Extreme E is launching a hydrogen racing series
The battery-electric Extreme E off-road racing series will launch its offshoot with hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in 2025, one year later than originally planned.
After one season as an FIA championship, the corresponding Extreme H off-road series is to be granted official FIA World Championship status by the automotive world governing body from 2026. The battery-electric Extreme E, currently an FIA International Series, is also to become an FIA championship from 2024, albeit without World Championship status. Extreme H would thus join seven other official FIA World Championships, including Formula E.
The battery-electric Extreme E, currently an FIA International Series, is also set to become an FIA championship from 2024, albeit without World Championship status. To be granted World Championship status within the FIA series, a number of criteria must be met in terms of participants and venues (e.g., events on three continents) – in addition, the FIA must be convinced “that such categorization is in the interests of the sport.” Formula 1, for example, is a world championship, while the junior racing series Formula 2 and Formula 3 (although they are held as part of the Formula 1 supporting program) are “only” FIA championships.
Plans for a hydrogen racing series were first announced in February 2022, and the project name Extreme H was already mentioned at that time. The Extreme H cars will use the same drivetrain and chassis as those in the Extreme E, but instead of a battery, they will use a hydrogen fuel cell as their main energy source – according to the 2022 plan. Visually, then, the Odyssey 21-type unit cars will be indistinguishable from one another.
“Establishing alongside the FIA a world-first hydrogen racing world championship will be a momentous milestone for Extreme E and the new Extreme H series. Eventual accreditation as an FIA Championship and then an FIA World Championship means we would be amongst the top tier of global motorsport categories, and Extreme H would be the first-ever world championship racing series of its kind,” said Alejandro Agag, Founder and CEO of Extreme E, adding: “What started as a conversation many years ago about racing in extreme environments, showcasing the incredible performance and innovation of E-SUVs, has now demonstrated enormous growth and further pioneering technical advances as we move forward with the transition to hydrogen and Extreme H – a world-first.”
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