Latest news with #ExtremeE
West Australian
17-05-2025
- Automotive
- West Australian
Molly Taylor driving home gender equality
Extreme E's mixed-gender racing is breaking boundaries in motorsport, and Australian trailblazer driver Molly Taylor is at the forefront. Extreme E is a five-race series in four continents, racing electric SUV's off-road vehicles in extreme locations and conditions. It has taken a real lead in gender equality. In 2016, Molly became the youngest ever winner of the Australian Rally Championship. She is also the first and still the only female champion. With co-driver Bill Hayes, she won WA's Forest Rally in 2017. Then, in 2021, she joined Extreme E and won the inaugural Extreme E World Championship with Johan Kristoffersson. Over its first four seasons, Extreme E has built a number of female drivers. But Molly, driving for team Next Veloce Racing, stands out. She won the inaugural championship title and has achieved eight major victories. She has the most victories of any female driver and the second most overall — just one fewer than double champion Johan Kristoffersson (despite competing in three fewer events). And data shows that, in those four seasons, the gap in performance times between male and female drivers has narrowed by almost 70 per cent. An Extreme E spokesperson says that value is due to 'equitable competition environments'. Molly, who has raced with the series from the beginning, said: 'Extreme E has without a doubt changed the course of my career and I'm confident all the female drivers in the series would say the same thing. 'We all know how challenging motorsport is, but what Extreme E has proven is that with the right opportunity, exposure, development and investment we can see women reach the top. 'It can be a difficult cycle to break; you need the seat time to prove your potential, but you need results to attract the support needed to access that very seat time. 'Extreme E put themselves out there and tried something new to force change and it makes me so proud to be one of the drivers to prove the success of this concept. 'We have built some strong momentum and, whilst this doesn't alleviate the continuing challenges of motorsport, we are making change. It's pretty special and something I hope motorsport can learn from more broadly.' Molly took part in SAS Australia season one, and is an ambassador for Girls on Track, a female motorsport initiative. +
New York Times
02-05-2025
- Automotive
- New York Times
Cadillac's Road to Formula 1
In every sense, the clock is ticking on Cadillac's entry into Formula 1 next year. In March, Cadillac, supported by General Motors and TWG Motorsports, received final approval from Formula 1, expanding the grid to 11 teams for the first time since 2016. 'As soon as we got the entry, one of the things that changed is they put up a countdown clock at the factory in Silverstone,' Dan Towriss, the chief executive of TWG Motorsports, said in an interview in April. The company is a division of TWG Global, which has a sports portfolio that includes the Chelsea Football Club and the Los Angeles Dodgers and Lakers. 'We know exactly how many days to the engine's fired, how many days to the first race,' he said. 'That's how we have to think about it because there's so much work to do between now and then. It's moving faster than I want it to.' The Cadillac entry started life as Andretti Formula Racing two years ago. The F.I.A., the governing body of Formula 1, approved the proposal from Michael Andretti, the initial force behind the bid. A few months later, it was rejected by Formula 1. In an interview a year ago with The New York Times, Andretti said he would fight. Last fall, he stepped back as chief executive of Andretti Global, which owns teams in IndyCar, Formula E, Extreme E and Australian Supercars. He decided 'it was time to pass the baton' to his business partner Towriss. 'From Michael's standpoint, he was very magnanimous in a way,' said Towriss, who has known Andretti since 2017. 'He didn't want to stand in the way of this project. 'It was a long process, a taxing process, and so he chose to step away. He wasn't asked to step away, he wasn't asked to leave. I think he saw that a level of acceptance wasn't there for him.' Towriss said the move 'opened the door' with Formula 1. Five months later, Stefano Domenicali, Formula 1 president and chief executive, welcomed Cadillac. With the commitment of G.M. to bring in a Cadillac team, Domenicali said, 'it was an important and positive demonstration of the evolution of our sport.' Cadillac will become the second U.S. automaker to have a presence in the sport. Ford will provide power units to Red Bull, also starting in 2026. Towriss is saddened that Andretti stepped down. 