Boat blog! And then electric too. Unfortunately for Sergio Perez, he cannot win on the water in the F1 GP…erm…E1 GP.
Yes, there is something new in the electric racing field. We are of course aware of the ridiculous success of Formula E, which involves around a hundred parents, grandparents and friends of drivers every race. There is also the Extreme E, which involves tearing through dunes with electric buggies. Unfortunately, that championship will no longer take place after 2024. But luckily there is now also the E1! Basically the same as Formula E, only on water.
And that is always cooler, but also more niche. It is not without reason that really fast racing boats are now a thing of the past. The heyday was actually in the '80s. Fast boats came together in a fantastic symbiosis with the cocaine trade in Miami. But when the drug money dried up, the drugs disappeared fastboats also out of the water.
But with another lucrative business as a lubricant, namely the oil industry, boat racing is now back and better than ever. And electric of course, because the sheikhs are environmentally conscious. E1 GP is the name of the new championship and will be raced with the Race Bird. This blepper is supplied with 150 kW by Mercury Racing. The boat uses HydroFoil technology. This means that, like a modern Dorian van Rijsselberghe, it more or less floats above the water to reduce friction. The boats reach a top speed of a heart-stopping 93 kilometers per hour.
And then the teams. Here too, the organization has apparently dug deep into its pockets to rub elbows with some big names. 'Team owners' include Tom Brady (seven-time NFL champion), Marc Anthony (J-Lo's ex), Rafael Nadal (500-time Roland Garros champion), Virat Kohli (cricketer), Steve Aoki (reddit longecity forum reader) , Didier Drogba (renowned ball squeezer), Marcelo Claure (Bolivian) and – yes – Sergio Perez (Maxsj's teammate).
Each team has two drivers, creating an eclectic collection of daredevils and ex-drivers. However, the best known of these are not very well known. Dani Clos once drove GP2 and Emma Kimilaïnen participated in the W Series. And there are a few more rally drivers and relatives.
The calendar consists of 7 events and kicked off this weekend in the always vibrant Jedda. Brady won like he always does. Perez finished fifth as he always does. This will be followed by races in Venice, Puerto Banús, Geneva, Monaco and Hong Kong. Oh…and in -yes- Rotterdam!!1! Undoubtedly the location that team owners and pilots are most looking forward to this year.
In short, this will be an epic party for everyone involved at the sheik's expense. Will it also be a ridiculous success? Just like Extreme E, A1 GP, Superleague Formula, we give it a few years and when the sheik has had his fun it will disappear again. And yet, despite all cynicism: the world is secretly just a little bit better when something is being ripped apart somewhere. On land, at sea and in the air. Whose deed.
This article Sergio Perez loses out to Tom Brady and Rafael Nadal first appeared on Autoblog.nl.
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