Q&A with Salvador Duran: “Formula E seems to be a total success”

By Rosa Elena Torres | Today we catch a rising motorsport star – Salvador Duran, an impressive driver from Mexico who is racing for the Trulli Formula E Team, to hear his thoughts on the evolution of Formula E.

What is your personal opinion about the results of the first season of Formula E?

From my point of view, Formula E seems to be a total success. No major problems on the reliability side and so far the best venues on street circuits that I have ever seen. Most of the sponsors involved are more than happy with the business results of the first season. They simply get a return on their investment that is much bigger than in any other racing series.

I don’t believe any other motorsport series had this kind of competition this year, certainly not Formula 1.

How would you describe the atmosphere among Formula E professionals?

People are open and easy going here. One of the most fun things in Formula E is the fans – we get very close to people watching the races, so do the engineers and other professionals. Spectators can come for free and talk with a driver they like whilst it can be truly difficult to approach racers in other series of motorsport.

In relation to the visual appeal, will Formula E cars change in the near future?

I don’t think the cars will change significantly in the visual sense. Most of the changes will come in the areas of powertrain and batteries, and that’s absolutely natural.

How could the relationships between Formula E and other sectors be improved?

Everyone involved in Formula E, especially Alejandro Agag, is trying to get as many people closer to this new form of racing as possible. What we want is to show what we are doing, not just have people watching us and comparing us to other series. Let’s face it – we’re just not like any other racing series. We are something new, something innovative, and I guess that’s exactly why many of the manufacturers are already willing to be involved in Formula E.

Do you think Formula 1 should also change?

Formula E’s success partly lies in the way we approach the fans and how the fans approach us. Also, we had 35 drivers in the first season and the winner of the championship won by a single point – it was only all clear in the last 5 laps of the final race. I don’t believe any other motorsport series had this kind of competition this year, certainly not Formula 1. Of course, I can’t tell people working in Formula 1 to do this or that, but I can definitely stress that many things done in Formula E – in terms of marketing, public relations, business strategies, interactivity – are done extremely well, that’s simply obvious. As for the excitement, let me give you a little example: even when I return home after the race, I’m really looking forward to watching the replay because it’s just so thrilling.

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