Mr Le Mans

Part II of Audi Magazine’s chat with The Great Dane, Tom Kristensen.

Arguably the most complete racer of the modern age, Tom Kristensen shares his views on racing and the future of motorsport.

Story by Peter McKay

9 October, 2018

Kristensen has firm thoughts on the future of motor racing, which in recent times has come in for criticism from fans who have been demanding more noise from Formula One cars, and less predictable racing?

Formula One is moving to new, much-debated rules in 2021.

“It’s always a balance. Racecar technology has to have relevance to road cars to attract manufacturers. But it is also important to understand what makes this a sport, and entertainment. Brilliant engineers around the table must help make regulations. Engineers also listen to the [manufacturers’] board people.”

But shouldn’t the rule makers also be listening to the people, the fans? “Definitely. Formula One is doing that now with the new owners Liberty Media. But Liberty and the FIA must also listen to the teams and the drivers. Locking in the new regulations is a slow process. It’s taking longer than they first thought. Engineers don’t like to go away from what they have.”

He rues the complexity of modern racing cars and doesn’t like the freedom given to drivers to constantly adjust their machines from the cockpit during races. Whilst he doesn’t sense Formula One should follow Damon Hill’s suggestion of returning to basics, meaning no wings, he says he has warned the FIA and Liberty not to optimise too much, not to make the next-generation of race cars too complicated and sophisticated. “We can’t live in the past, either.”

In his role as president of the FIA Drivers’ Commission, Kristensen isn’t backward is offering strong views of today’s motorsport. In general terms, he wants to see the best drivers better rewarded on the track.

In his role as president of the FIA Drivers’ Commission, Kristensen isn’t backward is offering strong views of today’s motorsport

...too many of today’s layouts don’t punish errors of judgement. I want a consequence of an increase in lap time after a small mistake...

The 35-turn 7.7km The Bend circuit has Kristensen’s seal of approval. “It’s a proper old-style track built today. Too many modern circuits have lots of run off and no ‘consequences’ if a driver makes a mistake.

He isn’t advocating more dangerous tracks. He doesn’t want people hurt or killed.

“But too many of today’s layouts don’t punish errors of judgement. I want a consequence of an increase in lap time after a small mistake. I want track limits less forgiving. I want drivers to respect other drivers, even when travelling side by side. Too many drivers today don’t have the right level of respect for the circuit.”

He defends his views on safety grounds, suggesting less open corners will mean drivers won’t be tempted to take the same risks.

The Le Mans great raced formula cars for many seasons and has welcomed the advent of the controversial halo driver safety hoop mandated in Formula One and other open cockpit categories including Formula E.

“It takes some visibility away from the driver but it does offer added protection and it’s still an open car.” And he adds, it will look nicer in the future.

The World Endurance Championship – his old playground – is in transition following the departure of Audi and Porsche. He has no doubts the WEC and Le Mans will rebound.

So is high level motor racing destined to be taken over by electric vehicles in the form of Formula E, which heads into its fifth season in December with even more manufacturer-aligned squads?

“No, Formula E is not the future, but it is a part of the future of the sport,” says Kristensen. “Formula E is arriving.

“It’s a pillar. It’s obviously fascinating technically and one part of success in a motor racing series is to attract many auto manufacturers and they’re all joining.”

The ex racer says the FIA is very supportive, while the Formula E environment also handily brings together corporate board members and politicians.

“The big success so far is that Formula E has gone urban, to where the people are in the big destination cities."

Choosing glamorous cities like Paris, New York, Marrakesh, Hong Kong, Monaco and Berlin for the 13-round street race calendar, Kristensen says, was a smart approach to generate interest and atmosphere. The Batmobile-esque E-technology is ever-changing too. The second-generation cars on track for the very first time in 2018/19 have double the energy storage capacity of the Gen1 car, doing away with mid-race car swaps. With 250kW of power, the Gen2 whisperers will accelerate from 0-100km/h in 3.1 seconds and go on to a top speed of 240km/h.

“The Formula E races I’ve been to are nice events. They’re more ‘events’ maybe than a top-flight, rewarding motor racing series on serious circuits. That’s what I’m used to, but I’m old school. And I see that suddenly the Formula E grid is full of good teams and drivers.

“Let’s see how the new Gen2 Formula E cars are received, but I think the category has arrived to stay and to grow.”

Tom Kristensen was an absolute adornment to motorsport throughout his professional days. And now, in his still varied and busy life in retirement, he continues to make valuable contributions to racing and the auto industry at its many different levels. A champion racer and a champion bloke.

“The big success so far is that Formula E has gone urban, to where the people are in the big destination cities"

Mr Le Mans

Part II of Audi Magazine’s chat with The Great Dane, Tom Kristensen.

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