'Just tremendous respect for what the family legacy is in motorsports, for him personally, for Mario, and the family from that standpoint,' he said, referring to Andretti's father. 'My personal opinion is that it all felt a bit unfair to be singled out in that way,' he said. 'To his credit, at some point, you just have to accept the situation for what it is and move on. With his blessing, that's what we did.' Throughout the process, the team did not stand still. Workers were hired, and the facility in Silverstone, England, was opened a year ago to complement its headquarters near Indianapolis. Formula 1's approval has accelerated the project's growth. Without a guarantee from Formula 1 of acceptance, the company still had to make a commitment. 'It was not for the faint of heart,' Towriss said. 'It takes a long time to build a Formula 1 team. I don't think anybody on our side, or anybody who knows the sport, thinks you can just show up and in a short period of time, do that. 'If we had waited until the point we were approved and then said, 'Great, now let's start hiring people, let's start building,' we'd be a long way from racing at that point.' Towriss said that Graeme Lowdon, a longtime Formula 1 executive who advised the team, was a great salesperson in convincing people to join the team. Lowdon was chief executive of the now-defunct Manor Racing. He had also been a consultant on the acquisition in 2020 of the Williams Formula 1 team by Dorilton Capital, a private investment firm whose headquarters are in New York City. In December, Lowdon was announced as the team principal of Cadillac. 'At the very beginning, a big part of the advice was to tell them to start building the team now,' he said in an interview in April. 'Then my engagement changed because they said: 'OK, we're happy with all this advice. Now you're asking us to build a team. Can you go from advising to doing it?' I guess I must have earned their trust, and they must have had confidence in what I'm doing because they then asked me to be the team principal.' Being offered the position did not come out of the blue. 'Even on our entry, I was down as the team principal,' he said. 'For two years now, on our race license — and we have a U.S. race license, and an international race license — it's my picture on it. That was something that was envisaged fairly early on.' Throughout the two years, Lowdon never doubted that the bid would fail. 'There is absolutely no scenario on earth where you could keep a perfectly good sports team from competing in a world championship,' he said, although there was a consequence. 'The thing that worried me and stressed me enormously, and I have to say it took a toll on me big time, was that it's one thing saying it will definitely happen, it's another saying when. 'We completely respected the process. Our role was to answer questions, but there's only so much of that you can do. That was an unpleasant and enormously difficult period.' The team has about 350 employees, with a target of 550 by the end of the year. Pat Symonds, former chief technical officer of Formula 1, has become the executive engineering consultant. and Nick Chester, once a technical director at Renault, is the chief technical officer. 'I thought it was going to be super difficult to hire people, but it was much easier than I thought,' Lowdon said. 'The reality is, we were very lucky. We were in a position where a lot of the early discussions with key people who came on board shared the vision.' 'On the day our entry was confirmed, we wrote to them, with an old-fashioned letter. It wasn't an 'at-all' email. The reason for that is they'd all taken a bit of a leap of faith, and we wanted to show our appreciation personally.' For the first three seasons, Cadillac will be powered by Ferrari engines until G.M. builds its power unit, which will debut in 2029. Mark Reuss, the president of G.M., said in an interview in April that it was 'a moment filled with pride, a truly historic event for the entire company' when Formula 1 confirmed the entry. From 2026 through 2028, G.M. will support Cadillac technically, including aerodynamics, performance engineering and manufacturing as it builds to become 'a distinctly American team,' Reuss said. He is aware of the challenge ahead. 'G.M. and Cadillac have been at the forefront of racing and winning in elite series for more than a century,' he said. 'We do not underestimate the level of competition nor the level of commitment needed to be included in F1.' With nine months to go until the first Cadillac/G.M. car hits the track in preseason testing, the race is on, with the countdown clock providing a continual update. 'The last time Dan was across,' Lowdon said, referring to Towriss, 'he talked to everyone at Silverstone, and he ended his address by saying, 'As you can see on the wall, we've got X number of days left, so let's crack on.' 'Everybody knows what the mission is.'
