The formation of a new electric car series

EXTREME E: THE FORMATION OF A NEW ELECTRIC RACING SERIES

Extreme E’s five-race global voyage, spanning four continents, will highlight the impact of climate change and human activity on some of the world’s most remote locations, while promoting sustainability and the adoption of electric vehicles to help protect the planet. Extreme E’s Sporting Manager, Guy Nicholls, previews the electric racing series ahead of its inaugural season.

The growth and popularity of the electric racing arm of motorsport is set to be boosted further after the opening Extreme E season takes place in 2021.

Established in 2018, by Formula E co-founder Alejandro Agag and two-time Champ Car champion Gil de Ferran, the electric off-road racing series will experience its first taste of the unique tracks it will be competing on this year, starting in April 2021.

Joining the team in 2020 ahead of the all-important first season is Sporting Manager Guy Nicholls, who boasts a career in motorsport spanning three decades managing projects and operations in championships across a range of diverse disciplines. Extreme E is not the first new series that Guy has worked on, having been a part of the senior management team at A1 Grand Prix and was championship coordinator at Lamborghini’s racing venture at the Super Trofeo series.

However, it was time for Guy to turn his hand towards a different form of motor racing and offer his experience and knowledge for the brand new series.

“It was a fortunate coincidence that Extreme E was looking for a Sporting Manager and one of the people assisting them in their search, who I happen to know, was chatting to another friend and ex-colleague of mine who acted as Race Director for the Lamborghini championship I was coordinator for,” explained Guy on how he found himself in his new role.

“I’ve worked on two brand new championships from conception to reality, A1 Grand Prix and Lamborghini Super Trofeo, and as challenging as a new championship is to put together from scratch, they are also hugely rewarding when it all comes together.

“With the names of the teams and drivers involved in Extreme E, with its collection of multiple World Champions across different motorsport disciplines, who would turn such an opportunity down?”

The Sporting Manager or Sports Director role has become one of particular interest across the modern sporting landscape as they look to develop their respective entities and it feels all the more important in the formation of a new sport entirely.

“I’m the day to day contact for the teams and on any given day this could include working through administrative details from them or sitting on a video call making presentations to them for elements such as a race weekend schedule or matters relating to our Sporting and Supplementary Regulations that govern our Series.

“I am also the link to the ASN’s (local motorsport governing body) in each of the territories we race in to coordinate marshals,➡

stewards, officials, safety and medical plans and also work closely with our permanent officials such as our Race Director and Technical Director.

“As I said before, it’s an extremely exciting opportunity to develop a new championship with its own rules, regulations, identity, brand and values, which I’ve now done twice, and it is very rewarding to see the creative ideas come to fruition.

“A blank canvas without the constraints, rules, regulations and methods of previously tried and tested seasons hanging over you, allows you a myriad of options and avenues to explore.”

One of Extreme E’s biggest goals is to raise awareness around one of the biggest threats that the world is facing in regards to the global environment and climate change. The launch of the racing series comes at a time where new research continues to inform us of the climate crisis we face.

“Sport is a powerful and crucial platform for driving change, with 24 out of 25 most popular broadcasts ever having been about sport,” started Guy. “We hope that by using sport to showcase these environments that are all suffering at the hands of climate change, we will be able to raise global awareness of the issues and inspire change.

“Not only that, the series will demonstrate the performance and capabilities of cuttingedge electric SUVs racing across these harsh terrains in formidable conditions, and these technologies will filter through to the consumer market.

“SUVs were chosen as the series vehicle as they are the world’s most popular consumer type of consumer car, but also the most polluting. With transport equating to approximately 30 percent of global emissions, it is crucial we showcase the power and abilities of electric vehicles and look to accelerate their adoption.

“In addition, Extreme E will also work closely with its Scientific Committee of experts in each region to raise global awareness and education for the specific issues each environment faces, such as rising carbon emissions, melting ice caps, deforestation, desertification, droughts, plastic pollution and rising sea levels, and go on to leave a long-lasting positive impact through its Legacy Programmes.

“Each of Extreme E’s race locations were selected to focus on a different environmental issue. In Saudi Arabia the series will highlight desertification, rising sea levels in Senegal, the melting ice cap in Greenland, deforestation in Brazil and glacial recession in Patagonia.”

The founder of the Extreme E racing series, Alejandro Agag, has prior experience in finding an electric motorsport, when he founded Formula E in 2012, before its own inaugural season in 2014.

“We are a sister series to Formula E and we share the same visionary leader. Our two sports have a common ambition to fight climate change, accelerate the transition to electric mobility and use our platforms to catalyse positive change for generations to come,” Guy continued. “We are distinctly different but complementary meaning each

Extreme E drivers: Catie Munnings, Jenson Button and Carlos Sainz

benefits from amplifying the other. Both series are all-electric motorsports, with Formula E operating the open-wheel singleseater FIA world championship, competing in iconic international city centres, while Extreme E is a radical rally-raid showcasing the abilities of electric SUVs against the backdrop of remote ecosystems.

“Some of our employees came from Formula E and we are able to draw upon their experiences, partcularly in relation to the development and management of the electric technology and safety surrounding its use.”

The brand new motorsport is offering other unique qualities that will make it stand out against its other compatriots – both men and women will be competing alongside one another and it will not be competed in front of a live, ticketed audience, something that Guy feels strengthens Extreme E position.

“Extreme E is a brand new

concept and whilst it is a sport, it has been developed to be very much a media product, which as of the time of writing, will be televised by more than 40 different broadcast partners, reaching over 160 different countries.

“Huge efforts from our broadcast and technical partners will ensure that those watching have an exceptional experience without having to be there. Due to the remote locations of our races, having an on site audience was never a realistic option and the business model reflects this.

“One of Extreme E’s values is to offer equal opportunities for male and female drivers to compete on a equal basis, with both having equal influence on the outcome of a race. Women’s place in motorsport has been growing for many years and Extreme E is very keen to help with that continued growth.”

Competitors in the races include teams set up by Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, as well as Jenson Button, who is set to drive himself for his own team.

“Of course having three Formula 1 World Champions involved is wonderful for the Series, but lets not forget that most of our drivers are national champions or world champions in their respective disciplines,” Guy explained.

“From World Rally Champions to National Motorcross Champions and World Rallycross Champions to National Rally Champions and a W Series Champion to boot. The quality of both male and female drivers and the diversity of their racing backgrounds is an exciting mix and for Extreme E to have enticed such a high quality crop of drivers, despite never having turned a wheel, is an amazing achievement.”

What with it being a first

“Extreme E is a brand new concept and whilst it is a sport, it has been developed to be very much a media product, which as of the time of writing, will be televised by more than 40 different broadcast partners, reaching over 160 different countries.

season for Extreme E, it cannot be helped but to be curious about what the future of the motorsport will look like, something that Guy himself is looking forward to.

“From a sporting side, I believe my goals are probably the same as most of my colleagues and that is to get to the end of the season having delivered a safe and exciting season of sporting entertaininment but as a company, our ambition would also be to start to see the benefits of the environmental work we are conducting with our scientists that is as much a part of Extreme E’s values as the racing.

“Like any new product, you want to deliver something that is sustainable and creates enough demand to ensure it has a long shelf life but Alejandro is an ambitious man, so who knows how, where and what we might be racing in years to come.” ◆