Fanboost: more than just a gimmick?

Snorts of derision greeted the announcement that the FIA Formula E championship would be awarding a 5-second ‘power boost’ at every race to the three drivers who received the most fan votes on social media. ‘How could any racing series dictated by a popularity contest possibly hope be taken seriously?’ asked the sceptics. 

Even those prepared to accept the mid-race car swap – a corollary of the limitations of current technology – were apprehensive. Would unprecedented involvement from the fans in deciding the outcome instead achieve the opposite effect and detract from the winner’s achievement? Could the system be corrupted by teams with larger marketing budgets? Certainly, Fanboost would have a lot of burning questions to answer.

So how then did Fanboost go from being used as a stick to beat the series with to an established part of the furniture in such a short period of time? And was it a coincidence that Formula E’s inaugural champion – NEXTEV TCR’s Nelson Piquet Jr. – also won the most Fanboosts?

Modest beginnings

Fanboost didn’t exactly set the world alight at the inaugural race in Beijing. Although Lucas di Grassi won – thanks to the final corner altercation between Nico Prost and Nick Heidfeld – concerns over energy management meant he didn’t use his allotted boost. It was a similar story for Katherine Legge, who finished 15^th, while Bruno Senna didn’t get beyond the first lap after brushing the wall.

di Grassi won in Beijing, but didn't use his allotted Fanboost (FIA Formula E).

Having had no bearing on the outcome of the race in China, Fanboost usage was made compulsory for the second round in Putrajaya, where we saw the first fan-assisted overtake. Fittingly for such a pivotal moment in the series’ short history, it assisted Senna’s move on Prost for fourth, although the Brazilian would later crash out. Heidfeld was also awarded Fanboost – the German’s first of three on the trot – after a fan’s initiative to help recover the points lost at Beijing. The luckless Venturi driver was thwarted by a robust move from Franck Montagny – later banned for failing a random drugs test – but would recover to finish in the top ten at Punta del Este and Buenos Aires.  

Championship newcomers Jean-Eric Vergne and Salvador Duran were Fanboost winners in Uruguay, alongside Heidfeld. With a point to prove after being dropped by the Toro Rosso Formula One team, Vergne blitzed qualifying to take pole position, but showed his inexperience with energy management as he was forced to pit early. That handed Sebastien Buemi a lead he would hold to the finish, while Vergne retired from second with broken suspension. The Frenchman’s impressive showing helped convince fans to reward him with Fanboost at the next four races, peaking with a second at Long Beach.

Evolution

As the regular frontrunners began to establish themselves, voting trends gradually began to shift away from popular underdogs Legge and Duran to the genuine contenders, with Piquet, Vergne and Malaysia winner Sam Bird winning the Fanboost for round six at Long Beach.

Piquet was a hit with the fans in season one (FIA Formula E).

Piquet had gone firmly under the radar in pre-season, but marked himself out as one to watch with a strong race in Putrajaya – until Jarno Trulli’s untimely intervention broke his suspension – and two podiums on the bounce in South America. Following a fifth place in Miami, Piquet was brimming with confidence at the circuit where his father had won in Formula One 35 years before and leapt from third to the lead at turn one on the opening lap. From thereon he was never challenged, taking his first win of the season, although his dominance effectively rendered the Fanboost void.

The twisty confines of Monaco demonstrated a further, more strategic use of Fanboost. Once again Vergne came out on top in the social media ballot, but didn’t help his cause by qualifying deep in the field, leaving himself vulnerable to any first lap fracas – a common by-product of the principality’s very narrow streets. Sure enough, Daniel Abt was squeezed into the wall in turn two and rammed from behind by Senna, leaving the cars following behind nowhere to go. With broken suspension, Vergne did well just to make it back to the pits, but knowing his chances of completing the race with the usable energy remaining in his second car were next to naught, decided to change tact and used his Fanboost to set Fastest Lap.

This didn’t go unnoticed by the rest of the field. At the following two rounds in Berlin and Moscow, first Piquet, then Buemi opted to use their Fanboosts to secure the two additional points on offer for Fastest Lap, rather than save them for an overtaking opportunity. With a just five points between the two championship contenders coming into the final race in London’s Battersea Park – another circuit where overtaking opportunities would be at a premium – both men would have Fanboost, setting up a fascinating duel for Fastest Lap. 

Buemi missed out on the title in London, but the Swiss was the
one smiling when he returned to Beijing (FIA Formula E).

Buemi held the initial advantage, before his time was bettered by Oliver Turvey – another Fanboost winner – and again by Bird. Piquet put in a lap just 0.057 slower than the Virgin driver with two laps to go, but with Buemi stuck behind Senna and powerless to improve, seventh was enough to deliver him the title by a single point.

Assessing impact

Of the 35 that competed in Formula E’s inaugural season, a total of 12 different drivers won Fanboost, two of whom – Turvey and Sakon Yamamoto – appeared only in London. Of those 12, Piquet enjoyed the greatest success with Fanboost, winning two of the six races he was eligible to use it, yet he would more than likely have won both regardless. Mercifully, Fanboost was not so overbearing that those without it could not compete – race-winners Antonio Felix da Costa, Prost and Jerome d’Ambrosio didn’t win a Fanboost between them all season, while all three of Buemi’s wins came without Fanboost assistance – but achieved what it originally set out to by involving the fans in a way no other series can offer, without damaging the integrity of the racing.

A minor facelift for Season Two sees more usable energy available in race-trim – up from 150kW to 170kW – and the introduction of in-race voting until six minutes in. Fanboost winners can now access an additional 100kJ of energy from the battery within a power window of 180kW to 200kW after changing over to their second cars, although with races set to be marginally elongated, its usage will require careful consideration.  

Much like the series that adopted it, perceptions of Fanboost have come a long way in the last 12 months. What could be next in Formula E’s little box of tricks?