All-electric racing series Formula E heads to Berlin’s Tempelhof Airport this Saturday and Sunday for a double-header weekend of racing in Germany. The 20-car showdowns will be the seventh and eighth races of the season, and they take place each day at 4PM local time on a sweeping 10-turn, 2.25-kilometer (1.4-mile) layout.
This is the third time the series has raced in Berlin (you can see highlights from last year’s race here), but it’s the first time the race has taken place at Tempelhof Airport since season one. There’s a pretty good points battle between the top two in the drivers’ championship — Lucas di Grassi trails points leader Sebastien Buemi by 43 points — and Audi is within shouting distance of Renault, which leads in the race for the manufacturers’ trophy.
This is an exciting year for Formula E and a great time to start watching the young series, because big names like Jaguar and BMW have joined an already competitive field. The greater push toward electric vehicles has caused major automakers to either flock to the series or express their interest. (Mercedes has secured an option to enter in season five, and Ferrari even said it’s considering joining.)
You’re not alone if you don’t know about Formula E, but you should give it a shot — even if you don’t like racing
Formula E has only run 26 races so far, so you might be wondering just what the hell it is. You’re not alone! The series pulled in hundreds of thousands of viewers per race in both the US and the UK last season, but the awareness is still low — especially outside of the motorsports world.