Time of India
26-04-2025
- Automotive
- Time of India
Formula E founder Alejandro Agag honoured to be shortlisted for Reuters Global Energy Transition Award
Formula E founder Alejandro Agag is a frontrunner in bringing clean technology to the world of motorsports, creating sustainable car racing and paving the way for a broader global shift toward eco-friendly innovation. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The rise in electric car sales around the world is just one example of this growing trend. In recognition of his tireless efforts, Agag has been shortlisted in the Transition Advocator category at the Reuters Global Energy Transition Awards 2025. The awards ceremony will take place in New York on June 24. Alejandro Agag on being shortlisted for Reuters Award Alejandro Agag said in a statement via "To be recognised among the world's leading energy transition advocates is a huge honour. I've always believed that sport has the power to inspire change, and through motorsport, we've created a platform that pushes sustainable technologies forward while entertaining and educating at the same time. This nomination is not just a personal milestone, it's a recognition of the entire ecosystem working behind the scenes to deliver innovation at speed.' Alejandro Agag has achieved what once seemed unimaginable in advancing the case for sustainable energy through motorsport. He founded Formula E, the all-electric equivalent of car racing, which has grown into a massive success—especially with the arrival of Gen3 Evo cars. Formula E is currently in its 11th season, featuring 16 races. Expanding on this mission, Agag launched Extreme E, an off-road SUV racing series held in climate-affected regions. He also introduced E1, the world's first all-electric boat racing championship. E1 features RaceBirds, which reach high speeds using electric propulsion combined with foil technology. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Next up is Extreme H, set to launch this year as the world's first hydrogen-powered motorsport championship. Also Read: Formula E's 11th season began in December last year and will conclude in July. The most recent race, Round 5, was held in Miami, with Pascal Wehrlein emerging as the winner. Rounds 6 and 7, a double-header, will take place in the motorsport hub of Monaco on May 3 and 4.
Al Arabiya
18-04-2025
- Automotive
- Al Arabiya
F1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2025: Everything you need to know about the Jeddah race
The Formula One calendar returns to Jeddah this weekend for the fifth edition of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, with the world's fastest street circuit set to deliver another high-speed spectacle under the lights. After four years of dominance by Red Bull's Max Verstappen, the 2025 F1 season is threatening to be the most hotly-contested and unpredictable in years. Here, Al Arabiya English explores everything you need to know ahead of the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. When and where is the race? The 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix takes place on Sunday April 19 at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, a stunning 6.1-kilometer track that hugs the Red Sea coastline. Practice will take place on Friday 18, qualifying will be held on Saturday 18 and the race itself is scheduled for Sunday night at 8pm local time. First used for Saudi Arabia's debut on the F1 calendar in 2021, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit is a Carsten Tilke-designed track that is famously quick, with 27 corners and average speeds over 250 km/h. Drivers spend 79 percent of their laps at full throttle and Jeddah is the world's fastest street circuit. The Grand Prix is part of the Saudi Motorsport Company's wider strategy to bring world-class racing to the Kingdom, alongside events like Formula E - which took place in Jeddah for the first time in March after several years of being hosted in Riyadh. Extreme E in NEOM and the Dakar Rally - racing across the Kingdom - have also come to Saudi Arabia's shores in recent years. Lewis Hamilton won the inaugural F1 Saudi Arabian Gran Prix in his Mercedes four years ago, before victories for Max Verstappen in 2022 and 2024 sandwiched a triumph for the Dutchman's Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez in 2023. What happened in the 2024 Grand Prix? The 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, held on March 9 at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, was won by Max Verstappen. It was the second of four race victories in the first five Grands Prix of the season for the Red Bull driver - with those results ultimately tipping the championship in his favor as he claimed a fourth successive Drivers' crown. Last year in Jeddah, Verstappen triumphed from pole position, finishing 13.643 seconds ahead of his team-mate Sergio Pérez, with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc completing the podium in third place. Monegasque driver Leclerc set the fastest lap of the race, clocking in at 1:31.632 on the final