Formula CDM Season 1 - Success?

The first season of Formula CDM - taking on the form of the European Series - has come to a close. Fraser Smith took the Drivers Championship Title while he and his teammate Leigh Aberdeen dominated the Teams Competition. It was a frantic and exciting season of racing, with open-wheeled cars doing what they do best at a great variety of circuits. Was it a success though? Or was it exactly what was expected - a test?

The excitement was quiet and subtle after the announcement, with a few drivers wanting to continue on with something familiar after Boremula 1, which is what they got. Other names from series I've either commentated on or hosted, started trickling in until the grid was full, with 26 entrants. This was great but unfortunately, without wanting to sound ungrateful, the number peaked at 27, meaning only one reserve driver.

Despite this, retention was high throughout the season, with 25 of 26 drivers taking part in Round 1 at Navarra, and only the final race meeting failing to garner the attendance of at least 20 drivers, with 18 showing up.

We saw seven different race winners throughout the championship - Lennart Schnebel starting us off in Navarra, followed by Leigh Aberdeen who, after Round 2 at Magny-Cours, wouldn't win again all season. Fraser Smith and super-sub Qio-Tiago Marteau would take four wins a piece, with Fabio Grassetto joining Qio-Tiago as the only two drivers to win both races on the night - the Italian pulling off a stunning final meeting at Imola in front of a [virtual] home crowd.

Drivers were asked for feedback into the later stages of the season, surrounding the car choice, tracks on the calendar, the way incidents were handled, and the overall organisation of the championship. I'm happy to say that things were generally positive and the field of drivers in the series were very constructive in helping shape future seasons of Formula CDM.

Speaking of, Season 2 - The Americas Series kicks off in January so it all starts again very soon. We're still using the Indy Pro 2000 PM-18, still using the "Sprint and Feature" format, with some changes, as well as the much-loved one-shot Qualifying.

Keep an eye on the Formula CDM Discord Server if you're interested or would like to find out more.