EXCLUSIVE: Daruvala targets ‘long-term future in Formula E’, whilst also loosing 4 kilos ahead of rookie season in search of more performance.

PHOTO CREDIT: ABB FIA Formula E World Championship/Sam Bagnall

The new rookie on the block, Jehan Daruvala has a lot to learn having made the transition from F1 feeder series, Formula 2 to Formula E, where he will represent the iconic trident, Maserati. 

Daruvala has a young motorsport career having started karting in 2011 at the age of thirteen before climbing the junior formula ranks, competing and winning the 2012 Asia-Pacific Championship, as well as the 2013 Super 1 National Championship titles. His success continued in the European F3 Championship before making the move to GP3, which later became the FIA Formula 3 Championship. He achieved a best of third in FIA F3 before taking the step up into Formula 2 where he amassed four wins, and no less 18 podiums, over four seasons before making the transition to Formula E. 

Formula E is unlike any other single-seater championship, as it requires a completely different driving technique. So, when coming from another championship, or one of the lower formula’s, a lot of adapting is required, because, no car starts a race with enough energy to finish, which means renegeneration is a very key aspect, whilst fighting for track position. 

Learning and getting to grips with energy management, whilst trying to stay ahead of 20 other drivers, is a challenging feet in itself, and after four seasons in Formula 2, Daruvala has made the transition to Formula E, with Maserati MSG Racing, an iconic manufacturer, whose history began on track over 110 years ago. 

“It's a huge privilege to drive for such a luxury brand as such as Maserati and drive for Maserati MSG Racing, to represent the trident. It means a lot to me,” he said.

Having made the move, the Maserati MSG driver will partner Maximilian Guenther in 2024, and, whilst being excited about his first full-time season in Formula E, he is under no illusion, that it will be easy. 

Jehan Daruvala claims third place finish in Saudi F2 Feature race.
PHOTO CREDIT: Jehan Daruvala [Instagram]

When making a move from one championship to another there are very different techniques needed, whether it be mindset, and driving styles. Another element is the fitness levels, and the physical preparation that comes with it. 

“I've driven Formula 3 and Formula 2 cars. I drove a Formula 1 car last year. and I've driven a Formula E car. To be honest, from a physical aspect, they're all different and physical in their own ways. I would say Formula 2 and Formula E are quite close. But, I underestimated how heavy the steering wheel would be in a Formula E car over 35 laps of a race. It was very heavy at the end of the race. And to turn the car in the stadium [in Mexico] was quite physical. Also, when I did my Formula 1 test, coming from Formula 2, yes, it was physical, but in a different way altogether. It's physical in terms of g-force, and on your neck, but then on your arms, you have power steering. So it's not physical at all on the arms. You can turn it super easily,” Daruvala explained. 

“So the energy that you save in your arms, you can use in your neck, because in a way,  it's all kind of connected. So yeah, I had my Formula 1 test two weeks before my Formula 2 race. And, I would say my Formula 2 race was even harder than my test in Formula 1 because we don't have power steering. So, the steering wheel also gets really heavy. And when your arms get tired, your whole body gets tired as well. So it's difficult to compare all of them, but I think they're all very physical. In the end, if you see all of the drivers, we're all fit.” 

The unique challenges that comes with being a racing driver, that us mere mortals don’t have to abide by, whilst health remains a key factor. We can consume almost anything, but racing drivers' are an entirely different breed, as they have to remain in peak fitness levels at all times, whilst heavily monitoring their dietary allowances. 

The 25-year-old revealed that when preparing for the move to Formula E, he lost four kilograms in order to gain ‘a few hundreds of a second’. 

“I lost four kilos moving from Formula 2 to Formula E. For my engineers, they liked it. Although, I would still have been on the weight [limit], but just for them to put the weight where they want in the car, and the weight difference, it's something that finds you less than a few hundreds of a second, but those hundreds count for them,” he said. “So over the winter, it definitely wasn't easy being back home in Mumbai for Christmas and New Year, but I made the effort and I got down to my target weight for Mexico.” 

Daruvala is no stranger to Formula E having been the test and reserve driver for Mahindra Formula E Team, but making the full-time transition from Formula 2 to Formula E, does have it’s unique challenges, from understanding to adapting to the new style of driving.

“Formula E is very different to Formula 2. I think, adapting to driving the car on the limit and fast is a whole different thing,” he tells Slipstream SA. 

“Formula 2 cars, have quite a lot of downforce. [And they have] combustion engines, while Formula E cars are all electric with not a lot of downforce. The tyres don't have a lot of grip. They're very tricky to drive. In Formula E, you are driving on really narrow tracks with walls really close to you as well. So, the main ingredients of being fast and being able to drive a race car fast kind of carries over, and it transfers once you get used to the car itself.”

He further explains that “the whole dimension of driving a race in Formula E is completely different from anything that I’m used to in the past. If you simply push too much, you're going to run out of energy before the line. So, you can be first with 100 metres to go, but you may not make it to the finish line. Which means that you need to judge what's best for you and best for the car from point A to B. And, you know, we have a whole group of people working really hard behind the scenes at the factory and at the race track trying to maximise that for us drivers to make our life a bit easier when we go onto the track. But again, in the situation when you're fighting 20 other drivers and trying to overtake them and win the race, to stay calm and kind of do it as best as possible, that's what makes Formula E super, super difficult. And it's something that is very interesting and something I have to get used to quite quickly.”

Whilst the style of racing is a lot to get to grips with for the rookie, the Maserati MSG driver, knows that he can draw from his Formula 2 experience, as the weekend formats are relatively similar, where drivers are required to prepare before the weekend, and deliver when they hit the track. 

“The main thing that I take from Formula 2 into Formula E is, of course, is the speed, but to hit the ground running straight away, to give good feedback to the engineers from lap one of free practice. So you can just evolve together as a team and build up to qualifying and then the race. So I would say that is the main learning I can take from Formula 2 into Formula E,” he said. 

Daruvala pulls off an overtake in the Ferosol in Mexico City.
PHOTO CREDIT: FIA ABB Formula E World Championship.

In any sport, performance is key to securing a long-term future, and the 25-year-old is confident that he has what it takes to make that happen. 

“I see myself in Formula E long-term. and I do that as any sportsman. But, you have to perform well, you have to get good results. And that's the only way to stay here. So that's going to be my goal for the season to keep improving and secure my future here in Formula E,” he said. 

Another key ingredient in a rookie campaign is experience, and that is not gained off track. The more laps turned, means more experience gained, which will prove vital for him, as his rookie campaign with Maserati MSG Racing continues. However, Daruvala is under no illusion that it will be an easy championship jump into a perform immediately.

“Mexico was an amazing weekend, to have all the Mexican fans there. It was the first time that I really experience something like this, and feel the crowd really behind me. Yes, it was a difficult weekend, which I did expect, as I’m the only rookie on the grid in such a competitive field,” he explained. 

“Being one of the best drivers in the world, in the best teams in the world, and making my debut was never going to be easy. And, after a difficult qualifying, it was very clear from the team side that the main goal is to see the chequered flag. So, just seeing the chequered flag and getting 37 laps of experience under my belt in a Formula E race will give me a lot of learning, which I can take into the races moving forward. And it is a box tick and it gives me confidence moving forward.”