Formula E

Sirotkin reflects on debut Formula E test

2 Mins read
Credit: Formula E

Former Williams Racing and SMP Racing driver Sergey Sirotkin experienced a day in the M5 ELECTRO for the Mahindra Racing Team in the Marrakesh rookie test on Sunday.

The Russian driver was dropped by Williams at the end of his maiden season in the FIA Formula One World Championship, scoring a solitary point at Monza, which left him bottom of the Drivers’ Championship.

Sirotkin however enjoyed the chance to test Mahindra‘s FE car and had his say on the experience:

“There is no doubt that such a challenging, competitive сhampionship with the state-of-the-art technology as Formula E is a racing championship we need to pay a close attention to,” Sirotkin added.

“Even before the test drive we started to collect more information about this championship and realised that its level, technical and engineering systems and tracks are more complicated than it seemed at the beginning.

“During the last two weeks and especially during the day I spent in this car, my opinion totally changed. This car is much faster than you might think. Considering this car does not have much aerodynamics as the ones in Formula 1, basically its power is more than enough.

“Tracks are very narrow, without any run-outs, so you need to attack very close to the walls that makes the race even more interesting. Personally, I really enjoyed driving this car and, I should say, much more than many other cars that I got a chance to try besides main Formula championships.”

Credit: Formula E

Although the track time was valuable to the 23 year old, his running was not without problems.

“The test-drive day itself was not flawless. There were some technical difficulties and the team needed some time to fix the problems,” Sirotkin mentioned.

“During the morning session we had two short races – just to move things along forward and to test the waters. In the afternoon we had the same problems and could not set up everything perfectly during qualifying – there were some difficulties with the traffic.

“All in all the team worked according to the plan and we tried a number of settings.  I think that despite the difficulties, everyone was satisfied with the result accomplished – we ended the day on a good note and got many positive feedback.

“I would like to thank the SMP Racing program and Mahindra Racing Team for the invitation and a great opportunity to test the car of Formula E Championship.”

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Currently, a Journalist at The Checkered Flag, writing articles most especially within the single-seater categories of motor racing including F1, F2, F3 and Formula E. I've recently graduated from the University of Lincoln with a Masters in Sports Journalism and a Bachelors in Media Production. Also a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award winner by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA).
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