Sam Smith

Formula E

Formula E teams split as rookie test is likely to be axed again

It looks like there won’t be a Formula E rookie test for a second straight year in 2022, and some teams think more should be done to salvage it

Formula E

Track revealed for Formula E’s delayed Cape Town debut

The group behind the Cape Town E-Prix has revealed the track that is set to host the city’s first race in 2023

Formula E

Formula E’s answer to Kimi Raikkonen is hitting his stride

An ‘enigma’, ‘restless’, ‘contradictory’. But now a Formula E winner at last too. Just don’t expect Pascal Wehrlein to shout about it

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My 10 inspirational drivers – Sam Smith

Formula E

Formula E is on the cusp of solving its feast/famine blight

Formula E should be making hay while other series sleep, but it’s a quarter of a way through an eight-week break after three races in three weekends to start the year. But it’s taking the hit on that in the hope of a long-term gain

Formula E

The Formula E tradition it’s determined to revive next season

There’s a host of new venues in the mix for the first Formula E calendar of the Gen3 era, but also a return to a founding tradition the series has had to drop for the past two years

Formula E

Nissan deal for McLaren-linked Mercedes Formula E team takeover

Plans for McLaren to take over what’s currently Mercedes’ Formula E team are progressing, and a Nissan powertrain deal has been secured for it

Formula 1

What to expect from the men replacing Masi in F1

One laconic and unflappable, the other strict and direct – Eduardo Freitas and Niels Wittich will replace Michael Masi in Formula 1’s revamped race direction structure. Sam Smith explains how both men work, how they’ve been viewed by competitors in their past paddocks, and some of the controversies

Formula E

Why Porsche took so long to win in Formula E

Porsche and Mercedes committed to Formula E at the same time, but while Mercedes has already won a title and made an exit plan, Porsche is only just celebrating its first race win. Sam Smith explains why Porsche’s road to FE success has been so long and winding

Formula E

Is Formula E’s once-greatest outfit getting back on track?

The Nissan e.dams squad a long way from the force that was dominant in Formula E’s early history, but last weekend’s Mexico City round pointed to improvements

Formula E

Formula E’s all-champion team is finally back on form

At the Mexico City E-Prix, the restructured DS Techeetah Formula E team enjoyed its biggest points haul since Monaco last May

Formula E

The damage limitation and failed Formula E gamble in Mexico

Mercedes EQ and Jaguar Racing were considered to be two of the title favourites for the 2022 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship title, but varying degrees of scrappy races in the opening races may now put into some doubt that proclamation

WEC/Le Mans

How sensor development is changing rapidly

The world of piezoelectric materials and sensors is not broadly understood or covered often in motorsport. But it has a crucial dynamic in how teams, engineers and drivers gather, use, and interpret data.

Formula E

The unseen Mexico clash that thwarted two Formula E frontrunners

Mercedes-powered Formula E duo Lucas di Grassi and Stoffel Vandoorne were both left rueing an unseen late-race Mexico City clash

Formula E

Winners and losers from Mexico City Formula E 2022

After Porsche powered to a landmark first Formula E win in Mexico, we name the other winners – and the losers – of the weekend

Formula E

Team tactics and toying with rivals – Inside Porsche’s FE win

Porsche’s overdue first Formula E victory was a masterclass of team discipline and cleverly using a performance advantage to dupe its rivals

Formula E

Pressure on Porsche to finally get first Formula E win is huge

Pressure is building on Porsche’s Formula E programme and its new boss as the wait for a first win goes on. That means there’s a lot riding on its latest pole in Mexico

Formula E

Mexico City E-Prix track tweaked ahead of Formula E’s return

Subtle revisions to some layout details of the Mexico City E-Prix circuit, combined with critical tyre management strategies, could play crucial roles in the third round of this year’s Formula E World Championship on Saturday

Formula E

Formula E’s 2022 stewarding promise already under fire

Formula E vowed to have clearer and more consistent stewarding decisions heading into its 2022 season. But the season-opener only increased ill feelings among the drivers

Formula E

Top five Formula E screw-ups in Mexico

No Formula E race has featured as many dramatic heartbreaking moments as the Mexico City E-Prix since it joined the calendar in 2016. Sam Smith ranks five of the biggest

Formula E

What’s next for Formula E’s new qualifying format?

