London - Cape Town will host a round of the electric Formula E championship next February, joining India's Hyderabad and Brazil's Sao Paulo as three new venues on a 2023 calendar, the series said on Wednesday.
The February 25 race will be Formula E's first in South Africa and the fifth of 17 rounds next season. The country’s debut Formula E race was originally meant to take place in February this year, but was cancelled in 2021 due to concerns surrounding the pandemic. Some sources also suggested that construction of the street track around Cape Town was behind schedule at the time.
“We are excited to announce Cape Town as a new destination for our series in Season 9. Our local partners are working incredibly hard to bring an ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race to the city and we cannot wait to see the futuristic Gen3 race cars competing against the iconic natural backdrop of Table Mountain,” Formula E co-founder Alberto Longo said.
Iain Banner, Chairman of the local race promotor e-Movement, says the Cape Town street circuit will be one of the fastest, if not the fastest, circuit on the Formula E calendar. He said that construction of the venue was nearing completion, EWN reported. The 2.8km street circuit will wind its way through the Green Point and Waterfront district.
New era for Formula E
The city-based championship, the start of a new Gen3 era with faster, more efficient and lighter cars, starts in Mexico City in January.
Formula E said renovation works to Seoul’s Olympic Stadium meant it could no longer be used as a venue and Formula E was exploring other locations in South Korea for a May 20 race.
The provisional calendar had envisaged two races in the South Korean capital, which hosted this year's season-ending ePrix.
Indonesia will have two June races in Jakarta, which made its debut this year with double-header weekends also in Saudi Arabia (Diriyah) in January, Berlin in April and Rome and London in July.
IOL & Reuters