Drivers Face Potential Fresh Formula E Clash Headache

Several FIA World Endurance Championship drivers are once again facing the prospect of a Formula E calendar clash in 2025, with Sebastien Buemi suggesting that combining the two series may not be possible for much longer.

Formula E revealed its 2024-25 calendar on Tuesday featuring 17 races spread across 11 events, an increase of one from the ongoing 2023-24 season.

While the WEC has yet to reveal its 2025 schedule, with an announcement on that front expected Friday, it is understood that the series’ trip to Interlagos is penciled in for the same weekend that Formula E is due to visit Berlin on July 12-13.

If confirmed, it would mark the second time in as many years that WEC and Formula E have clashed, with last month’s Berlin round of the all-electric series falling on the same weekend as the 6 Hours of Spa.

Toyota Gazoo Racing’s Buemi was among the four drivers forced to miss the Berlin races in order to fulfill his commitments in WEC along with stablemate Nyck de Vries, Robin Frijns (BMW) and Nico Mueller (Peugeot).

“I struggle to sometimes understand,” said Buemi when asked by Sportscar365 what he thought of the potential clash.

“I know the promoters have their own constraints, but there are not more race weekends now compared to seven or eight years ago when we managed to not have any clashes.

“It’s not good for the future. If those clashes continue, then clearly at some point then people will not want drivers to have another priority.”

Asked if he felt pressure to drop either WEC or Formula E from his schedule, Buemi replied: “I’ve been facing that pressure for ten years and somehow I survived! But it may not be the case for much longer.”

Buemi’s Envision Racing Formula E teammate Frijns was similarly frustrated when addressing the prospect of having to negotiate another clash with his BMW drive.

“I don’t like it,” Frijns told Sportscar365. “Obviously we have 52 weekends a year, but we can use 50, let’s say.

“And if you can see that WEC is doing three weekends in the course of the season of Formula E, which is 26 weekends, and if they cannot manage to have three weekends without clashing, I think it’s quite impressive.”

Peugeot driver Muller meanwhile said his situation remains unclear as his contract with the French marque runs out after 2024.

The Swiss driver was linked with a potential move to Porsche in Formula E earlier in the year, although those prospects are believed to have cooled lately.

“I’m a free agent after this season, so I have no position yet!” said Mueller.

“I love racing in both and I think it makes me a more complete racing driver. Whatever car I drive, I learn and I improve, so I would love to continue doing both. But at the moment we cannot take final decisions.

“The options I’m looking at are definitely in both worlds and in a best case scenario, combining both is what I wish to do.”

Davey Euwema contributed to this report