Nyck de Vries of the Netherlands on Friday stormed to a lights-to-flag victory in the season-opening race of the Formula E championship, piloting his all-electric car under the stars in oil-rich Saudi Arabia.
De Vries, in a Mercedes, finished ahead of Switzerland’s Edoardo Mortara of Venturi and New Zealand’s Mitch Evans in a Jaguar in the floodlit Diriyah E-Prix.
Mercedes, multiple champions in Formula One, are in their second season of the Formula E series.
Photo: EPA-EFE
They finished the campaign last year with a victory helping them to third place in the constructor championship and second in the driver category with Stoffel Vandoorne of Belgium.
De Vries, 26, was Formula Two world champion in 2019 and made the podium in Formula E last season with a second place run in Berlin in June.
However, he was reluctant to predict an era of Mercedes Formula E dominance to rival the company’s stranglehold on F1.
“There is too much going on in Formula E,” said De Vries, who led from start to finish after also dominating both free practice sessions. “Today, everything went well. It’s encouraging, but we must remain humble. Tomorrow is another day.”
A second race was to be held at the same circuit yesterday.
FORMULA ONE
Reuters, LONDON
Formula One’s revenue took an US$877 million hit last year, falling 43 percent as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, owners Liberty Media reported on Friday.
Revenue totaled US$1.145 billion from US$2.022 billion in 2019.
This season featured 17 races, mostly without spectators, and had highlight events such as Monaco and Singapore canceled. The 2019 season had 21 races, while 22 were planned for last year with 23 scheduled for next year.
The sport reported an annual operating loss of US$386 million from a profit of US$17 million in 2019, and the 10 teams shared US$711 million — US$301 million less than in 2019, or a 30 percent drop.
Formula One’s primary revenue is derived from race promotion fees, broadcasting deals, and advertising and sponsorship.
The revenue also provides a significant part of the budget for smaller teams.
“Due to the reduced number of races, the duration of the season and almost no fan attendance, primary revenue unsurprisingly declined,” new chief executive Stefano Domenicali said.
He said that his predecessor Chase Carey had left strong foundations for growth, and the sport is well positioned with commercial partners.
All race promoters were clear that their events should go ahead as scheduled this year and the sport demonstrated last season that it can race safely during the pandemic, Domenicali said.
The new season starts in Bahrain on March 28.
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