By Carlo Platella
The moment of decision for the future of Stellantis in Formula E is approaching. The FIA has already opened registrations for manufacturers to adhere to the technical regulations for fourth generation carswhich will debut in the championship between 2026 and 2027. At the moment Nissan is the only one to have confirmed its participation, with the other manufacturers called to respond shortly, including DS and Maserati.
Stellantis, many reasons to stay
“A decision will have to be made by the summer”, says the CEO of Stellantis during a meeting with journalists on the occasion of the recent Misano E-Prix. The number one of the group, however, appears convinced of the merits of the electric championship, perceived as an incubator of battery-powered mobility on the road: “If you want to accelerate the development of zero-emission mobility, what better tool than racing? Motorsport is the best way to push this, because engine power is growing and this means you use more and more energy. It's a very useful dynamic for road cars.”
“When we discuss a new FIAT or Peugeot model and the engineers are unable to reach the efficiency objectives, understood as the number kWh of energy used every 100 km, many times I suggest they go and talk to someone about motorsport to see if they have any ideas to offer to improve powertrain efficiency.”
“This is why we have kept DS in the championship for so long”, continues Tavares. “DS has already won two world championships for drivers and the same number for teams. Regulations are changing and with them the limits on power and energy consumption, but the way in which the rules are managed offers challenges to engineersallows you to learn and transpose the lessons learned onto production cars.”
Racing is in the Maserati DNA
Maserati CEO Davide Grasso also spoke at Misano, illustrating the reasons behind the Trident's entry into Formula E, which also support its permanence in the future: “We entered Formula E because it was a natural choice for us. We were born on the track. We won the Formula 1 championship even before other renowned brands from Emilia-Romagna. Coming to Formula E was a natural decision, because Maserati has always been dedicated to innovation. Our objective is to develop luxurious and high-performance cars even at a time when the world is converting to electric, without giving up anything in terms of performance.”
“If you enter a championship, it's just to be competitive.” continues Grasso. “Last year, despite being rookies, we achieved a podium and a victory. This would have been impossible without being able to take advantage of the great experience offered by Stellantis motorsport. We can already see the progress now, because we won well ahead of last season”. Grasso's reference is to the victory obtained by Maserati at the Tokyo E-Prix, again scored by Maximilian Gunther.
Maserati and DS currently use the same powertrain created by Stellantis, but have independently developed the control software, a great performance differentiator in Formula E. It remains to be seen whether the two brands will continue to use the same hardware in the next regulatory cycle, but before that if the group will continue to be present in the championship with both brands. All you have to do is wait a few months to find out the answers.
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