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Maserati MSG Racing executed a strong pre-season test at the Circuito del Jarama to wrap up its final on-track preparations for Season 11 of the FIA Formula E World Championship.
Located on the outskirts of Madrid in Spain, the test marked Formula E’s first outing at Jarama, with the venue being selected as an alternative location to the Circuit Ricardo Tormo following devastating flooding in Valencia.
The Monaco-based team started the test by establishing an initial performance baseline for its all-new Maserati Tipo Folgore, discovering the nuances of Formula E’s innovative GEN3 Evo package which is new for Season 11.
This included getting to grips with the vehicle’s revolutionary all-wheel-drive system, while also learning about the performance characteristics of all-new Hankook tyres for the coming campaign, featuring softer rubber than its Season 9 and 10 counterparts.
Throughout the test, drivers, Stoffel Vandoorne and Jake Hughes – who join the team for Season 11 – showed consistent and competitive pace, with the duo prioritising long-distance running from Wednesday afternoon before targeting performance runs late in the week.
While Stoffel ranked eighth in the test’s combined standings, Jake was 11th, with the pair completing a total of 423 laps over the course of the week.
On Friday afternoon, Stoffel and Jake handed the wheel over to Tatiana Calderon and Carrie Schreiner who competed in Formula E’ Women’s Test – the first-ever all-women test session for an FIA Championship.
Over the afternoon, Tatiana and Carrie provided expert insight in the Maserati Tipo Folgore and contributed a further XXX laps of data collection for Maserati MSG Racing ahead of the season’s start.
Season 11 of the FIA Formula E World Championship will commence on 7 December in São Paulo, Brazil.
“Firstly, all of our thoughts at Maserati MSG Racing go out to the people of Valencia following last week’s devastating floods in the region, and I would like to thank Formula E for pulling this test together, despite the short notice. Only a handful of days ago, it felt like it would be impossible for a complete test to come together at such short notice, but here we are at Jarama, and everything has gone smoothly. I was last at Jarama 20 years ago when I was a junior engineer working in endurance racing, and not having any sim data, or historic data, has presented a big challenge, but every team is in the same situation and its been an interesting scenario to contend with.
“Stoffel and Jake have gotten up to speed very quickly, and have integrated themselves well into the team, despite having a lot of new systems and processes to learn. Given our past relationship with Stoffel, he’s had less of a learning curve, but Jake has especially impressed us with how fast he adapted to a completely new package. Our pace over one lap and in race simulations has been promising, and overall, I think we’ve done a good job. Obviously, this is just pre-season testing so we need to keep our feet on the ground. We’ll only see the true result of our hard work in the off-season when we arrive in São Paulo.”
“That’s my first test with the team completed, and it’s been a long week, but a productive week I would say. We’ve done a lot of running, and have racked up a lot of miles, and we’ve learned a great deal from that. Part of my week was also about building my relationship with the team and my engineers, and I’m very satisfied with where we currently are. We still have a few weeks before the first race of the season, and during this time we need to dig in deep and keep working so we can be in the best shape possible for Brazil.”
“We’ve had a really positive test this week. We’ve been fast, and most importantly, we’ve been consistent at every stage. I’ve enjoyed working with everyone, and the team has been very welcoming – I already feel at home. We have a lot of data to go through after the test and we still have a lot to learn, refine, and develop, but I’m looking forward to the season-opener in Brazil.”
“The test was a very nice experience, especially feeling the difference between the 300kW and 350kW modes with the all-wheel-drive technology. Unfortunately, I made a mistake during my final run which cost me a lot of time, but overall, it’s been a great day. I want to thank the team for getting me up to speed, integrating me into the car, and understanding the GEN3 Evo and especially the new tyres. It was a pleasure, and I would love to be back in the future.”
“All in all, the test went very well. Today was my first time in the car, and my first time driving at Jarama as well. I learned a lot from my time in the cockpit, and in hindsight, there are some things that I would do differently, especially in my final run, but that’s just part of testing. I had a good feeling in the car, and with the team. It was a good start.”
"On behalf of the Maserati family, I would like to express our deepest condolences to everyone affected at this extremely difficult time. Pre-season testing in Madrid was an important week, both in terms of seeing our Tipo Folgore with the new livery for Season 11 for the first time on the track, and in terms of performance, as well as the innovative all-women test session. Maserati once again demonstrated its desire to be innovative, pioneering and competitive. It is crucial to approach the first race in Sāo Paulo as well prepared as possible. Maserati’s presence in Formula E is an integral part of the brand’s new strategy, to enter this new era of mobility at full speed with Folgore, constantly drawing inspiration from the 100% electric series."
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