1---
 2template:
 3slug: formula-e
 4title: I can't take Formula E seriously
 5subtitle: Toy cars racing in parking lots
 6date: 2021-08-16
 7---
 8
 9For those unaware, [Formula E](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_E),
10or rather, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship[^1] is the only
11fully electric open-wheel racing sanctioned by the FIA. The first season
12was in 2014 - 2015. 7 years later, it's just as bad as before.
13
14[^1]: Which just ended, as of August 2021. It was also the first World
15    Championship; the ones before weren't.
16
17Formula E was supposed to be this new, revolutionary motorsport set to
18eventually replace Formula 1 -- or at the very least, compete alongside.
19It was supposed to be where teams could experiment; build better, more
20eco-friendly tech that can eventually find its way into road cars.
21Except...the FIA made it a spec series.
22
23This means all cars are basically identical -- conforming to a
24predefined spec. While there's nothing wrong with spec series racing --
25Formula 2, IndyCar, etc. are still incredibly exciting -- it's just not
26something you want in something like Formula E, where technical
27development is key. Further, the whole emphasis on "road relevancy" is
28kind of a meme when there's no engineering freedom given to
29constructors.
30
31No bother, at least the racing should be fun, right? They travel to cool
32cities and race on streets! Yeah...not really. Thing is, FE cars are
33slow. And to compensate this, they made tracks really narrow, with
34stupidly high barriers. There's no point in going to cool cities when
35you can't really see much of it. All tracks look the same: utterly
36soulless.
37
38And it doesn't end there. Formula E is gimmicky as hell. Like F1's
39DRS[^2], FE's got "Attack mode". Essentially, drivers recieve extra
40power by driving through a part of the track that's off the racing line.
41This is like, some NFS tier shit. But OK, I'll give it a pass -- it's
42cringe, but it does allow for some good overtaking.
43
44[^2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drag_reduction_system
45
46"Fanboost", however...Hoo boy. Basically, fans get to vote for their
47favourite drivers via social media, and the five drivers that win the
48vote each recieve extra power during the race. Yup. You read that right.
49They made a World Championship racing series a social media popularity
50contest.
51
52![formula e broadcast](https://cdn.icyphox.sh/VOodw.png)
53
54My last gripe is with the broadcast. It's so bad! They really should
55lose the gamer graphics. The driver list on the left is not color coded
56making it really hard to read. You have no idea who's who if you're new.
57And try and make the circuits look a little more interesting! I honestly
58couldn't tell you the difference between, say, the London and Berlin
59circuits.
60
61All things said, I will still watch Formula E -- at least, the
62highlights. Watching bumper cars is somewhat fun when there's no F1
63going on.
64