page_title: 2018 Rome ePrix
section_title: Preparations
hierarchical_section_title: 2018 Rome ePrix / Background / Preparations
caption_attribution_description: English: Virginia Raggi in Sala Depero in the builing of the Autonomous Province of Trento for the Festival of Economics. Italiano: Virginia Raggi in Sala Depero nel Palazzo della Provincia autonoma di Trento per il Festival dell'Economia.
context_page_description: The 2018 Rome ePrix was a Formula E electric car race held at the Circuito Cittadino dell'EUR in the EUR residential and business district of the Italian capital of Rome on 14 April 2018 before a crowd of 45,000 people. It was the seventh round of the 2017–18 Formula E season and the inaugural running of the event. The 33-lap race was won by Virgin driver Sam Bird from a second position start. Lucas di Grassi finished second for Audi and Techeetah driver André Lotterer took third.
  Felix Rosenqvist of Mahindra won the pole position by recording the fastest lap in qualifying and maintained the lead through the mandatory pit stops for the change into a second car until he hit a kerb on the 22nd lap and retired with a broken rear-left suspension. That allowed Bird into the lead but he was challenged by Jaguar's Mitch Evans, who had made a pit stop one lap later and had more electrical energy, with four laps left but he could not get ahead. Evans was then passed by di Grassi and Lotterer in the final laps as his energy depleted and Bird held off di Grassi to take his second victory of the season and the seventh of his career.
context_section_description: Plans for a Formula E race around the streets of the Italian capital of Rome were discussed on 1 December 2012 by Todt, and series founder and CEO Alejandro Agag with Gianni Alemanno, the mayor. They agreed to hold a race in the city in the 2014–15 season. On 1 October 2013 however, these plans changed when the initial season calendar was released, dropping the Rome race with Hong Kong. A new administration had been elected in the intervening period of time and it decided against taking further action in restoring the ePrix to the calendar. But, the project was revitalised when in November 2016, Rome's councillor for sports Daniele Frongia told news agency Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata that the recently elected administration of Virginia Raggi was in the process of planning for major events slated for 2017 and 2018. Raggi maintained written correspondence with the FIA concerning the restoration of Rome to the Formula E calendar.
  After a meeting of councillors at Rome City Hall, Agag met Raggi and a congregation of city officials in February 2017 to discuss a series of requests and evaluated a potential circuit. The group held another meeting a few weeks later for further negotiation. Two months later on 20 April, the proposal for a motor race on the streets of Rome was put forward to authorities from the local assembly who voted unanimously in favour to approve permits to allow racing in the city's EUR residential and business district for the next five years. The ePrix was added to the FIA's provisional 2017–18 calendar on 19 June, and was officially confirmed as part of the series by the FIA World Motor Sport Council three months later. It was the seventh of twelve scheduled single seater electric car rounds of the 2017–18 season and took place at the Circuito Cittadino dell'EUR street circuit on 18 April 2018. Prior to the ePrix, Rome last hosted a street circuit race at the Baths of Caracalla in 1951. Organisers expected 30,000 people to attend the ePrix.
  The layout of the 21-turn 2.86 km (1.78 mi) street circuit was unveiled to the public on 19 October 2017. It was the second longest track on the Formula E calendar after the Circuit International Automobile Moulay El Hassan in Marrakesh. The start line was positioned on the Via Cristoforo Colombo and the finish line was positioned near the Marconi Obelisk. The circuit negotiated past major city buildings such as the Rome Convection Center and the Palazzo dei Congressi. Construction of the track began on 3 April, eleven days before the ePrix, and was completed on 12 April. It was dismantled two days after the race. The circuit received a mixed response. Lucas di Grassi (Audi) disliked the chicane while Nick Heidfeld (Mahindra) believed the turn would be more challenging than it appeared. Nico Prost of e.Dams-Renault felt that turns four and five would provide a great amount of challenge and it reminded him of the Montreal Street Circuit. However, several drivers raised concerns over the position of the starting grid. Di Grassi argued it should have been placed after turn two while Heidfeld doubted that moving the start line would make any significant difference.
caption: Virginia Raggi (pictured in 2016) was instrumental in getting Rome onto the Formula E calendar after the city's previous administration abandoned the plan.
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