After 125 years of motorsport history, Mercedes-Benz is about to write a new chapter in the upcoming season: at the opening round of the 2019/20 ABB FIA Formula E Championship in Saudi Arabia in late November, two all-electric race cars will be fielded by the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team for the first time.
Occupying the two Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 cockpits will be ex-Formula 1 driver Stoffel Vandoorne and current FIA Formula 2 championship leader Nyck de Vries.
In its debut season, the team will draw on the knowledge and combined motorsport expertise of the Mercedes family. At the heart of the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 is the electric powertrain which has been designed and developed at Mercedes-AMG High Performance Powertrains (HPP) in Brixworth, UK which is the Daimler Group’s global centre of excellence for high-performance hybrid technology. Brixworth also continue to develop the hybrid power units with which Mercedes has achieved the Formula 1 championship double in each of the past five years.
Responsibility for managing the cars on race weekends has been assigned to HWA AG, the Affalterbach-based motorsport specialist which has already gained a wealth of experience in Formula E last season with its own team HWA RACELAB. The Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team also receives support from the reigning Formula 1 constructors champions, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport, at Brackley.