David Coulthard has experienced almost everything in his career: 13 Formula 1 wins, two victories at the Monaco Grand Prix, and years spent behind the wheel of the fastest single-seaters in the world. But what he experienced this weekend in the streets of Monte-Carlo seems to have surpassed everything he knew until now.
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The former driver of Williams, McLaren and Red Bull had the opportunity to take the wheel of the future GEN4 single-seater from Formula E, a car that will officially enter competition only next season.
And after just a few demonstration laps in the streets of Monaco, Coulthard seemed almost unable to find the words.
Coulthard amazed
“It’s the most impressive acceleration I’ve ever felt in Monaco… and yet I won there twice in F1!”, he said enthusiastically.
For a driver who has experienced V10 engines, the beginnings of hybrids, and some of the most brutal cars in modern Formula 1 history, such a statement resonates strongly. Coulthard was clearly not hiding his shock at the sensations offered by this new electric generation.
According to him, the difference with the current Formula E GEN3 is immense: “You can’t even compare the GEN3 and the GEN4. The GEN3 was already a very advanced car for its time, but with the all-wheel drive of the GEN4, every corner exit delivers an acceleration you’ve never experienced before.”
Unprecedented
The Scottish driver particularly emphasizes the sensation of instant power and the confidence the car provides once the apex is passed: “As soon as you exit a corner, you realize the car can absorb everything you ask of it. It’s simply not normal. It redefines what a racing car can be.”
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The future GEN4 will combine a weight under 1000 kilos with power exceeding 800 horsepower in thermal equivalents, all with all-wheel drive. For Coulthard, this combination creates totally new sensations, even after an entire career spent driving exceptional machines.
He even compares passing under the famous Monaco tunnel to a science fiction scene: “The first time I went through the tunnel, it was like hyperdrive in Star Wars! I’ve passed there thousands of times in my life, but never like that.”
Spectacular potential
This demonstration took place in front of several current F1 drivers who came as neighbors to observe the public debut of the future Formula E, including Lando Norris, Carlos Sainz, Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto.
Meanwhile, the two E-Prix of the weekend saw Nyck de Vries give Mahindra Racing its first Formula E victory in four years on Saturday, adding even more impact to a weekend that already looked like a show of strength for the electric discipline, before the Sunday win of reigning world champion Oliver Rowland (Nissan).
According to Coulthard, this new GEN4 generation could well represent a major turning point in the history of electric motorsport. And when even a two-time Monaco winner says he is “speechless,” it almost seems like a definitive validation of the spectacular potential of Formula E.
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