Formula E co-founder Alberto Longo sees a long-term future for all-electric world championship racing in India and expressed confidence that bureaucratic hurdles and tax issues, pushed Formula 1 out of the country, won’t dent their plans since they’ve done enough “homework” to manage that.
London also said the series may be difficult to achieve as popular as Formula 1 but it has been more relevant.
Speaking to PTI on the sidelines of the first Formula E race in Jakarta, Longo sounded confident about going to Hyderabad next year.
The first electric race in India is scheduled to take place on February 11.
“The FIA World Motor Sports Council will meet in 20 days. Then we will announce the calendar. Hopefully Hyderabad will be part of the calendar. I’m talking to them daily and hopefully they do. I’ll get to the finish line, Longo said in an interview.
“India is a huge market for us, a tier one market for us. You don’t know what the future holds but the intention is to stay there for the long term. It won’t be a 20-year contract. five years to start. . Organizer finances and tax matters. Bureaucratic red tape can also be an obstacle in India as organizers have to deal with both the state and the central government.
“Those issues have more to do with taxes. We have very good tax advisors, we know the challenges, we know the potential risks and the liability that we have. We’ve done it. complete the exercise in that respect. If all goes to plan, I see Longo indicating a long-term future for us in India.
Formula E may not enjoy the popularity of F1 but it is more suitable’
Formula E has grown tremendously since its debut season in 2014. It is home to major automakers including Mahindra, Porsche, Jaguar, Nissan and Mercedes.
“The important thing to remember is why we started. The idea was to create a platform to promote mobility with electricity. That mission never ends in that sense,” said Mr. Londo.
Of the constant comparisons with F1, he said: “I’m a big fan of Formula 1 myself. I’ve been into the sport. But I’ve also learned what I won’t lose from F1 if I become a promoter.” “I have the utmost respect for what they are doing but we are not competing with them. They are a great racing championship but we race with purpose. It is so much more than a racing championship. car.”
Can Formula E surpass Formula E?
“I think they can co-exist. In fact, by 2030-2035, most of the world will ban cars with internal combustion engines. The world has switched to electric and we are the only single-seater platform. There are only fully electric cars available and we’re only going to get bigger.
“But will that be enough to get past F1, that doesn’t worry us today but it could happen in the end. But it’s certainly more relevant than F1 and any other championship. .
“What our manufacturer does has an immediate effect on road cars. That hasn’t happened in years in motorsport.”
Honored to have Mahindra Racing since season 1
“It’s an honor to have them. What I value most about them is their loyalty. I remember visiting Anand Mahindra and Dilbagh Gill (CEO) in 2013. They said yes right away. there, we had nothing. It was just one. They just believed in the idea. Because of Mahindra, we were able to look to other manufacturers to join us. They were of great help.” Longo said.
He concluded by talking about his long-term plans for Asia.
“The only reason why we don’t race much in Asia is because of Covid. Our goal is to divide the world into three major geographic regions – the Americas, Europe and Asia.
Promote
“Asia is an important market for us and we are proving it by coming here in Jakarta, hoping to go to India and China as soon as Covid is over. We want to race in five cities. Asia’s biggest city,” he said.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and was automatically generated from the feed provided.)
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