lap. The Grand Prix was also notable for 18-year-old Oliver Bearman making an impressive Formula 1 debut for Ferrari, stepping in for Carlos Sainz who was sidelined due to appendicitis. Bearman, who became the youngest British driver to compete in F1, finished seventh; in 2025, he will compete in the Kingdom again for the Haas F1 team. Who are the 2025 Saudi Grand Prix contenders? After four races of the 2025 season, the title battle is more open than in recent years and it means that there are many potential contenders for victory at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. Here are the five drivers most likely to triumph in the 2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Lando Norris (McLaren) Currently leading the championship with 77 points, British driver Norris has been reaping the benefits of McLaren's most competitive car in recent memory. Norris, now in his seventh successive season at McLaren, has finished on the podium in every race of 2025 so far - winning the curtain-raising Australian Grand Prix, before finishing second in China and Japan, and third in Bahrain last time out. Norris emerged as a title contender in 2024, going toe-to-toe with Verstappen before ultimately finishing as runner-up, though he did help deliver McLaren its first Constructors' Championship since 1998. Norris has previously struggled in Jeddah, with a seventh-placed finish in 2022 his best result in the Kingdom so far. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) Norris' McLaren teammate Oscar Piastir is three points behind in the Drivers' Championship standings - having recovered from a disappointing start in his home race in Australia to win two of the past three Grands Prix. Piastri only won two races in the whole of the 2024 campaign - an inaugural F1 triumph in Hungary and another in Azerbaijan - but has matched that total already in 2025 after victories at the Chinese Grand Prix and Bahrain Grand Prix. In both races, Piastri converted his pole position in qualifying to a race win. Piastri will be looking to improve on his previous best finish of fourth at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, achieved last year after finishing 15th on his debut in 2023. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) After a dominant four years in Formula One, Max Verstappen appeared more fallible in 2025. The Dutch driver claimed a fourth straight Drivers' Championship last year but has just one Grand Prix win under his belt so far this season. Verstappen completed a wire-to-wire victory from pole in the Japanese Grand Prix earlier this month but only managed to finish sixth in the last race in Bahrain. Jeddah has historically been a happy hunting ground for Verstappen, who finished as runner-up in the 2021 and 2023 Saudi Grands Prix, and took home the winner's trophy in 2022 and last time out in 2024. George Russell (Mercedes) The second of three British drivers with a realistic shot at winning in Jeddah, George Russell has stood on the podium three times already in 2025. Russell finished third in Australia and China, fifth in Japan and had his best result of the season in Bahrain after coming second behind race winner Piastri. Russell retired on his first appearance at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix for Williams before finishes of fifth, fourth and sixth in the subsequent seasons for Mercedes. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) Having finished third in last year's Drivers' Championship, Charles Leclerc was expected to be among the main contenders again in 2025. But the Monegasque driver is already 30 points behind fourth-placed Russell in the standings after a difficult start to the season. Leclerc nursed his Ferrari to Leclerc was eighth in the season-opener in Australia before suffering a disqualification - along with Ferrari team-mate Lewis Hamilton - in China. Things have picked up for Leclerc in the past two races with consecutive fourth-place finishes in Japan and Bahrain. The 27-year-old Ferrari ace has previously appeared twice on the podium in the Kingdom - finishing as runner-up to Verstappen in 2022 and ending last year's race in third. What else is going on around the race? Jeddah's race weekend has emerged as one of the most immersive in the sport. This year's F1 Fan Zone includes live concerts, street food from across the Kingdom, e-sports simulators, and driver meet-and-greets. There are also expected to be drone shows, fireworks, and live DJ sets after qualifying and race day. Fans will be treated to two rounds of action in the F1 Academy Series, too. The all-female competition returns to Jeddah for the second time, with championship leader Doriane Pin of Prema Racing the favorite to add another victory after winning the second race in Shanghai in March. Pin was on pole for both races in Jeddah last year, finishing first and second on her way to a runner-up finish behind Abi Pulling in the Drivers Championship. There will be Saudi representation in the race, with up-and-coming driver Farah Al-Yousef given a wildcard entry to the race.
