Michelin joins Formula E action in Spain

The official pre-season test ahead of the 2021/2022 FIA ABB Formula E World Championship took place on November 29-December 2 at Circuito Ricardo Tormo de Valence, Valencia, Spain, where Michelin once again joined the teams as the competition’s exclusive tire supplier. Season 8 will kick off in Saudi Arabia on January 28-29.

Michelin – a premium partner of the all-electric single-seater race series since its launch in 2014 – will supply the latest Formula E cars with MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV tires that have repeatedly demonstrated their potential and versatility in the course of the seven seasons organized to date.

“Our Formula E tire has evolved as the cars themselves have become increasingly sophisticated over the years,” notes Mirko Pirracchio, the new manager of Michelin Motorsport’s Formula E program. “The MICHELIN Pilot Sport EV is a connected, lightweight tire that performs equally in dry and wet conditions. It is the most efficient 18-inch tire in motor racing and, since last year, is also available in a form conceived for road-going electric sports cars and SUVs.”

The 11 teams and 22 drivers entered for Formula E’s Season 8 gathered recently in Valencia for a week of intensive testing at the city’s permanent 3.37-kilometer track. Their numbers included ex-F1 racer Antonio Giovinazzi who got his first taste of the sport which boasts the involvement of numerous prestige automobile brands.

Together, the field completed some 4,000 laps (practically 14,000km), with 17 of the drivers bettering the Superpole time set for April’s Valencia E-Prix where the same 17 qualified within a second of the pole-winner! The fastest lap in testing was posted by Edoardo Mortara (RoKit Venturi Racing, 1m25.763s), while Sam Bird (Jaguar TCS Racing), Robin Frijns (Envision Racing), Antonio Felix da Costa (DS Techeetah) and Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-EQ FE Team) also took turns to top the different sessions.

For the 2021/2022 championship, the power of the cars has been upped by 20kW to 220 kW in Race Mode, and from 235kW to 250kW in Attack Mode. The qualifying process has changed, too, and time was set aside in Valencia for qualifying simulations.

“The new qualifying format will feature exciting head-to-head runs to decide the order at the front of the grid and this will have an impact on tire strategy,” says Mirko Pirracchio. “In 2022, drivers will be allocated two sets of new MICHELIN Pilot Sport EVs for free practice, qualifying and the race and will be free to use them as they wish, including the mixing of fresh and part-worn rubber. This will allow for plenty of strategy options to further underscore the efficiency and performance of our tires.”

Following the opening races of the 2021/2022 FIA ABB Formula E World Championship in January in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia, the 16-round series will go on to visit Mexico City (Mexico), New York (USA), Vancouver (Canada), London (United Kingdom) and Seoul (Korea).