Formula E returns to America this weekend and while New York City, Miami and Long Beach have each played host to the all-electric championship in the past, a new location awaits drivers and teams this time around Stateside.
It will be the first time the series has used the Portland layout which, for fans of IndyCar, will be a familiar sight having been a staple on the American single-seater calendar for decades.
Other than a tightening of the first right-hand corner, the rest of the 12-turn, two-mile permanent layout remains unchanged and will provide a high-speed challenge for drivers. Not only because of its sweeping bends and heavy braking zones but, perhaps more significantly, because the grass lining the edge of the circuit will offer drivers some margin for error, unlike other Formula E destinations.
“It’s the most insane track that we’ve ever been to in Formula E because it’s already a fast track and for Formula E with the Gen3, which has a lot of power, we’re going to reach speeds of 280kph [174mph],” says Mahindra’s Lucas di Grassi. “[At] Portland, you can make mistakes, so you can overdrive and still get away with it. Maybe not in a perfect lap but in a race, if you brake two or three metres too late you go wide, you come back.
“In terms of the technique, to have an optimum lap it’s as difficult as any other track, but in terms of how punitive the mistakes are in a track like this is much less than what we currently have [in Formula E]. So you change a bit the approach, you can actually be a little bit more aggressive when you drive.”
The American venue is the championship’s fourth new location this season after inaugural visits to Hyderabad, Cape Town and Sao Paulo – the latter the only one along with Portland currently confirmed on the calendar for next year.
Source: Autosport