The FIA has promised to keep the ‘biggest asset’ of Formula E for when it enters the Gen4 era in the upcoming 2026/27 campaign.
Formula E will move onto its fourth generation of car next season, which is a significant upgrade on its predecessors and features 800+bhp, permanent all-wheel drive and power steering.
It was recently unveiled at Circuit Paul Ricard, where the all-electric championship consistently spoke about its aims for the new ruleset and the racing format was one topic under discussion.
Formula E launches innovative Gen4 car at Circuit Paul Ricard
That is because since Formula E’s debut in 2014, its races have often been dictated by energy conservation, good strategy and driver aids like Attack Mode, which gives a car an extra 50kW and can be used for up to eight minutes.
This results in very tight contests that are usually decided across the final laps, but does often draw criticism from traditionalist fans - particularly as most overtakes are done with Attack Mode.
But Formula E was never designed for the ‘traditionalist’ and constant wheel-to-wheel battles are what it hopes to achieve, meaning it sees no reason to change the racing format.
Pablo Martino, head of Formula E for the FIA, said: “We believe that's one of the biggest assets that Formula E has.
“We have had the races with a really high amount of demands on how to manage the energy efficiency to get to the chequered flag and that has been part of Formula E since the very first race in Beijing 12 years ago.
“So, we are going to continue having that in Formula E because we believe that's one of the biggest assets.
“We will continue having the same assets that really are part of the DNA of the championship like the Attack Mode, Pit Boosters, qualifying format with the duels, everything that is capable of showcasing the best drivers in the most challenging conditions.
“So, from being the fastest driver in the qualifying session up to the driver who better manages the efficiency of the energy or the capacities of the car to get to the chequered flag at the end of the race.
“We are already working on that. We will keep the base DNA of Formula E in the core product of the Gen4, so we will not have a revolutionary change in the sporting format.”
The ‘DNA of Formula E’ was constantly under discussion in the Paul Ricard paddock, with championship personnel often claiming that Gen4 is a ‘statement of intent’ for the series.
But that begs the question as to what that actually means: is it to produce unpredictable races? Become the most watched championship? Or be a global leader in electric technology?
Motorsport.com put that question to Formula E’s co-founder and chief championship officer Alberto Longo, who said: “The aim is basically to keep on producing races that are really fun to watch, we cannot forget that we are here to entertain people.
“The show is about what is happening on track to make the people be entertained. It’s about a little bit of a mix of everything as well, so it’s not only the overtaking, but also the speed of the car, the tracks that we go to and I think everything has an impact.
“What we want is to bring new people to our sport and we base that on the entertainment on track.”
So the championship is priding itself on being a different kind of racing, regardless of whatever criticism Formula 1 has faced with its move towards more back-and-forth contests under the 2026 regulations.
“The perception that people have that the overtaking that this produces is artificial and I don't think it is,” added Longo. “It's just the perception of the people that historically have been used to a certain type of overtake.