Extreme E Series set for 2021 launch gets FIA thumbs-up

Dubai: The Chief Executive Officer of Extreme E – the pioneering electric off-road motor racing series – has welcomed the latest status granted to the competition.

Earlier this week, the Extreme E motor racing series was granted status as an FIA International Series, a move that will see not just an instant recognition of the brand, but help the sport veer in the right direction, according to CEO Alejandro Agag. The decision was made during the FIA World Motor Sport Council (WMSC), hosted by FIA President Jean Todt in Paris earlier this week.

The Extreme E series is scheduled to kick-off in early 2021 and the virtual launch of the series will be held at 14 GMT (6 pm UAE) on October 27.

“All of us at Extreme E are delighted to have this seal of approval and be officially classified as an FIA International Series. We’ve been working hard towards this goal and the speed of recognition by the FIA gives us all a great confidence boost as we prepare to start our first season in 2021,” Agag admitted.

“This certification confirms that Extreme E will operate to FIA international standards and we will also benefit greatly from the valuable input of the FIA and the ACM (Auto Club de Monaco). The FIA’s decades of sporting and technical expertise will be a great addition as we get started on this exciting new sporting journey together,” he added.

Extreme E has attracted huge momentum in the motorsport world since its launch in January 2019 and has already celebrated many important milestones.

The FIA-sanctioned international off-road racing series that will use electric SUVs to race in remote parts of the world, from Greenland to Nepal, is meant to use all racing locations in an attempt to raise awareness for some aspects of climate change. Extreme E will maintain a ‘Legacy Programme’ which will provide social and environmental support for those locations.

Extreme E began in 2018 as a project led by Formula E founder Agag and former driver Gil de Ferran. The series was formally introduced in January 2019 with plans to begin racing in 2021.

Its cutting edge E-SUV, ODYSSEY 21, which can go from 0-100 kph in 4.5 seconds, at gradients of up to 130 per cent has received impressive reaction from world-class drivers who have tested it, including those competing at the highest level in Formula One, Dakar Rally, FIA World Rally, FIA World Rallycross, and Formula E.

The series has already evoked a lot of interest with eight world-class teams – two each from Germany, Great Britain and US, and one each from Indonesia and Spain – confirming their participation. One of the eight teams, the Team X44, is owned and founded by current six-time defending F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton.

Others on the starting grid are Andretti United (backed by Michael Andretti and Zak Brown); Chip Ganassi Racing from the US; Abt and HWA from Germany; Veloce Racing (backed by Formula E Double Champion Jean Eric-Vergne and Adrian Newey); current Formula E Three Time Champions Techeetah; and QEV Technologies from Spain.