Andretti Autosport and United Autosports
Andretti Autosport and United Autosports team up for the inaugural season of the Extreme E, creating a brand new team, Andretti United Extreme E.
ELECTRIC
UNLEASHED
UNLEASHED
WHEN TWO MOTORSPORT POWERHOUSES JOIN FORCES
IN THE MOST RADICAL RACING SERIES EVER INVENTED
Led by Michael Andretti, Andretti Autosport holds nearly two decades of accolades across various disciplines of motorsport, including five Indianapolis 500 victories and four INDYCAR SERIES championships. The team has also been active as a competitor in the ABB Formula E Championship since the first season, with multiple racing victories and now competing under the BMW i Andretti Motorsport banner.
United Autosports is one of the largest motorsport teams in the UK and competes globally in different sports prototype categories across the world. Based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK, the company is co-owned by McLaren CEO Zak Brown and former racing driver Richard Dean. The team has raced in a number of different championships, with a vast range of cars and drivers including Fernando Alonso, Juan Pablo Montoya, Lando Norris and Paul Di Resta.
WHAT IS EXTREME E?
Extreme E is a radical new racing series, which will see electric SUVs competing in extreme environments around the world. The five-race global voyage highlights the impact of climate change on some of the world’s most fragile ecosystems and promotes the adoption of electric vehicles to help preserve the environment and protect the planet.
Extreme E is operated in association with Formula E - the organiser of the ABB FIA Formula E Championship. Extreme E is committed to sustainability and minimizing environmental impact - as well as playing its part in re-building and restoring areas already impacted by climate change.
WHAT IS THE FORMAT OF EXTREME E?
Teams will face each other in a traditional round-robin format - featuring head-to-head races in a knockout style. The exact sporting format is still under development with organisers and will be revealed soon.
Races will take place over two days, within an area no larger than 10km2. Track designers have been tasked with carefully selecting course options, which provide the most challenging, exciting racing action whilst crucially generating no negative impact from either environmental or social perspectives. Routes will be designed to incorporate existing obstacles and features with elevation changes and jumps without the need to adapt the environment.
THE VEHICLE
The championship car is a fully electric SUV, named ODYSSEY 21.
Each vehicle comprises a common package of standardised parts, manufactured by Spark Racing Technology with a battery produced by Williams Advanced Engineering. This encompasses a niobium-reinforced steel alloy tubular frame, as well as crash structure and roll cage, whilst tyres, built for the extreme conditions are designed by founding partner Continental Tyres.
The new Andretti United Extreme E team is preparing for receipt of its ODYSSEY 21 E-SUV with sights set on the first round of testing anticipated for December. Further announcements are to be made regarding team partners and male/female driver-duo in the coming months.
PEAK OUTPUT
400kw (550bhp)
WEIGHT
1650kg
DIMENSIONS
2.3m (wide)
0-60MPH
4.5 seconds
MAX GRADIENT
UP TO 130%
WHEN AND WHERE WILL IT TAKE PLACE?
Set to commence in January 2021, Extreme E’s inaugural season will be staged across five environments: including the Arctic, Desert, Amazon and Coastal locations, selecting places which have already been damaged or affected by climate issues.
As well as demonstrating the performance and capabilities of cutting-edge electric SUVs racing across these harsh terrains in formidable conditions - Extreme E will also work closely with scientific 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.
PROVISIONAL EXTREME E SEASON 1 CALENDAR:
23-24 January: Lac Rose, Dakar, Senegal
6-7 March: Al Ula, Saudi Arabia
14-15 May: Kali Gandaki Valley, Mustang District, Nepal
28-29 August: Kangerlussuaq, Greenland
30-31 October: Santarem, Para, Brazil
WHAT IS THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF THE RACING?
Extreme E is committed to minimising its carbon emissions, alongside the foundation of legacy initiatives at each destination on its calendar, to help protect already damaged ecosystems impacted by climate change.
Audiences will be invited to tune into the action remotely through global broadcast and social media channels rather than attend the events in person, and wherever possible, gates, branding and other usual track features will be implemented virtually rather than physically.
Extreme E’s goal is to leave only positive legacy behind, dependent on local needs. A signatory member of the United Nations’ Sports for Climate Action Framework. Led by the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), this initiative calls on sporting organisations to acknowledge the contribution of the sports sector to climate change and our responsibility to strive towards climate neutrality for a safer planet.
In line with the five core principles enshrined in the Framework and the aims of the Paris Agreement, Extreme E strives to:
1.Promote greater environmental responsibility
2.Reduce the overall climate impact from sports
3.Use its platform to educate for climate action
4.Promote sustainable and responsible consumption
5.Advocate for climate action through its communications