The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship turns to an all-new race location and Jakarta, Indonesia this weekend (4 June) for Round 9 of Season 8 at the purpose-built Jakarta International E-Prix Circuit, Ancol Beach.
The trip to Jakarta marks Formula E’s debut in Indonesia, home to 273 million people and a huge contingent of motorsport fanatics eager for a first taste of the leading electric racing series and a return to motorsport’s world stage.
WAYS TO WATCH: Where and how to watch every minute of Season 8
It’s uncharted territory for the championship’s grid of 22 world-class drivers, with the title race on a knife-edge as just 16 points – comfortably less than is on offer for a single victory – split the top three drivers at just over the halfway stage of the campaign.
Title race taking shape
With eight rounds and five different race winners in the books, standings leader Stoffel Vandoorne (Mercedes-EQ) heads ROKiT Venturi Racing’s Edoardo Mortara and DS TECHEETAH’s double champion Jean-Eric Vergne.
Mercedes-EQ has stolen a march in the Teams’ running after a dominant second win of the season for reigning champion Nyck de Vries in Berlin. Add to that a pair of podiums courtesy of teammate Vandoorne and it was some haul for the German giants on home soil – all on the weekend the team’s future became clear, with McLaren taking the reins of the title-winning squad from Season 9.
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Saturday’s action gets underway with Free Practice from 07:15 local time, with qualifying at 10:40 and Round 9 itself from 15:00 local. Keep track of all the action at fiaformulae.com/live and tune in where you are via fiaformulae.com/watch.
Uncharted territory
Formula E’s 11 teams and 22 drivers will face a whole-new challenge when they rock up to the Jakarta International E-Prix Circuit. It’s a purpose-built racetrack which brings all the best elements of street racing to picturesque Ancol Beach – South East Asia’s largest park, welcoming some 40,000 visitors a day. Unique banked sections, undulations, bumps and a mix of technical and high speed sections will provide a real test.
The 2.37km, 18-turn circuit kicks off with a tight opening sector after a long run down the start/finish straight. There’ll be plenty of room for manoeuvre into the right hander at Turn 1 before drivers head into a flowing series of turns that swoop by Ancol Beach City. The final sector is a tricky complex following a fast right hander at Turn 12 and another long straight into what will no doubt be a busy Turn 13 hairpin come the race. An awkward left-hander at Turn 18 rounds out the lap with a strong slingshot required down that long home straight.
Formula E has been a regular in Asia since the championship’s inaugural 2014/15 campaign, with 16 races at five locations so far in the region – including its first-ever and landmark 50th round taking place on the continent, with the Jakarta E-Prix marking the championship’s return to the continent, with Seoul set to follow, rounding out Season 8.
The circuit’s development is aimed at leaving a lasting legacy in the city, breathing new life into Ancol Beach and kickstarting the city’s post-pandemic tourism comeback. City authorities have also earmarked the location as a potential centre for innovation as Indonesia drives towards a complete EV transition by 2050.
The event will be 100% powered by sustainably-sourced HVO and as ever in the world’s first net zero sport, it’s a net zero carbon event. Formula E will measure, reduce, and offset all its unavoidable emissions by investing in renewable energy production.
As it stands…
Last time out at the Berlin E-Prix, Vandoorne was able to consolidate his Drivers’ World Championship advantage – hard earned with victory in the Monaco E-Prix – by driving to a pair of third-placed finishes, on home soil for Mercedes-EQ no less.
Race one was one of the best races the Belgian had managed in Formula E, according to his engineer Stephen Lane – over team radio. Vandoorne had clambered from 12th midway through the race to an eventual third. Some fightback – teammate de Vries could only manage 10th in the same machinery – and it could prove crucial come the end of the season.
The all-new Jakarta International E-Prix Circuit, Ancol Beach
That’s six top-five finishes from eight attempts for the Belgian with a greater than 60% silverware return. Consistency is key in Formula E, and it doesn’t get much better than this after eight rounds.
Mercedes’ pace was there all weekend in Berlin, and Edoardo Mortara steered his ROKiT Venturi Racing-run Silver Arrow 02 to a consummate race win in the opening race at Tempelhof. The Swiss-French-Italian triple national had topped the Drivers’ table heading into the Rome race weekend, but a costly pair of retirements in Rounds 5 & 6 saw him fall by the wayside.
Mortara’s pace had never been in doubt, and Berlin was a return to form at the best possible time, with a top three or four starting to break clear in the points table heading over the halfway stage of Season 8.
Jean-Eric Vergne (DS TECHEETAH) continues his scoring streak – now at eight races and the only driver with an 100% record in 2021/22. The Frenchman is desperate for that first race win of the season but Formula E’s only double and consecutive champion is just 16 points shy of leader Vandoorne with eight rounds to come.
READ MORE: De Vries: ‘I hate losing, Berlin comeback was key’
Jaguar TCS Racing’s Mitch Evans’ hot streak continued with more solid points in Berlin, following up on a Rome win-double and silverware in Monaco. Robin Frijns (Envision Racing) qualified down in 20th for race one at Tempelhof which proved to be costly – the Dutchman having top six pace at worst all weekend. Still, he’s just two points back from Evans in fifth, though the pair have fallen 12 behind third spot in the standings.
Reigning champion de Vries pulled a dominant drive out of the bag on home soil for Mercedes-EQ in the Shell Recharge Berlin E-Prix Round 8 to bite back from a run of two points from four races in the best way possible.
Mercedes-EQ and Stoffel Vandoorne are the team to beat
It was never in doubt after a lap one move saw him fling by Julius Baer Polesitter Mortara and second-placed Frijns at Turn 1. The Mercedes-EQ driver managed his lead from there and a maximum was vital to give him a chance of becoming only the second driver to retain a title after Vergne.
Who’s in with a shot?
We’ve never raced in Jakarta before, but we have raced 16 times in Asia before across Beijing, Putrajaya, Hong Kong, Diriyah and Sanya.
In that time, 2016/17 champion Lucas di Grassi has made the podium on seven occasions – more than 50% of all Formula E’s rounds in Asia. Could that bode well for the ROKiT Venturi Racing driver, as he seeks to push up the order from ninth in the standings?
On past form, Jaguar TCS Racing’s Sam Bird could also be one to watch. The Brit has stormed to victory in a quarter of all Formula E races in Asia. He’ll be aching to turn his season around, with the 2020/21 title challenger finding himself down the order in 12th. There’s plenty of time left this season for all that to change, though, and as one of the championship’s most experienced racers – a fixture from day one – he’ll know it’s not done yet.
Follow live
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Watch
Don’t miss a minute of Season 8. Keep track of the best ways to tune in where you are at fiaformulae.com/watch.
Get involved
Formula E blurs the lines between the real and virtual worlds of motorsport and there are even more opportunities to engage with the championship in Season 8, even if you can’t be at an E-Prix in person.
Formula E is the only motorsport in the world that lets fans play an active role in influencing the outcome. FANBOOST for Rounds 9 opens on Tuesday 31 May, until 15 minutes into the race. To give your favourite driver an extra boost of power, visit FANBOOST and the Formula E app.
Can you predict the unpredictable? The Formula E Predictor puts you in the hot seat to predict each round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
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It’s free to play, and points are awarded for each correct prediction. Make your picks for five race outcomes – selecting from the 22 Formula E drivers that you think will win the E-Prix, clinch Julius Baer Pole Position, set the TAG Heuer Fastest Lap, be the first to use ATTACK MODE and be the driver to make up the most places in the race.