De Silvestro open to move into other series amid Formula E uncertainty - MotorSportsTalk

LONDON, UK – Simona de Silvestro is open to a move into another racing series after admitting that she is unsure about her future in Formula E.

De Silvestro joined Andretti Autosport after her deal with Sauber in Formula 1 fell through at the end of 2014, racing in three IndyCar events last season before making her Formula E debut in London.

The Swiss driver was given a full-time seat with Andretti for the second Formula E season, but has only finished in the top 10 on two occasions, scoring just four points. Teammate Robin Frijns has 45 to his name this season.

Speaking ahead of this weekend’s Formula E season finale in London, de Silvestro conceded that she was unsure what future she had in the series and with Andretti.

“I don’t know. There are a lot of things going on here but also in different series,” de Silvestro said.

“Right now, kind of having our ear a little bit open and see what the future holds for me. We’ll see what happens.

“There are different ways, different series. For me, I have to look at what’s the best opportunity for me, and yeah we’ll see what happens.

“For sure I’d like to be in Formula E, but there are also different series to go racing in.”

De Silvestro spoke warmly of her time with Andretti when asked to sum up racing for the team if London proves to be her final appearance in its colors.

“It was good, especially the time in IndyCar was pretty good. Also this season, I think the end of the season started to go much better,” de Silvestro said.

“I just struggled a bit in the beginning. It was pretty good, but for sure it would have been nice to have some better results throughout the whole year.”

Team boss Michael Andretti said that the team is yet to make a firm decision about its drivers for season two, but said that de Silvestro had struggled to get to grips with the Formula E car.

“These cars are different. You either have the knack for them or you don’t,” Andretti said.

“She was really good in IndyCar, but she’s struggled a little bit on these. I think it’s been a bit frustrating for her, and obviously for us. But it’s great having her on the programme. It was really good having her with the IndyCar programme as well.

“But that’s not to say we wouldn’t do something. We haven’t made our decision 100%. She could end up somewhere else [within the Andretti programme]. It’s always possible.”

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”