Berlin's three circuit layouts revealed

Faced with the coronavirus pandemic and the impossibility of organizing a normal end to the championship, the FIA ​​and the Formula E had agreed to consolidate the starting grid of the 100% electric single-seater series for three races at Tempelhof Airport in Berlin in August for three double races in nine days.

Three events which will be contested on three different versions of the track, the airport complex being able to easily be modulated.

The drivers will therefore operate on a track in the opposite direction to the usual circuit for the first two races on August 5 and 6. The traditional direction of the route will be resumed for rounds 8 and 9 on August 8 and 9. We will have to wait until August 12 and 13 to see a modified circuit design for the final two rounds of the year.

The track will mainly be reworked from turn n°4 with the addition of three sequences (turns 5 and 6 then 8-9 and 11-12-13) compared to the traditional version.

“Setting up three different setups for this event is a huge task in terms of production, with fewer people on site to be able to make these changes, underlines Frédéric Espinos, sporting director of Formula E.

We are doing something that has never been seen before in top-level motorsport and it is an example of the responsiveness and innovation of Formula E, it is part of our DNA. Running both ways has many implications. It's not just a matter of flipping over all the brake markers and grid squares.

Other international series wanted this to happen but their proposals were rejected by the governing bodies. We needed to ensure all broadcast technology, safety measures, barriers, buzzers and evacuations were working and plan accordingly, while making changes viable in just 24 hours, with reduced resources.

The third track will be more technical, therefore totally different again in terms of energy management and what the teams might be used to. »