Extreme E’s fourth event of the season will no longer take place in the Amazon or the United States, the electric off-road series’ founder and CEO Alejandor Agag has confirmed.
The September 16-17 double header had been penciled in for one of the two locations. But speaking to select media – which included RACER – at last weekend’s Hydro X Prix in Scotland, Agag revealed the change in location, adding that final arrangements are being put in place for the event.
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“We’re working on our fourth event. We have a date that, at the moment, was penciled in as Amazon or U.S., what I can tell you is it’s going to be neither, not Amazon nor U.S.,” he said. “We have a location that we are working on, we’re finalizing the agreement, but these things, they’re not finalized until everything is signed.
“So we will have another two races at that location at the end of September, so we’re working on that one, then working on the calendar for next year.”
Sources have confirmed to RACER that local funding shortcomings were behind the change of plan, but work is ongoing to secure races in both locations for future seasons.
In the case of the Amazon event, it’s the second time plans for an Extreme E round in Brazil have been put on-hold after 2021’s Amazon X Prix was called off due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
One location that is likely to feature in future, however, is Scotland, which finally hosted an Extreme E round last weekend after it was mooted as far back as 2020, before the series even held a race. A planned trip there last year was scuppered due to logistical challenges, with the Sardina round that was supposed to follow it taking place on a NATO base that was required for training on its original date following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The doubleheader in Glenmuckloch in Dumfries and Galloway took place in a former coal mine which is set to be converted into a hydro plant in the coming years. But before that change takes place, the door has been left open for another Extreme E race at the site, with the series also keen to return.
“We had some Scottish officials here and they’re all very positive about us coming back and we like it a lot,” said Agag. “The final things need to be sorted, but we’re having some conversations.”
Like Sardinia, Scotland’s European location made it relatively accessible for those involved, as well as partners and media, and while a huge plus point, Agag stressed that he still wants the series to stick to its roots and host races in remote locations.
“I still want to go back to places like Greenland … of course the Atacama desert was an amazing race, and have races in Europe” he said. We have to balance.
“Definitely we can see that it’s a lot easier to come here and the impact – a lot of media – we can have much more impact in terms of reach when we are close to home.”