By Alan Baldwin
LONDON, June 23 (Reuters) - All-electric Formula E will adopt a new format for its coming 2026-27 Gen 4 era with its own "ePrix unleashed" version of the shorter-distance sprint races that have proved popular in Formula One and MotoGP.
The Liberty Global-owned championship will also add new circuits familiar to F1 fans, notably Brands Hatch in southern England, Zandvoort in the Netherlands and Austin's Circuit of the Americas.
The Formula E calendar will have more races than ever, with
21 held in 13 cities and the season starting and finishing with night races in Saudi Arabia's Jeddah on December 18 and 19, 2026, and Tokyo on July 24 and 25, 2027.
The ePrix unleashed format will be used where two races are scheduled over the weekend, one about 10 minutes shorter than the other rather than the significant difference seen in Formula One where sprints are about a third of the distance.
Formula E races typically last 45 minutes plus one lap, typically between 33 and 45 laps depending on the circuit. A Formula One grand prix lasts up to two hours.
The new shorter format will reduce the focus on strategy and having to manage battery power in a regular race, allowing drivers to go flat out and show the car's full performance.
"It's a very, very different proposition," Formula E chief executive Jeff Dodds told Reuters. "Maybe there's 10 minutes difference between an unleashed race and a traditional ePrix.
"The difference is one is a purely strategic game of chess on a racetrack -- energy management, very complex -- the other is more full send, much less energy restrictions and 450kw of four-wheel drive power.
"So they are going to feel like completely different races."
NEW GEN 4 CAR TO BE SIGNIFICANTLY FASTER
The Gen 4 car can do more than 335 kph (208 mph), with 0-100 achieved in 1.8 seconds and 0-200 in 4.4.
It will have 50% more power in race mode than the current Gen3 Evo model and be on average 10 seconds faster per lap in qualifying mode, with series organisers predicting the cars will be 5 seconds a lap faster on street circuits.
Dodds expects the unleashed format to appeal to a different audience.
"I think having a version that's more clippable, better for social media, much shorter attention span is not a bad thing," he said.
"And we'll only do them on double-headers. We'll only introduce them in a format whereby if you come for the weekend, you get to experience both different types of format."
NEW BRITISH HOME AT BRANDS HATCH
Brands Hatch will become a new home in Britain, after Formula E raced previously in London.
"We think for the kind of crowd we would hope to get there, we can fill Brands Hatch up and turn that into a proper amphitheatre and make it feel really special and really busy and really full," said Dodds.
The circuit, southeast of London, hosted 12 editions of the British Formula One grand prix from 1964 to 1986, when the series outgrew it.
"We think Brands Hatch has the potential to be a long-term home for us in the UK if we do it right," said Dodds.
The carbon footprint implications of racing at a non-urban track more easily accessible by car than public transport will be balanced by reduced haulage and not having to erect temporary structures, he added.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin;Editing by Alison Williams)
