The grand finale: New Formula E world champion to be crowned at the Hankook London E-Prix

- Season 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship draws to a close at the Exhibition Center London “ExCel” in Great Britain
- Seven drivers have a chance to be crowned world champion following the final race weekend
- The circuit includes both an indoor and an outdoor section, which will be an opportunity to demonstrate what the drivers and the Hankook iON Race can achieve together

Seoul, Korea, July 16, 2024 – A fantastic Season 10 of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship draws to a close this weekend (19th to 21st July) with a grand showdown in Great Britain. Races 15 and 16 of the season at the Hankook London E-Prix will determine the new Formula E world champion. In pole position going into the finale is New Zealander Nick Cassidy from the Jaguar TCS Racing team, who is currently sitting at the top of the table with 167 points. However, his two closest rivals, Mitch Evans from New Zealand (Jaguar TCS Racing) and German Porsche driver Pascal Wehrlein, are well within striking distance, each with 155 points to their name. Fourth-placed António Félix da Costa (TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team) has caused quite a stir of late. The Portuguese has won four of the last five races and is looking to continue his successful run. Mathematically, no fewer than seven drivers could still be crowned world champion at the end of the final race weekend.

The venue for the grand finale is the English capital London, home to roughly nine million people. The 2.080-kilometer track is located at the Exhibition Centre London “ExCeL” in the Docklands area in the east of the city. What makes this venue so special is that the circuit for the Hankook London E-Prix has both an indoor and an outdoor section, as the track runs through an exhibition hall. This unique feature poses an additional challenge for the drivers and the Hankook iON Race.

Hankook Director Motorsport Manfred Sandbichler stated, “We are really looking forward to the finale in the global metropolis that is London. Particularly as it is another opportunity for our premium tire, the Hankook iON Race, to show what it is capable of. The mix of indoor and outdoor sections means the track has different surfaces and grip levels. Artificial and natural light make for different air and track temperatures, while the weather is another factor to take into consideration. These are big challenges, which we love and will overcome together with the teams and drivers. We are particularly proud of the fact that our tire has not been responsible for any punctures without a contributing factor for two years now in Formula E.”

The performance of the Hankook iON Race is particularly important in qualifying, as the drivers only have a short time to produce the fastest lap possible. The drivers’ job is to quickly get their tires up to the optimal working temperature, in order to get the best out of the Hankook iON Race. Jean-Éric Vergne has regularly proven to be particularly good at this. The Frenchman from the DS Penske team has already contested 21 qualifying duels this season – more than any other driver – and has won 15 of them. That is a success rate of 71.4 percent. Vergne started from pole position for the 17th time on Sunday in Portland, setting a new Formula E record.

Fast, faster, fastest: that perfectly summed up the performance of the premium tire provided by Hankook, official technical partner and tire supplier of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, in the USA. In Free Practice 3 on the Sunday, Mitch Evans set the fastest lap ever recorded in an official Formula E session on the Hankook iON Race: his average speed at the 3.190-kilometer Portland International Raceway was a mighty 167.26 km/h.

Power, grip and great driving. Those are the ingredients needed for a successful fightback. At the penultimate double-header of the season in the USA, Britain’s Sam Bird (NEOM McLaren Formula E Team) on the Saturday and Frenchman Norman Nato (Andretti Formula E) on the Sunday each made up 13 places in the race, thanks to the grip provided by the Hankook iON Race.

Spectators in the busy grandstands at Portland International Raceway in the US state of Oregon witnessed two exciting races, with the lead changing hands on numerous occasions and plenty of strategy in play. With temperatures around 25 degrees on both days, the field soon brought the Hankook iON Race into the optimal working window, allowing them to exploit the high grip level of the premium tire. After two impressive performances, it was António Félix da Costa (TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team) who took his place on the top step of the podium after both races. The most exciting and impressive images from Portland are available here in the Hankook Highlight Clip.

As well as on YouTube, regular news and information on Hankook’s involvement in Formula E can also be found on X and Instagram.

You can find the current Hankook Press Kit for the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, with a preview of the coming race weekend in London here.