Al Arabiya
30-03-2025
- Automotive
- Al Arabiya
How Lebron James and Team AlUla united to target E1 success
It will surprise exactly no-one to learn that Lebron James – the record-breaking NBA superstar who has played more than 1,700 games and scored more than 50,000 points in a trophy-laden career – is competitive. But few could have foreseen how 40-year-old James is currently channeling that competitive streak off the basketball court. Earlier this year, 'King James' announced that he had become the owner of Team AlUla, which competes in E1 – the world's first all-electric raceboat series. The list of his fellow owners, and therefore rivals, reads like a who's who of global sports and entertainment royalty. From Will Smith to Tom Brady, and Steve Aoki to Rafa Nadal – E1 has managed to attract some of the world's most recognizable names, despite only being in its second season. For more Saudi sports news, visit our dedicated page. 'Getting the owners on board has been super important,' Rodi Basso, the CEO and Co-founder of the E1 Series, told Al Arabiya English. 'We launched the E1 Series from a blank sheet and when you go to the media, the first thing they ask about is the reach. 'To be able to immediately say that we have 1.1 billion followers through our owners and pilots helped make us a more viable commercial proposition and we have built on that to create our own ecosystem of content. 'The owners get involved because they want to be part of an impactful project and they find E1 a cool idea – in terms of technology and sustainability. They are also competitive and see a potential financial upside. All these ingredients together is what makes them interested in the sport.' Just like their owners, the E1 teams' pilots come from a variety of backgrounds, both on and off the water. Team AlUla embodies this, with its partnership of Rusty Wyatt and Catie Munnings. Wyatt is a powerboat racer who came 2nd in the 2024 F1H2O World Championship, while Munnings is a rally driver who has competed in the Extreme E electric off-road racing series. 'I love being at the forefront of racing the newest technology,' Munnings told Al Arabiya English. 'It has been electric in E1 and Extreme E but I'm now testing hydrogen for the new Extreme H series too. 'For me it's really important to showcase to other sports how we are doing things sustainably. That's not just the electric motors and the tech but also things like the shipping [of the equipment] and the fact we have smart markers on the water without anchors [so they don't disturb the seabed]. 'I think it sets a really good example to other championships to make small changes because these small changes add up.' Although marine sustainability is at the heart of the E1 series, Team AlUla is also playing an important role in championing a land mammal. Each team can customize the design of its boat, known as a 'Racebird'. AlUla's eye-catching livery is inspired by the Arabian Leopard, a critically endangered animal that has recently returned to the Saudi region, where it once roamed freely. Due to his basketball commitments with the Los Angeles Lakers, James has so far been unable to see his Racebirds compete in person at either of the 2025 season's first two races in Jeddah and Doha. It means that Munnings and Wyatt haven't yet met their new boss. 'LeBron is a huge icon for many of us and I am super grateful to be racing for him,' Wyatt told Al Arabiya English. 'We have put a good team together here but it's only our first season so there's obviously a lot to come – we're still learning.' With several races slated to take place after the end of the 2025 NBA playoffs, there is a good chance that James will be in attendance when the E1 Series rolls into Monaco in July, Lake Como in August or Miami in November. 'He's planning to come to a few races this year and it will be great to have his energy,' Munnings said. 'When you have somebody leading a team that really understands sport and that mindset of being willing to take risks, it makes a massive difference. 'It gives you more confidence when you are behind the wheel and I am definitely expecting that winning energy to come through when he is at the races with us.' For Munnings, it was not only the Lebron link that attracted her to Team AlUla. Having raced regularly in Saudi Arabia over the past five years, she has played an active role in the growth of motorsport in the Kingdom. And the 27-year-old Brit has been particularly heartened to see more female competitors. 'Year on year I'm noticing how many more Saudi women are getting into motorsport,' Munnings said. 'I did Rally Jameel [the first navigation off-road rally for women in the Gulf] last year, which covered pretty much the whole of Saudi Arabia; it was amazing to see how many women are getting involved across all levels of motorsport. 'Personally I am thankful for the role that Saudi Arabia is playing in motorsport – in E1 now we are supported by the Public Investment Fund [PIF], which has also been involved in Formula E and Extreme E – this has massively affected my career and I wouldn't be here without that.' Every team in E1 has one female and one male pilot, with Munnings hoping that other motorsport series will sit up and take note. 'I think we are showing how competitive championships like this, that combine male and female talent, can be,' she said. 'In Extreme E there was initially a big gap in times between female and male drivers but those quickly closed when women were given the same time in the seat as men. 'E1 is an exciting series with some amazing team owners involved. We also have some incredible engineers and drivers – and everyone is learning on the job. I expect things to develop rapidly over the next few years and it is cool to be here at the start.'
