When I looked around the pitlane at Paul Ricard last month as Liberty Global CEO, Mike Fries addressed the assembled dignitaries, Formula E team principals, drivers and a handful of media, there were several comedic mouths agape at what he said. “I have a message to my cousins at Formula 1,” Fries said, addressing Liberty Media Corporation, the owner of F1. “Basically, halfway doesn’t make history,” he added, clearly referencing the notional 50/50 internal combustion engine and electric split that F1 has moved towards with its 2026 rules.”Having half an electric engine? Forget it. It’s a Frankenstein!” added Fries. “All the way [100% electric] is the only way.”This car and the Gen5 and the Gen6, it’s not a race anymore. It’s over; this championship [Formula E] is going nowhere but up. We’re totally committed to this thing.”A few weeks after those remarkably bullish comments, F1 gave notice of revising its electrical stance a fair bit with …
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Author: Sam Smith