Formula E’s new qualifying system, hit or miss? And what might change for this weekend’s Mexico E-Prix? Sam Smith has the answers

Formula E

Porsche Formula E doubts linger as F1 decision looms

An answer on whether Porsche commits to Formula 1 – and whether it consequently leaves Formula E after 2024 – is not far away. Here’s what Porsche’s new motorsport boss thinks about the situation

Formula E

Formula E tops new motorsport sustainability ranking

A new ranking index scoring motorsport championships on their sustainability credentials has concluded that Formula E is the most environmentally conscious series currently operating.

Formula E

How Formula E’s first big 2023 team move happened

Formula E’s Gen3 ‘dating game’ has produced its first marriage. Sam Smith explains why Jaguar has put its faith in Envision

Formula E

Jaguar secures its first Formula E customer team

Envision Racing will become Jaguar’s first Formula E customer team and run its technical packages for the entire duration of the Gen3 rules

Formula E

Formula E set for Paris return in 2023 at revised venue

Formula E is aiming for a return to Paris in 2023 after a four-year absence from the French capital, but the track is set to be significantly revised to bring it up to fuller FIA standards

Formula E

The two-point Formula E debut that’s much better than it sounds

The push-and-shove nature of Formula E is a far cry from the Road to Indy ladder, but one driver to take the plunge turned heads on his series debut in Diriyah

Formula E

Details of Formula E’s inaugural Jakarta E-Prix emerge

Formula E’s inaugural Jakarta E-Prix in Indonesia will take place at the Ancol beach resort after the initially intended inner city location was dropped

Formula E

Senior figure in Porsche’s Formula E team resigns

One of the senior figures in the Porsche Formula E team, Amiel Lindesay, has this week left his position after tendering his resignation recently

Formula E

What went on in da Costa’s disastrous Diriyah weekend

Diriyah marked the first weekend that Antonio Felix da Costa failed to score points during his DS Techeetah Formula E stint

Formula E

A rival’s glimmer of hope amid Mercedes’ Saudi sweep

Mercedes powertrains ruled the roost in Formula E’s Diriyah opener, and its rivals are in for a “very tough season” – but not a hopeless one

Formula E

McLaren in talks over future of Mercedes Formula E team

McLaren is in talks with what is currently the Mercedes Formula E team about the potential creation of an independent ‘super team’ to keep the reigning champion squad in the championship beyond Mercedes’ factory exit this summer

Formula E

Jaguar’s sluggish Formula E start could prove costly

Jaguar headed into the 2021-22 Formula E season as one of the title favourites but a tardy opening weekend leaves it 45 points behind championship leaders Venturi. Sam Smith explains where it all went wrong

Formula E

Why did Giovinazzi’s Formula E debut look so bad?

Formula 1 convert Antonio Giovinazzi spent much of his first Formula E weekend in last place. Sam Smith looks at how to judge the Dragon driver’s performance and gets Giovinazzi’s take

Formula E

How Mercedes EQ’s Formula E weekend imploded

Friday: the works Mercedes team begins its last Formula E season with an imperious 1-2. Saturday: Its polesitter is bundled down to 10th and its other car only qualifies 12th. What went wrong?

Formula E

Winners and losers from Diriyah Formula E 2022

Hugely varied fortunes for the two teams that had been pre-season favourites, some positive surprises and a career low for a past champion – here is Sam Smith’s pick of the stars and flops from Formula E’s 2022 season-opener

Formula E

Crane on track incidents alarm Formula E drivers

“There are people who crashed into each other because nobody told us that there was a crane on track” – Sam Smith got enraged drivers’ views and the race director’s apology after concerning recovery vehicle incidents in Formula E’s Diriyah opener

Formula E

Formula E’s contentious safety car finish explained

A month after Formula 1’s controversy around a race that didn’t finish behind the safety car, Formula E’s facing questions over one that did. Sam Smith got the FIA’s take on the anti-climax in Diriyah

Formula E

The dark horse to stop Mercedes’ Formula E opener domination

Mercedes walked away with a crushingly dominant one-two finish in Formula E’s 2022 season-opener. But its customer Venturi team is keen to ensure Mercedes can’t repeat that on Saturday in Diriyah

Formula E

‘80% new’ Andretti’s post-BMW change is bigger than you think

Andretti has had to rebuild its Formula E team after BMW’s exit. Yet it was straight on the podium as 2022 began, getting closer than anyone to the dominant Mercedes