Formula E racing comes to Portland
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Formula E is coming to Portland. Photo: Courtesy of Jaguar TCS Racing
After finishing races in Monaco, Berlin and Jakarta, 21 Formula E race car drivers will descend on Portland Saturday to showcase the latest in sustainable motorsport technology.
Why it matters: Portland is the only U.S. city featured in this season's all-electric ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, giving Portlanders the unique opportunity to see the sport — which has risen in popularity recently — in our own backyard.
What they're saying: "Formula E is like the startup environment of Formula One," Eyal Webber-Zvik, the vice president of product marketing at Cato Networks, a technology partner of Porsche, tells Axios.
- "We take the technologies of electric cars and electric engines to the extreme, and once it matures in the racing domains, it can later move into mass production."
How it works: As you'd expect, Formula E cars are 100% electric and pretty quiet. Per regulations, all of the 11 participating teams' vehicles have the same frame; for this kind of race, winning is all about technology, not aerodynamics.
- "We're focused on the electric motor, the inverter, the gearbox, software, and the control systems that optimize that electrification," James Barclay, the team principal for Jaguar TCS Racing tells Axios.
The numbers: Compared to Formula One, Formula E teams operate on slimmer resources by design — "a conscious decision to try and keep a reasonable limit to reduce our footprint as we race around the world," Barclay said.
- Every car is allotted eight tires per 45-minute race, whereas a typical Formula One car is allowed up to 72 for a 90-minute grand prix.
- Each team is only allowed to bring 30 technical staff, whereas Formula One teams can bring 70.
What we're watching: Even though most of the drivers have already experienced Portland International Speedway via a LIDAR scan simulation, where drivers can get a sense of the track's grip level and pace in a virtual environment, nothing compares to the real thing.
- "We hopefully hit the ground running with a baseline of what we think is going to work," Barclay said.
The bottom line: Tickets are still available for Saturday's race. The main event starts at 5pm, but plan to get there early to see the drivers in person and watch qualifying.
Editor's note: This story has been corrected to say James Barclay is the team principal of Jaguar TCS Racing, not Jaguar.