- Testing for Season 8, the most expansive to date, begins in Valencia
- New Girls on Track video series to celebrate women in the series and inspire the next generation
- Lucas di Grassi joins as ambassador for ABB
- Climate Initiatives to be implemented throughout Season 8 to drive sustainable progress
This week, Season 8 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship returns to full power as all 11 teams take to the track in Valencia for testing from November 29 to December 2. Official pre-season testing will once again take place at the Circuit Ricardo Tormo. Built in 1999, it was designed to host MotoGP and is named after Spanish motorcycle legend, Ricardo Tormo. The 15-turn layout to be used this week features a series of tight corners and short straights over 3.376km.
Already yesterday evening, invited representatives from Formula E’s manufacturers, teams and partners were joined by drivers for a private presentation of the new Gen3 car, ahead of a full reveal event in the coming months. The Gen3 is a powerful symbol of the next era of Formula E while it is akey milestone for ABB, who will be the official charging supplier of the faster, lighter cars, which will be used from Season 9.
ABB is also launching a new video series as part of its ongoing partnership with FIA Girls on Track. The series will showcase the varied and influential roles held by women throughout ABB Formula E, thereby inspiring the next generation to careers in motorsport via STEM learning. This perfectly complements not only ABB’s Sustainability Strategy but also the Climate Initiatives it will be implementing at race locations throughout the season. Focused around three pillars – Innovating Technologies; Social Progress; Championing Change – activities will be undertaken in connection with ABB Formula E races in city centers around the world to help drive sustainable progress.
Theodor Swedjemark, Chief Communication and Sustainability Officer at ABB, said: “We are continuously looking at new ways to drive engagement in all sustainability topics via the Championship and maximize the positive impact on the cities and countries in which races are held.”
ABB is welcoming Lucas Di Grassi – Season 3 Formula E champion and UN Environment program ambassador – as a new ambassador in the Championship. His high-profile engagement in sustainability and e-mobility topics make him an ideal partner for ABB, to collaborate on projects that drive sustainable progress and address the climate challenge.
Brazilian Di Grassi joins ABB’s existing ambassadors in the championship, Switzerland’s Sébastien Buemi of Nissan e.Dams and Simona de Silvestro of Porsche, while ABB continues as official partner of the Tag Heuer Porsche Formula E team.
The 22 drivers who start the World Championship season are certain to deliver fierce competition on track as they battle to succeed reigning champions Nyck De Vries and Mercedes-EQ in the Drivers’ and Teams’ categories.
Their contest will be fought across the series’ most expansive calendar to date, which will take electric racing to the streets for 16 races in 12 global locations, including three exciting new cities: Vancouver, Jakarta and Seoul. These new locations will enable ABB to engage with even more customers, fans and media, further driving excitement and awareness for the world’s most advanced e-mobility technologies.
Racing starts in Diriyah, Saudi Arabia on January 28 and 29, 2022, where drivers will once again compete at night, on a track lit with low-consumption LED technology powered by fully renewable energy.
ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a leading global technology company that energizes the transformation of society and industry to achieve a more productive, sustainable future. By connecting software to its electrification, robotics, automation and motion portfolio, ABB pushes the boundaries of technology to drive performance to new levels. With a history of excellence stretching back more than 130 years, ABB’s success is driven by about 105,000 talented employees in over 100 countries. www.abb.com
