Lucas di Grassi in Formula E anniversary interview: "In my opinion, more could have been done"

Since Lucas di Grassi's first Formula E victory ten years ago, the electric series has developed steadily. In this interview, the ABT driver, champion of the 2016/17 season, talks about the beginnings of Formula E, the development of the series and the weak points of the championship.

Lucas, what is your very first memory of Formula E?

I remember it very clearly, it was the beginning of July in 2012. I was sitting in a hotel in London and Alejandro Agag called me. Together, we had been involved in many motorsport
projects and were always thinking about new ideas, especially things that could be completely different and revolutionary in motorsport. He told me that he wanted to speak to me about a
new project that he was working on, an electric racing series. Without any specifics, car type etc, my initial reaction was that this could work. A few days later, we met up in London to
discuss what we needed to do, which in short, included doing everything from scratch.

What were your expectations before the 2014 Beijing E-Prix?

I was actually pretty nervous. We had shown very strong pace during pre-season testing. I wanted to turn that performance into a strong result, but everything was unknown to us: the
track, the race format, how everything would go. I focused on being consistent to get a good result so that we could build on that moving forward. I was only driving at about 95 percent to
make sure the car made it through the first race.

Tell us about this first E-Prix and your surprise win.

After the ridiculously slow formation lap, I started the E-Prix from the front row, running second behind Nicolas Prost. During the car change, I lost one place to Nick Heidfeld. Thereafter, I
was holding third with the two leaders in sight. Back then, we handled the energy manually in the car and I had no idea if I was in the right place in terms of the remaining energy. I was
trying to calculate the available energy versus the number of laps remaining.

And then the drama took its course...

Yes, then the final lap crash happened, when Heidfeld and Prost made contact, allowing me to slip through and win the race. It was not the way that I would have wanted to win, but we were overjoyed. Sometimes you have to take the moments of good luck. It was very cool to be the first-ever winner of an E-Prix.

What was your favourite Formula E weekend?

Easy. Winning the title in Canada in July 2017. I arrived in Montreal as the underdog in the fight for the title and it was extremely special to leave Canada as the champion.

And what was your worst Formula E weekend?

By far the race in Cape Town, when we did not race. I took part in the practice sessions, but it was the only race start that I have ever missed. Being on the grid, but not starting, was very
weird.

After ten years, which of your expectations of Formula E have been fulfilled and which haven't?

In general, Formula E has moved forward a lot. Technically, the cars are faster and better. The venues and the quality of the races, drivers and teams continued to improve through the
years. The championship is very professional and well organised. The races are very competitive. Economically, the championship fulfilled the expectations of the partners and sponsors. The overall exposure of Formula E has also improved. In the beginning, we had to explain what the championship is about, now everyone knows that Formula E exists.

That sounds mainly positive.

But, one thing that has fallen short of my expectations, is the general perception and understanding of the championship. There is a huge community that is against electric racing and in favour of traditional internal combustion motorsport. For me, motorsport does not just need to be one way, it is a sport that can use many different types of technology. I feel more could have been done to try and improve the public's perception of Formula E.

Electric racing cars offer many more design options than conventional combustion cars. Do you think Formula E is brave enough in this area?

I think one of the championship's flaws is that the people designing the cars are not car designers. At the beginning, I was fully behind the FIA being fully involved with the cars. But
now, I do not think it makes sense for the regulator to design the cars. It would be better if the FIA defines the regulations and then the manufacturers develop their own complete cars
accordingly.

Formula E has nevertheless developed many new ideas or motorsport elements. What would you like to see in the future?

On the sporting side, the championship is very good. The races are exciting and there is plenty of overtaking. In general, some of these elements, like the random lottery for qualifying and
FANBOOST towards the end, were not as exciting as they were in the beginning. But what is most important is that the championship continues to evolve, and I am mostly happy about it. And now, with the four-wheel drive next season, it will have a huge impact on the races. I've been pushing for four-wheel drive for at least seven years. I am happy that we will finally have
it, and it will be a game changer.