In the paddock: Matt James

Motorsport knows it has to follow the lead of the road-car industry and follow a greener path. But a change of thinking is the easy part…

Motorsport and health and safety. Think about that: they aren’t easy partners. Motorsport is a riskpositive sport, and health and safety is risk averse. Motorsport and the environment. Think about that: they are not easy bedfellows. Do you want smoky fossil fuels or do you want to plant trees? Where do you want to go?

There is change everywhere. Formula E is the headline act and it will be joined by the new-for-2019 Jaguar I-pace etrophy. The World Endurance Championship put hybrid technology at the heart of what it did years ago, and F1 has its regenerative systems. And there’s the looming prospect of the fully electrified World Rallycross Championship too – that’s only two years away.

But even at the top level, there are still problems resulting from the new technology. At July’s Hungarian Grand Prix, marshals rushed to the aid of the stranded Nico Hulkenberg in practice without having received the required clearance by race control and Charlie Whiting. That could have had serious consequences.

The British Touring Car Championship has realised it can’t ignore green power and has introduced new rules to fully embrace hybrid technologies from 2022 onwards. But if you want to run a fully electric car in British motorsport, right now you can’t.

It’s odd, because half a decade ago you could run anything volt-based. Fancy doing a hillclimb in a Renault Zoe? No worries. Go ahead. It would be positively embraced. People would say: “Look at motorsport being green. How good is that?”

But not now; things have changed. Why? Because the UK rulemakers have realised that this is a massive shift in motorsport. Electrification is no longer a novelty – it’s here to stay.

There is a new landscape for car power, and it’s one where the governing body, the Motor Sports Association, is lagging behind. And it’s way, way behind the car industry too.

The MSA’S rules currently state that if you want to run an electric car in an Msa-sanctioned event, that’s fine. But the organisers need a whole new army of freshly trained marshals (which the organiser has to pay for) and also 40,000 litres of water on standby, just in case a hybrid car catches fire. I’m not joking – it’s in the rulebook. The UK government has told all car makers that, by 2030, an electric option must be offered on all road cars (or, at least, they must be able to be converted to adopt it). The UK government messed up its announcement about this and, in the confusion, the national newspapers ran a headline that all cars would be fully electric by ’30. That’s not quite true – they are required to have a serious element of electrification.

That is the crest of this crashing wave that, at least in motorsport, is not here just yet. But if you look beyond the ripples lapping at the shore, it’s gathering momentum. In motorsport, the experts in carburettors and gearboxes would not be able to tell the novice their amps from their elbows.

The BTCC has engaged with this – how long before it pervades everywhere? Electric power needs specific skills and very welltrained people. It needs expertise. It needs people who know what they’re talking about. It needs engineers and volunteers who are up to speed with the technology they’re using.

A good mate has paid for the recent hybrid training courses himself – and he is‘only’a road-car mechanic – and it cost him £4000 to become fully qualified. Understanding the new technology doesn’t come cheap.

In the manufacturer-led BTCC, the thrust to embrace hybrid technology is perfectly understandable if the UK’S premier championship wants to maintain its reputation as a high-profile environment for firms to show off their products. It absolutely has to be at the front and centre of modern thinking.

The BTCC has talked about a“limited level”of electrification and, if it’s below a certain voltage, then additional training isn’t required. That’s a sensible move, but these are only the first steps towards hybrid thinking – the systems are bound to get more complicated.

Also consider, for example, a marshal working trackside when an electric (or even semi-electric) car shunts. They will instinctively go to save the driver, who may be in peril

– but will they be wearing rubber gloves? Will they know, for example, that you can’t physically push a broken electric car if it’s still regenerating energy? The potential conflagration could be disastrous. Do they know this?

The training costs are astronomical.

The same goes for a club racing team. If this technology spreads to the clubmen, to the grassroots, then how soon before people realise they can’t afford to have an engine, suspension and electrics expert? Motor racing needs to encourage participation and this could work against it.

The answer lies with the governing body. There are hurdles to be overcome, but they aren’t insurmountable.

What they are is increasingly urgent.

“A MATE HAS PAID FOR HYBRID TRAINING  AND IT COST HIM £4000 TO BE FULLY QUALIFIED”