Five more Formula E seats have been confirmed for Season 9 as teams reset ahead of the debut of the Gen3 car.
The off-season between the highly-entertaining Season 8 and the start of a new era in Season 9, was always going to be busy. The next generation of the Formula E car. Multiple new teams and manufacturers entering the series. And a driver lineup that has been completely tossed up into the air. In short order five more spots were announced, meaning 12 of the 24 spots on next season’s grid are now confirmed.
New Nissan Lineup
New era, new team name, new driver pairing. Welcome to the new Nissan. Taking full control of the team with the purchase of e.dams portion of ownership. As the new Nissan team looks to reestablish themselves as a Formula E contender, they’ve taken a safer approach. First, they’ve added experience with Norman Nato – 17 E-Prix & a win in Berlin last season. For his partner, Nissan have opted for youth and potential in Sacha Fenestraz. Fenestraz has been a reserve/development driver in Formula E for a number of years but finally got to make his full debut in the last round of the season in Seoul. Nato should provide Nissan with a steady presence as they develop the Gen3 car, while they will be hoping that Fenestraz can progress throughout the year to allow the team to challenge in the midfield.
Rast Confirmed at McLaren
🧡 NEOM McLaren Formula E team 🤝 @ReneRastRacing 🧡
René Rast has been confirmed as the first half of McLaren’s driver line-up for their inaugural Formula E season! ⚡@McLarenF1
— Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) August 23, 2022
McLaren has a lot of questions surrounding their seats in 2023 across F1, IndyCar & Formula E. At least one more has been resolved for now. Rene Rast will take up the first seat as McLaren joins the series in Season 9. Rast debuted in Formula E with Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler team, racing all of the Berlin races during the COVID-19 shortened season of 2019-20. He returned the next season, picking up ten top 10 finishes, including one podium, before sitting out this past year. A savvy pickup for McLaren as they look to establish a foothold in the series.
F2 Driver Aiming for Formula E
For the past few seasons, Jake Hughes has been working his way through the Formula 3 and Formula 2 ranks. He finished 7th in the F3 Championship in both 2019 and 2020. This season in F2 he racked up five points finishes before stepping away after a 4th at the Red Bull Ring. Why? Well for the past two years Hughes has also been a development driver for the Mercedes-EQ and ROKiT Venturi Formula E teams. Now reports indicate he has turned all of his attention towards landing a grid spot in Formula E next season. With a brand new car, new teams entering, and most of the field shuffling around, Hughes could be pivoting series at the right time.
ABT Debut New Duo
In what will feel like quite the overhaul that is Season 9, ABT is returning to the series. The German team returns with a combination of Formula E experience. First, joining from Envision, Robin Frijns will be the team’s defacto number one after staying in the Season 8 title fight for most of the season. He will be patterned with former Dragon driver Nico Muller. Muller’s last stint in Formula E saw him land three top-five finishes, including a podium in Valencia before exiting the team.
Hans-Juergen Abt, Managing Partner of ABT stated, “Robin and Nico were our absolute dream team right from the start, because they have everything we need for our Formula E comeback: speed, experience, and the right spirit. If we want to hold our own against the big factory teams in the new season, we need a small and powerful team. And that’s where Robin and Nico fit in perfectly.”
Given the team is rejoining as a new team, and as the next generation of car debuts, it seems a wise move to opt for two experienced drivers.
Current Formula E Driver Lineup – Season 9
- ABT: Robin Frijns & Nico Muller
- Avalanche Andretti: TBD (both seats)
- DS Dragon: TBD (both seats)
- Envision: Nick Cassidy & TBD
- Jaguar: Mitch Evans & Sam Bird
- McLaren: Rene Rast & TBD
- Mahindra: Oliver Rowland & Lucas di Grassi
- Maserati: TBD (both seats)
- NIO 333: TBD (both seats)
- Nissan: Norman Nato & Sacha Fenestraz
- Porsche: Pascal Wehrlein & Antonio Felix da Costa
- Techeetah: TBD (both seats)
Season 9 of Formula E kicks off on January 13th in Mexico City.
