As the one true rookie coming into Formula E this season, Lola Yamaha Abt driver Zane Maloney is going to be a good gauge for other junior single-seater drivers looking at their career options.
The Sauber Formula 1 junior from Barbados still had a long shot at the 2024 Formula 2 title when he made the bold decision to commit to an FE seat that meant he’d have to miss the F2 finale in Abu Dhabi this weekend to contest the FE season opener in Sao Paulo.
And the unproven nature of the new Lola Yamaha project makes this a real leap of faith.
But while the decision comes with pangs of regret - a so-so Qatar F2 weekend meant he dropped out of title contention anyway - it’s also highly rational.
“To not be able to finish that [F2] is a bit disappointing,” Maloney told The Race as he prepared for his new life in FE.
“But on the other hand, I'm very excited for this new project and the excitement overweighs the disappointment for me.
“I'll be in Brazil; I'll still be racing. I won't be at home watching the F2 round and I’m not someone who thinks about other things when I am committed.”
SHRUGGING OFF THE PRESSURE
There will be a fair amount of eyes on Maloney in Brazil but the 21-year-old has an impervious way about him when it comes to any sense of career change anxiety.
“There's no pressure, but there hasn't been any pressure in my career in general,” he says matter-of-factly.
“I don’t feel it because I put pressure on myself no matter what I do. So, from that aspect, nothing really changes other than I'll be driving a Formula E car on the same weekend that the F2 is going on.”
It’s going to be about as different a challenge as can be for Maloney. Formula E in Sao Paulo will be a classic pack-racing affair, a test of guile and elbows out strategy.
“Everything's different, everything you need to adapt to,” he adds.
“I think it's a good thing being so different. When I go to F2, I forget everything about Formula E. When I go to Formula E, I forget everything about F2. It's a completely different way of driving, a completely different way of managing things, managing the tyres.
“Obviously it's electric in Formula E. I'm working with a lot more people here in Formula E as well, so from my side it's a lot to adapt to, but my focus is fully on Formula E. This is my job now.”
Maloney had a positive Jarama test, setting a time just under 0.4 seconds quicker than past champion team-mate Lucas di Grassi, although ultimate pace was fraught with analytical hurdles due to differing run plans and the fact that Lola was still finding its operational feet on many aspects.
He effectively lost a session when an electrical issue triggered the accident data recorder to flag a crash event which resulted in the battery switching off as per safety regulations. But he returned to the track in the final session of the test in which he set the fastest lap of the four days for Lola Yamaha Abt.
The feedback from the team on Maloney’s initiation has been universally positive with the clarity of his technical feedback being described as excellent and comments that his overarching attitude to testing was mature beyond his tender years.
LEARNING FROM DI GRASSI
Maloney met di Grassi for the first time at a test at Varano in September. Since that time, he’s developed a respectful relationship, soaking up a vast bank of experience and know-how from the 2016-17 FE champion.
“I think experience is always key and I've been learning a lot from Lucas,” said Maloney.
“Of course, I’m coming with my own inputs as well from the categories that I've driven. But he's very experienced and he's been in Formula E a long time. He knows what's going on in this world of racing.
“So, anything I can learn from him, I've taken and I will continue to learn throughout the whole year. That's for sure.
“Each driver needs something different from the car, from the team. So, it's just managing how much I go with him and learn from him and how much I go my own way. It's always a bit of a compromise when it comes to that. But so far, we've been working very well together.
“He's brought a lot of experience and I brought the youth with some new ideas.”
When di Grassi and the likes of old arch-rival Sebastien Buemi stepped away from any remaining F1 thoughts and committed to Formula E for its inaugural season, they helped prove the brand-new championship’s worth as an F1 alternative for a generation of drivers.
Maloney’s bold decision to step off the F1 ladder when so close to its peak makes him a brave Formula E envoy for a new generation at a time when many teams in the series will be looking to youth for their Gen4 era driver options.
