With another historic season for the ABB FIA Formula E Championship set to commence on the streets of Ad Diriyah next month - the electric street racing series has revealed the entry list for an in-season test, which will take place a day after the opening race of season five.
The in-season test - taking place a day after the SAUDIA Ad Diriyah E-Prix - has seen the local promoter work with teams to encourage more female participation - with the results being one of the most exciting, diverse and competitive line-ups seen in motor sport.
Formula E will bring international motor sport to the country for the very first time, as part of a 10-year agreement with the General Sports Authority and Saudi Arabian Motor Federation. Along with the announcement earlier this year that women are able to drive in the country, the in-season test will give a new generation of female talent the opportunity to pit themselves against the very best drivers in electric machinery.
The list consists of a varied group of up-and-coming talent along with well-known faces, including the first Emirati female racing driver, the youngest winner of the British GT Championship, a former Andretti Formula E driver and a member of the FIA's Women in Motorsport commission.
Amna Al Qubaisi, will be competing in the test with Envision Virgin Racing. The UAE-born driver has had a steep progression in her career so far, starting karting aged 13, and going on to win the UAE Rotax Max Challenge Championship before more recently competing in Formula 4 with Prema Theodore Racing.
Al Qubaisi, said: “I'm very proud to be representing women in general and Arabian women in particular. This test drive is another stepping-stone towards my dream of a professional career in motorsports and thanks to the continuous support of Kaspersky Lab, this dream will eventually come true."
DS TECHEETAH has recruited Tatiana Calderon to get behind the DS E-TENSE FE19 for the first time on track on December 16. The Colombian is no stranger to single-seater racing, having competed in the FIA European Formula 3 Championship, before taking the jump to GP3 in 2016. Her current role is as official test driver for the Alfa Romeo Sauber.
“When the promoter approached us about the opportunity to offer a test session to a talented female racing driver at the first in-season test, we jumped at the opportunity. We immediately started thinking about drivers that would be suitable for the test, and Tatiana was on top of our list. She’s incredibly talented and we think she’ll do a stellar job at the test with the experience she is able to bring,” said DS TECHEETAH Team Principal, Mark Preston.
“I’m incredibly eager to test the DS E-TENSE FE19 in December. Formula E is a really exciting space and it’s great to be able to get a sense of the series through the test. It’ll be the first time that I’ll drive a fully-electric racing car on track, so I’m curious to find out how I’ll have to adapt my driving style to drive the car in the most efficient way. I’m thrilled to be working with DS TECHEETAH following their successful results last season and I’m looking forward to helping them with their work at the first in-season test,” said DS TECHEETAH test driver for the SAUDIA Ad Diriyah E-Prix, Tatiana Calderon.
Elsewhere, BMW junior driver Beitske Visser will link-up with BMW i Andretti Motorsport team and Jaguar I-PACE eTROPHY driver Katherine Legge will test in the M5Electro for MAHINDRA RACING.
Both HWA RACELAB and GEOX DRAGON are still working to secure female drivers to take part in the test as part of their respective teams.
View the full driver line-up for the in-season test below:
RACE # TEAM NAMESESSION 1SESSION 2
2 Envision Virgin Racing Robin Frijns (NLD) Sam Bird (GBR)
4 Envision Virgin Racing Amna Al Qubaisi (UAE) Amna Al Qubaisi (UAE)
5 HWA RACELAB TBC Stoffel Vandoorne (BEL)
6 GEOX DRAGON TBC TBC
7 GEOX DRAGON Jose Maria Lopez (ARG) Max Gunther (DEU)
8 NIO Formula E Team Jamie Chadwick (GBR) Jamie Chadwick (GBR)
16 NIO Formula E Team Oliver Turvey (GBR) Oliver Turvey (GBR)
Tom Dillmann (FRA) Tom Dillmann (FRA)
17 HWA RACELAB Gary Paffett (GBR) TBC
19 VENTURI Formula E Team Simona de Silvestro (CHE) Simona de Silvestro (CHE)
20 Panasonic Jaguar Racing Mitch Evans (NZL) Mitch Evans (NZL)
22 Nissan e.dams Carmen Jorda (ESP) Carmen Jorda (ESP)
Alex Albon (THA) Alex Albon (THA)
23 Nissan e.dams Sebastien Buemi (CHE) Sebastien Buemi (CHE)
Alex Albon (THA) Alex Albon (THA)
25 DS TECHEETAH Tatiana Calderon (COL) Jean-Eric Vergne (FRA)
27 BMW i ANDRETTI MOTORSPORT Alexander Sims (GBR) Alexander Sims (GBR)
28 BMW i ANDRETTI MOTORSPORT Beitske Visser (NLD) Beitske Visser (NLD)
36 DS TECHEETAH Andre Lotterer (DEU) Tatiana Calderon (COL)
48 VENTURI Formula E Team Felipe Massa (BRA) Edoardo Mortara (CHE)
64 MAHINDRA RACING Jerome D'Ambrosio (BEL) Jerome D'Ambrosio (BEL)
66 Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler Formula E Team Nico Muller (CHE) Nico Muller (CHE)
94 MAHINDRA RACING Katherine Legge (GBR) Katherine Legge (GBR)