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Happy New Year! As 2016 comes to an end, we look back at the key events that have taken place over the past 12 months. But this is not a season review, this is a review of Formula E in 2016, which means that it contains elements of both the 2015/16 and the 2016/17 season, within which we are currently in the midst.
Illustrating its commitment to eSports, Formula E held its first Race Off, pitting Bruno Senna against Nico Prost in a head-to-head battle.
Senna came out on top at in the Gfinity Arena in London, claiming bragging rights in the virtual extension of one of the most famous battles in motorsport.
In real racing news, Mike Conway was confirmed as Jacques Villeneuve’s replacement at Venturi, while Salvador Duran rejoined Team Aguri.
February
Sam Bird claimed the first victory for the DS Virgin Racing partnership after fending off the charging Sebastien Buemi in Buenos Aires. A mistake in qualifying left Buemi at the back of the grid. In a storming performance he rose to second, but Bird defended brilliantly for the win.
The new location for the Berlin ePrix was confirmed, taking in Karl-Marx-Allee, while Formula E was very proud to have been shortlisted for two Sports Technology awards
March
Jerome D’Ambrosio was awarded victory in the Mexico ePrix after on-track winner Lucas di Grassi was penalised post-race after one of his cars was found to be underweight.
The podium ceremony took place on the stage built for the Rolling Stones in front of a huge crowd in the stadium section of the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez.
Roborace, the world’s first autonomous racing car series, was confirmed as part of the event package for season three of the FIA Formula E Championship.
April
Di Grassi got his title charge back on track with victory in the Long Beach ePrix, taking the lead from Sam Bird with a great overtake. Back in ninth place, Simona de Silvestro became the first female driver to score a point in Formula E.
Over five million people watched Leap Of Faith, Formula E’s ground-breaking stunt during which Damien Walters back flipped over a speeding all-electric racing car despite facing away from the direction from which it was travelling.
Di Grassi made it a month to remember with victory in the inaugural Formula E race in Paris, which also marked the debut of Ma Qing Hua in the series, as the Chinese driver replaced Salvador Duran at Team Aguri.
May
Rene Rast stood in for DTM-tied Antonio Felix da Costa at Team Aguri for the Berlin ePrix, which was won in style by Buemi after he passed pole man Jean-Eric Vergne.
The first pictures of the new Jaguar Formula E team, which had confirmed it would be on the grid for the 2016/17 season, were released.
June
Leap Of Faith picked up a coveted Cannes Lion award for Visual Storytelling in Sports Entertainment, teeing the series up for its conclusion in London in the perfect style.
On top of this, Formula E also picked up two awards in the Broadcast Digital Awards, while the takeover of Team Aguri by the investors behind TECHEETAH was completed.
July
A controversial clash between Buemi and di Grassi in the season finale settled the championship in favour of the former, but only after he collected the bonus points for Visa Fastest Lap.
Nico Prost rounded off the season with back-to-back wins to help ensure that Renault e.dams retained the teams title.
DS Virgin Racing announced the signing of WTCC champion Jose Maria Lopez to partner Sam Bird in the team for season three, while Formula E confirmed that there would be a dramatic new look for the car for the new season with the addition of a redesigned front wing.
August
Ahead of pre-season testing Maro Engel was confirmed as Stephane Sarrazin’s team-mate at Venturi, Felix da Costa switched to Andretti to partner Robin Frijns and Mahindra announced that Felix Rosenqvist would be Nick Heidfeld’s team-mate.
Jean-Eric Vergne made the switch to TECHEETAH and showed the reason behind the move when he broke the Formula E lap record around Donington in the first test.
September
The million-dollar Visa Vegas eRace was announced. The ground-breaking eSports events pits all 20 Formula E racers against 10 of the best sim racers in the world, who qualify through Cloud Sport’s Road to Vegas Challenge.
Jaguar confirmed Adam Carroll and Mitch Evans as its drivers and Pansonic as its title sponsor in a hi-tech launch at its factory in Gaydon.
Formula E highlighted to the impact of global warming by running a car on the Arctic ice cap in Greenland. ProjectIce goes on to receive over four million views.
The track design for the first ever New York City ePrix was revealed, while Venturi smashed its own land speed record for an electric car.
McLaren Applied Technologies was confirmed as the supplier for the new Formula E battery, which will be introduced in season five and will remove the need for the mid-race car swap.
October
Ahead of the opening race of season three a host of new liveries were launched including that of the new TECHEETAH team, while Jaguar revealed that it was partnering with virtual music act Gorillaz as part of its marketing drive.
Nelson Piquet Jr started the season in style by claiming his and NEXTEV’s first pole position, but in the race it was business as usual as Buemi began his title defence with victory.
Having confirmed its withdrawal from the World Endurance Championship, Audi revealed that it would become a full-blown manufacturer in Formula E for the 2017/18 season.
November
Buemi made it back-to-back wins with victory in the inaugural Marrakesh ePrix, leading home Bird and Rosenqvist, the latter having secured his maiden pole in just his second Formula E race.
The 50-minute documentary on the making of Project Ice – Ice Drive – was premiered in the Emotion Club the day after the Marrakesh race to a standing ovation.
Among the first four sim racers to have qualified for the Visa Vegas eRace was Graham Carroll, who received an invitation from Visa to attend the race in Morocco, where he was also given the opportunity to drive the real car for a couple of laps.
December
The build-up to the Visa Vegas eRace continued to gather momentum with the final six sim racers claiming their place. Once all 10 Road to Vegas Challenge qualifiers had been confirmed they were assigned a Formula E team to represent, adding another level of credibility to the richest, most significant event in sim racing history.
The Visa Vegas eRace takes place on January 7. A full list of where it can be viewed will be released shortly. Formula E racing returns on February 18 with the third Buenos Aires ePrix.