Lewis Hamilton’s Next Race Car Should Be Electric
The Formula E electric-vehicle racing series needs to borrow from the marketing playbook of its more popular F1 petrol-driven sibling.
The Formula E electric-vehicle racing tournament lags its F1 petrol-powered sibling in popularity.
Photographer: Alejandro Martinez Gonzales/AFP/Getty Images
If you’ve never heard of Formula E, you’re not alone. The single-seater motorsport championship for electric vehicles completed its 11th season in London at the weekend, with TAG Heuer Porsche winning the team championship. In terms of large international sporting tournaments, it’s still just a baby. But it’s growing up fast and, even as climate action faces headwinds, the future looks bright.
A decade ago, the races arguably did more to highlight the pitfalls of battery-powered vehicles than showcase their potential. The cars were slow by racing standards – topping out at a mere 140 miles per hour (225 km/h), almost 100 mph slower than a petrol-powered Formula One race car. Halfway through the race, drivers had to swap cars because the batteries could only last around 20 minutes. As recently as December 2023, an article in Road & Track criticized the motors’ relative lack of power compared with commercial EVs.