Motorsport: Thumbs up from Evans after debut season

Mitch Evans in action at the Monaco round of the Formula E World Championship. Photo / Photosport

Kiwi Mitch Evans is already looking forward to his second season in the Formula E championship.

The Panasonic Jaguar Racing driver completed his rookie season in the fast-growing global championship last weekend in Montreal and is pleased with his decision to take his career down the electric route.

"I loved it," the 23-year-old told The Herald. "I loved the whole championship. It was great to be part of a new team. It was Jaguar's return to racing from many years out of the sport so that was special to start this new era of racing and new era for them in Formula E.

"I enjoyed it a lot more than I was expecting.

"I knew it would be a good championship but I didn't realise I would enjoy it as much."

Evans finished his debut season 14th in the championship while his team finished in last place in the manufacturer's standings in their first season competing.

"It has been tough for us because we are a brand new team and we had a lot of things to learn especially in the first six months of the season," Evans explained.

"It was good to get a few consistent point-scoring finishes. I was really happy with how we progressed.

"The first couple of races were really tough."

After a break-through points-scoring result in Buenos Aires Evans found himself consistently in a battle for points and much more competitive than the opening three rounds of the championship.

"From qualifying seventh in Buenos Aires we stepped it up a notch and we found ways to maximize our current power train," the former New Zealand Grand Prix winner said.

The 2017-18 season begins in December so the next few months will be a hectic time as teams try to develop their package and build on what they learned this season.

Evans expects his Jaguar team to make some strides before the new season starts with development freezes lifted during the off-season.

"All the power trains are different in Formula E - all the batteries are the same but the power trains are where the manufacturer has some room to develop," he said

"We knew it was going to be tough by being two years behind everyone else in terms of experience.

"Now we can update the power trains for season four.

"This championship is so competitive so you never know when podiums or fighting for races wins are possible."

Evans is off-contract but is hoping to secure a new deal with Panasonic Jaguar Racing for the upcoming season.