Paolo stage. Then the double zero of the two world leaders Cassidy and Wehrlein was sensational, forced to stop after damaging the winger during contacts in the middle of the group. The two return to the track far from the leaders, but still find themselves close. Cassidy and Wehrlein thus decide to put aside the world challenge to make room for their shared interests, working in synergy and towing each other with the slipstream to save energy, in the hope of help from the Safety Car. Another beautiful story on Saturday in Misano.
Nissan dreams
The greatest drama in Emilia Romagna is that of Antonio Felix Da Costa. The Portuguese returned to success in the week in which rumors spread that he would be retired at the end of the season, only to be disqualified for the technical irregularity of the accelerator springs. Oliver Rowland thus inherits the victory, already close to Tokyo, and is now incredibly world leader with Nissan who had not yet won a race in the Gen3 era. Also noteworthy is the comeback of Jake Dennis, seventeenth after qualifying and second at the finish line, after the penalty inflicted on the excellent Vergne with DS and the disqualification of the Portuguese driver from Porsche.
There is a lot to tell about Jaguar too, starting from Mitch Evans' pole position. The British cars were peerless over the bumps and narrow streets of Rome, with one of the best mechanical packages. At Misano, however, what counts above all is the efficiency of the powertrain, an area where Porsche currently remains superior, as underlined by Da Costa's victory itself.
However, efficiency is not everything and there are those who, with strategy and ingenuity, manage to go well beyond the limits of the car. This is the case of the two ERTs, who stayed at the back of the group for a long time to save as much energy as possible, then attacked towards the end and achieved a double points finish. The haul was then halved by the penalty to Sette Camara, but it still remained something unexpected for a team at the bottom of the table. Another story to spread in a type of racing unique in the world, where the record figures of fake overtaking are the last thing to promote
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