Back in the Gen1 and Gen2 eras of Formula E, having over a month between races was somewhat of a normality, a normality which looked to be no more when the first calendar of the Gen3 era was introduced.
Last season, the largest break between E-Prix’s was four weeks, something which occurred three times in 2023. When the Season 10 calendar was initially released, the largest gap between races was the five weeks between the inaugural Shanghai E-Prix and the Portland E-Prix.
A five-week break is less than ideal, but it is manageable; however, seven weeks is beyond frustrating. Through no fault of Formula E, a seven-week break will commence after this weekend’s Diriyah double-header, with the fourth round of the championship in São Paulo not taking place until the middle of March.
The cancellation of the Hyderabad E-Prix has left a giant hole in the calendar, which has in many ways just increased the importance of performing well this Friday and Saturday on the outskirts of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital city.
Seven weeks is an incredibly long time in motorsport terms and is an eternity for a driver to think about how the previous event went. For those that have a shocker in Diriyah, they will have almost two months before they can rectify it in the next event.
Diriyah could be a confidence-crusher for some and a blissful delight for others. To put it into some context, Mexico City winner Pascal Wehrlein heads into the second and third rounds of the championship this weekend already leading the series by 10 points. If he replicated his Diriyah double from 12 months ago and won both races again, he could leave the Middle East with a very strong advantage.
This would fill him with confidence and belief for the seven-week break and leave him thinking positively. On the flip side, if reigning World Champion Jake Dennis endures a frustrating couple of days in Diriyah, then he could enter the huge break potentially over 50 points behind Wehrlein. A racing driver’s mentality is exceptional, but not thinking about a large deficit for seven weeks is an impossible task.
Whilst it’s still very early days in Season 10, Diriyah could play a pivotal part in who claims the title come the London E-Prix in July. For any of the 22 drivers on the grid, taking momentum and confidence into the seven-week break is crucial. That can only happen with a strong performance in Saudi Arabia.
This could truly be the most important Diriyah E-Prix there’s ever been in Formula E…
