Points leader Sebastien Buemi was the first to confirm he will be prioritising his World Endurance Championship commitments, but now DS Virgin’s Sam Bird and Jose Maria Lopez have confirmed they’ll also miss the New York double header.
WEC and Formula E had previously had a gentleman’s agreement to avoid a calendar clash, but the Nurburgring organisers confirmed last summer that their race would clash with the New York races as they did not want to risk a possible clash with the German F1 race.
Bird expressed his frustration at the clash:
“I wish someone would budge,” Bird told NBC Sports. “I think there’s no need for it.
“There’s a weekend there where somebody could move and it makes it very difficult for us drivers.
“I understand that running a championship is extremely difficult and co-ordinating it is very tough. I understand this but I thought that we had an agreement that the two would not clash. It’s already broken down.
“There’s a weekend there where somebody could move and it makes it very difficult for us drivers.
“I understand that running a championship is extremely difficult and co-ordinating it is very tough. I understand this but I thought that we had an agreement that the two would not clash. It’s already broken down.
“It’s a big shame for us, and it jeopardizes our contracts.”
So far, three drivers have confirmed they’re prioritising Formula E over WEC: Rebellion Racing’s Nico Prost and Nelson Piquet, and Gulf Racing’s Adam Carroll.
Meanwhile, Lucas Di Grassi and Antonio Felix Da Costa have both said, should they find a WEC seat, they’ll prioritise Formula E.
If the clash is not resolved, it could end up being a deciding factor in the Formula E championship. Though Sebastien Buemi has appeared to dominate the season so far, there’s every chance the championship could go down to the wire as it did last season. If that’s the case, missing the double header and the 58 points available there could have a huge impact on who’s crowned champion.
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Do you think we’ll see a calendar change? Which series do you think drivers should prioritise if they have a choice? Let us know in the comments below!
