Components E might have taken a brief break in its calendar, however the previous couple of weeks have however been very busy for the Franco-American DS Penske staff.
First, there was the return from Shanghai and the debriefing periods, to analyse the performances recorded and guarantee their sustainability. Then, the staff moved on to the Gen 3 EVO checks on the Mallorca circuit (Spain), to arrange for subsequent season.
For Jean-Éric Vergne and Stoffel Vandoorne, who’re additionally competing with Peugeot within the World Endurance Championship, there was the Le Mans 24 Hours on 15 and 16 June, earlier than it was again to the world of Components E to arrange for the assembly in Portland.
On this everlasting circuit within the north-west of the USA, Components E goes from one to 2 races this yr. The venue hosted IndyCar till 2010 and nonetheless hosts NASCAR, with the newest occasion happening in Could.
With its 12 bends and just a little over 3.3 km in size, the Portland circuit is taken into account by drivers to be one of the vital troublesome by way of vitality technique.
Portland is a circuit aside
As we noticed final season, very similar to São Paulo (Brazil), this observe is the vector of excessive vitality consumption. It’s a kind of circuits the place main the race will be detrimental to the standings, and the place you must undertake a method of alternating on the entrance.
The danger is that if you’re within the pack, there’s numerous contact.
Jean-Eric Vergne, DS Penske, Stoffel Vandoorne, DS Penske
Picture by: DPPI
“It is essentially the most sophisticated circuit we have come throughout from an vitality viewpoint,” stated Vergne.
“Within the simulator, we would by no means labored on a observe the place you needed to keep to this point again within the pack to preserve vitality. With the very excessive aerodynamic drag of those electrical single-seaters, you’ll be able to simply save 20 p.c of vitality on every lap by staying behind the chief, and it is clear that other than pole place there is no level in being first till the previous couple of laps.”
What is going to occur this yr, when the occasion is a double-header? The suspense stays, but it surely ought to be seen as a double alternative to attain massive factors for essentially the most skilled groups, of which DS Penske is one.