27/4/2018

What are your impressions of your stint in Formula E and why did Jarno Trulli and his team quit the championsip?
- I think that Formula E was a very good opportunity for me, and also for Trulli as a team. We were the only Italian group in the championship, so it was really nice to bi on the inside from the beginning. There were for sure good technicians, and the team was good, but people were not experienced with that kind of technology, so I think they underestimated the project. In my case, there were no conditions to go on, because I could barely finish a race, there were always problems.

 
Even inside the team, there was an English part, which was SuperNova team, I raced with AutoGP with them, and there was the Italian part decided by Trulli. I think they didn't really get on well, so it was not possible to go on with the project, because they could not keep up the pace with the others, so they just sold everything.
 

How did it come to be that you join Formula E?
- I came there because Trulli wanted to make a team. They had the resources to do it, but they were missing the people to do it. In that moment, I was doing AutoGP with SuperNova, and it was a very successful period for me, I had just won the race in Imola, and I was working very well with SuperNova.
 

There was one test where the manager of Trulli came to see me, he was happy with my driving and the work I was doing with the team, so they decided to take that winning package. Media-wise, to have a woman was quite good, because everyone looks at you and they had a clothing sponsor, so they were happy to have a woman as a brand-ambassador, and that's how it started.
 

How do you look at the future of Formula E and the new cars that are going to be introduced?
- I think it is a good step for them, because at the moment the car is not very quick, as it could be. They want to keep the cost down, of course, so they are only allowed to change the motor. Batteries are the same for everyone, and the fact that you need to change the car in the middle of the race is not really the best message. The message needs to be that the battery is enough, that charging the car is not a problem, that you can be quick but that the battery can last long.
 

So the fact that the cars will be faster and that the battery will last longer is an important step for the championship. Even though that the car change is a funny moment. That pit stop 'shuffles the cards', so I hope that even if the battery can last the whole race, they will probably do something to still make the race interesting.