Did you enjoy all our FIM eRoadRacing World Cup coverage this year? No, you didn’t miss our postings, because we didn’t mention any of the rounds on A&R. You see, it is hard to get excited about the newly minted eRoadRacing World Cup, which in the United States has been dominated by a single brand, Brammo.
While the Isle of Man’s TT Zero event continues to make headway, both in competitive entries and close racing, the newly merged racing efforts from the previously competing FIM and TTXGP series has foundered — even in its new cooperative form.
At the center of the problem is probably a variety of issues: too much too soon, not enough commitment from OEMs, and a poor racing spectacle, which is why this week’s latest news on the e-racing front is a bit of a disappointment as well: the 2013 FIM eRoadRacing World Cup finale has been cancelled.
You won’t find that fact mentioned in the series’ press release though. Instead, Ho Chi Fung and Eric Bostrom, of Zongshen and Brammo, have respectively been crowned the European and American World Cup winners.
With the American World Cup seeing only two of its three rounds actually run, the picture being painted here isn’t appealing. This year was supposed to be a development season for eRoadRacing, with 2014 seeing the series bumped to championship status, with six races over three continents. However, one has to wonder if that plan is still in place after seeing the poor response from the 2013 season.
To its credit, the FIM eRoadRacing World Cup races were held as support classes at popular FIM events, with the American series being at two MotoGP Championship rounds, and the European series at two Endurance World Championship rounds.
The potential is there though. Good venues, intriguing technology, and a list of brands like Lightning, Mission, and Mugen could all come together for some proper racing. We won’t be holding our breath though. It is a shame because without more OEM involvement, fuller grids, and more competitive machines, 2014 could be an even tougher year to not watch electric motorcycle racing.
Source: TTXGP
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