Extreme E’s inaugural champion to be crowned at season finale in Dorset
The weekend of 18-19 December marks the final race of Extreme E’s first season and the Championship decider as nine teams go head-to-head in their all-electric Odyssey 21s for the Jurassic X Prix in Dorset, UK.
Shakedown and qualifications will be aired through Extreme E’s official website and social channels. The Finals will be shown in more than 200 countries by 85 broadcasters, including ITV, Sky Sports, BBC digital channels and BT Sport in the UK, Fox Sports in the US, Prosieben Maxx in Germany, Mediaset in Italy as well as Eurosport across most European markets.
Although RXR has led the standings throughout and currently tops the table on 129 points, Lewis Hamilton’s X44 on 113 points could take Championship victory this weekend. Just behind the top two and in close contention are Andretti United Extreme E (93 points) and Jenson Button’s JBXE (92 points) as they fight to round out the top three spots.
Alejandro Agag, founder and CEO of Extreme E, said: “Our Dorset race is shaping up to be a thrilling finale and I can’t wait to see the teams battling it out on the course for victory at the concluding race of our first season.
“There has been some epic action on some exciting courses, and the route for Dorset will be no different. With a high chance of rain, the drivers are going to face the new challenge of a wet and muddy course, which could really spice things up in the Championship battle.
“More importantly, though, throughout our first year we have raised awareness of the climate crisis facing us all. Our presence in Dorset demonstrates that environmental issues are close to home, and we will be sure to leave a positive impact on the Jurassic coast.”
The final race will take place at the British Ministry of Defence Base at Bovington in Dorset and the Jurassic X Prix will be held on a course that once again provides a completely new set of challenges. A mixed surface of clay, sand, gravel and mud dominates the course making grip, or the lack of it, a key feature for the first time this season. The likelihood of rain only adds to that challenge.
A fast downhill start will allow for multiple cars running side by side, but the wide-open space soon becomes a bottleneck and narrows down to single car width along the tree-lined course, bringing the drivers towards the course’s most striking feature – the 5.4-metre-high, 23-degree ‘Knife Edge’ slope.
Enno Straten, head of strategy, analytics & marketing replacement tires EMEA at Continental, said: “The final race of the Extreme E season once again presents teams and equipment with unprecedented challenges. We are looking forward to an exciting last race of Season 1, and are already counting down the days to competing again together in Saudi Arabia next February for the Season 2 opener.”
Extreme E’s decision to race in Dorset marks a shift from the Championship’s mission to race in remote, far-away places to highlight the effects of climate change.
More and more, the climate issues being discussed are starting to occur closer to home in the UK. The off-road electric series is racing in Dorset to raise awareness of biodiversity loss by supporting The National Trust for this round’s Legacy Programme.