BIG IN JAPAN: THRILLING TITLE TUSSLE IS TOKYO-BOUND
ABB FIA Formula E World Championship primed for first visit to ‘Land Of The Rising Sun’
Photo credit: ABB FIA Formula E World Championship,
2024 Sao Paulo E-Prix, (DPPI/Paulo Maria)
The modern metropolis of Tokyo awaits this weekend (30 March) for the next instalment in the 2023/24 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship campaign, as the all-electric single-seater series travels to Japan for the first time.
The inaugural Tokyo E-Prix will mark the fifth of 16 rounds in Season 10, with the opening four contests having each delivered a different winning driver and team – and no fewer than nine podium-finishers.
Jaguar TCS Racing’s Nick Cassidy remains at the summit of the standings despite crashing out in Brazil, but the New Zealander’s failure to score in São Paulo saw his advantage slashed from 19 points to just four by TAG Heuer Porsche rival Pascal Wehrlein. The German triumphed in the Mexico City curtain-raiser back in January, with his scintillating raw speed underlined by a brace of pole positions so far this season.
Tied for third place heading to Japan are Cassidy’s Jaguar stablemate Mitch Evans and DS Penske’s Jean-Éric Vergne, Formula E’s only two-time title-winner. Both have a runner-up result to their name this year – the New Zealander last time out in Brazil, and the Frenchman in Saudi Arabia – leaving them a single point ahead of reigning champion Jake Dennis in the chase for the coveted crown.
The Andretti Formula E ace dominated on the first day in Diriyah, but has been unable to replicate that pace elsewhere as he bids to successfully defend his laurels. For a while, he looked to be the fastest driver on the track in São Paulo, prior to falling away to fifth at the chequered flag.
The only predictable aspect of Formula E, however, is the series’ sheer unpredictability, with form guides meaning little from one race to the next. Just ask Sam Bird. The NEOM McLaren Formula E Team star – the third-winningest driver in the championship’s history – arrived in Brazil having gone 35 races without a victory. He concluded proceedings in São Paulo on top of the podium.
Countryman Oliver Rowland is another case in point. Absent from the grid during the second half of Season 9 following a difficult couple of campaigns, the Briton’s return to his ‘roots’ at Nissan Formula E Team has seemingly reinvigorated him, with back-to-back trips to the rostrum in the most recent two outings.
Envision Racing duo Sébastien Buemi and Robin Frijns are the other podium-finishers from the first four rounds and are very capable of vying for the highest step, while two drivers eager to kick up a gear are former champions Stoffel Vandoorne (DS Penske) and António Félix da Costa (TAG Heuer Porsche).
Both have struggled to match the results achieved by their title-challenging team-mates to-date, although the Belgian has finished three of the four E-Prixs inside the points and the Portuguese ace belatedly opened his own scoring account for the campaign in Brazil – a race he led on more than one occasion.
Other big names further down the order than anticipated are 2016/17 title-winner Lucas Di Grassi (ABT CUPRA Formula E Team) and Mahindra Racing pairing Nyck de Vries and Edoardo Mortara, respectively first and second in the overall classification in Season 7. All three drivers will be looking to get off the mark this weekend in Japan.
The action will take place on the 2.585km, 20-turn Tokyo Street Circuit, which will wind around the Tokyo International Exhibition Centre – also known as Tokyo Big Sight – on the Tokyo Bay waterfront. In a country aiming to ban sales of new fossil fuel vehicles by 2035 as a vital step in its longer-term quest to achieve net-zero carbon emissions, Formula E’s debut is set to generate an electrifying spectacle.
The race will get underway at 15:03 local time (07:03 CET) on Saturday, 30 March.
THE 2024 TRACK
MEDIA CENTRE
Opening Hours of the Media Centre
- Thursday 28 March: 0900 – 1800
- Friday 29 March: 0730 – 1930
- Saturday 30 March: 0600 – 2000
2024 TOKYO E-PRIX TIMETABLE
| Friday 29 March | |||
| Starts | Ends | Length | Activity |
| 14:30 | 14:45 | 00:15 | SHAKEDOWN |
| 16:30 | 17:00 | 00:30 | FREE PRACTICE 1 |
| Saturday 30 March | |||
| Starts | Ends | Length | Activity |
| 08:00 | 08:30 | 00:30 | FREE PRACTICE 2 |
| 10:20 | 10:32 | 00:12 | QUALIFYING Group A |
| 10:37 | 10:49 | 00:12 | QUALIFYING Group B |
| 11:05 | 11:20 | 00:15 | QUARTER FINAL |
| 11:24 | 11:34 | 00:10 | SEMI FINAL |
| 11:38 | 11:43 | 00:05 | FINAL |
| ≈15:04 | RACE |
MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES
| Friday 29 March | |
| 12:30 – 12:45 | Team Representatives FIA Press Conference |
| James Barclay – Jaguar TCS Racing | |
| Ian James – NEOM McLaren Formula E Team | |
| Frédéric Bertrand – Mahindra Racing | |
| 12:45 – 13:00 | Drivers FIA Press Conference |
| Nick Cassidy – Jaguar TCS Racing | |
| Sacha Fenestraz – Nissan Formula E Team | |
| Sébastien Buemi – Envision Racing | |
| 13:00 – 13:20 | Media Pen (All Drivers) |
| Saturday 30 March | |
| 16:35 – 16:50 | FIA Press Conference (Top 3) |
| 16:50 – 17:10 | Media Pen (All drivers) |
2024 TOKYO E-PRIX ENTRIES
2024 ABB FIA FORMULA E WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
The 2024 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship Standings are available here: https://www.fia.com/events/abb-fia-formula-e-world-championship/season-2023-2024/standings