- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Formula E’s 2016-17 calendar might have omitted its grandstand UK event, however new venues Hong Kong and Marrakech seek to build early momentum that was lost in the previous two years.
Singapore marks as a new edition to the calendar on April 22 while Hong Kong will replace Beijing as the season opener on October 9.
While efforts have also been made to accommodate drivers competing in both Formula E and WEC events (with scheduling set to avoid clashes between events) the two-month-plus gap between Marrakech and Mexico City on January 28 could be better served filling a gap during the traditional motorsport off-season.
In this respect, the very reason for Formula E’s crossover season calendar becomes heavily redundant when attempting to capitalise on a lull in racing during the December-February period.
You could argue that racing fans might be suffering from racing overload and that saturating the almanac is a waste of valuable time and resources, but Formula E is about entering new markets that rival categories haven’t tapped into. Grabbing their attention is one thing, but holding their interest is a much more difficult objective.
Let us also not forget about the swinging motorsport fan. In the absence of Formula One, WEC, MotoGP and WRC, ancestral racing punters would be more than likely to switch onto Formula E in a sense of curiosity – especially given the drivers competing (Sebastien Buemi, Stephane Sarrazin, Nelson Piquet and Bruno Senna) have also featured in three of the aforementioned categories.
Factor in Formula E’s propensity for close racing and ergo tight championships and viewers have every reason to keep tuning in to keep updated. Nevertheless, the present calendar gaps nullify these prospects and almost present themselves as a mini-hiatus. By the time the season gets swinging again, casual viewers will have already lost interest.
Formula E is being careful not to overspend and overdevelop too quickly in the interests of series longevity, but overlooking the calendar situation is seriously missing the bigger picture. It’s a bit like building the best engine you can and filling it with the cheapest oil possible.
Good thing Formula E’s electric.
Looking for great odds on racing and sport? Get into the action with PlayUp today. Chances are you’re about to lose. Set a deposit limit.