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McLaren joins Formula E: into the Future of Sports Cars – Cars RccDB – Automotive | Business


Another big name joins Formula E. From 2023, McLaren to buy Mercedes EQ Formula E racing team and participate in the electric racing series. There have been some big names going through the championship, some withdrawing and others joining. However, this is the first time we’ve seen top luxury brands, closely associated with motorsports, join the series. Could these be the first signals of a more important change coming?

Not only McLaren

From the very first season of 2014, Formula E has seen brands like CHEAPissued, Audi, Nio, Jaguar, BMW, Mahindra, Mercedes and Nissan. The 2019-2020 season witnessed Porsche participation. McLaren announcement later one of the Maserati published earlier this year, also spoke of the entry as an important opportunity to look into the future of motorsport and a platform for the development of electric cars.

Formula E has had a positive season in terms of spectators in 2021 with a strong recovery compared to the previous year, but things are not as easy as expected.

Formula E annual audience and percentage increase (in millions)

recipe e the seasons

First, the recovery came from a difficult year in which the sport was hit hard by the pandemic with the championship starting late and hosting just 11 races, with six in Germany. Second, as stated by ABB Formula E growth in 2021 is mainly driven by the proliferation of free airline distribution agreements in a number of different markets that were not previously available.. As a result, countries such as Germany, Italy, Brazil, UK, France, USA and Indonesia have experienced significant audience growth.

So while the growth may not be as impressive as it looks, another factor that may have limited it is lack of race in Asiawhich has been one of the most important stages of Formula E right from the first season.

Finally, another important point is the introduction from next year of the new version Vehicles Gen3. They bring a new design, recently introduced in the Monaco E-Prix, that has attracted renewed interest. However, most of them give another important power boost, up to 350 kW compared to the previous 250. Along with that, the cars will also be lighter, have a higher top speed and will be smaller and have a shorter wheelbase which will make them more agile. All in all, the changes will translate into a significant performance improvement that will make racing more enjoyable.

Formula E Different generations of cars Specifications

formula e car

Next season will also see an important change in the rules. For the first time, stops for recharging will be allowed thanks to rechargeable battery up to 600 kW.

Looking back at McLaren

With this move, McLaren doubles down on its motorsport expansion strategy by adding once again a range of single-seat electric vehicles to Formula 1, IndyCar, Extreme E and other e-sports lines.

McLaren Racing CEO Zack Brown issued a statement saying:

“McLaren Racing is always looking to compete with the best and at the forefront of technology, providing our fans, partners and everyone with new ways to get excited, entertained and inspired. Formula E, like all of our racing series, meets all of those criteria. “

This is crucial to McLaren’s marketing as it looks to the future. McLaren likes one of the strongest followers on social mediaespecially thanks to it Unboxed F1 related reports this still proves a winning formula, especially thanks to the popularity of the Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo models. More diversification will ensure better reach and potential new audiences, especially younger fans.

That’s not all. Formula E could also be key from a company development standpoint as it offers another opportunity to further develop electric racing capabilities, following the Extreme E series. In fact, the manufacturer The UK has already begun the transition to electrification with its first hybrid model, the entry-level Artura supercar, which has gone into production and with first deliveries expected at the end of the second quarter of 2022. However, , things have not been that simple since the beginning of the pandemic and dig deeper into EV motorsport could give McLaren an edge over its competitors in the years to come.

2021 sees a partial recovery from the dire results of 2020, but is still far from pre-pandemic levels, and early 2022 is also not looking good.

McLaren full year and first quarter sales (2016 – 2021, Q1 2017 – Q1 2022)

annual sales of mclaren

mclaren's quarterly sales

Sales in first quarter of 2022 lowest in 6 years. Part of this is, of course, due to the causes but difficulties facing the industry as a whole. From the aftermath of the pandemic to chip shortages, it’s causing severe supply chain disruptions for many OEMs. All of these factors ultimately caused production delays for the Artura.

The financial results weren’t particularly encouraging either, with lower sales and negative EBITDA. In this respect, additional investment specifically dedicated to Formula E could prove a significant burden on the company, but at the same time, The Formula 1 budget cap introduced in 2022 could have created various opportunities for all companies involved, while also budgeting and workforce to reallocate across functions. business or other motorsport.

In short, even freeing up budget-bound resources for Formula 1, the financial risk is huge for the British carmaker, which also sold its applied technology division in 2021. However, joining Formula E could be important for a number of reasons.

Much depends on the popularity of Formula E in the coming years, especially with the significant introduction of new Gen3 cars. While the sport’s popularity has recovered from a tough 2020 season and new promotional deals are being arranged, it’s still uncertain whether the series has what it takes to become a reality. real like other motorsport series or not.

E gene formula 3* Formula E Gen 3 presentation photo

Despite the acquisition of the Mercedes EQ team, McLaren has access to a strong team that has been successful in 2021 and is currently leading the ongoing championship. If this success continues under the new ownership, it could become another important marketing platform for the brand.. Especially when looking to a motorsport future (which is probably still a long way off) in which electric cars will become faster and therefore more challenging and exciting than internal combustion engine cars.

Finally, even the luxury car segment is moving incessantly towards full electrification and has a strong presence in various related race series, presenting huge opportunities from both a promotional report and more importantly a technical development point of view.

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