Swiss E-Prix: No race and no date 🎥
REJECTION FROM ZURICH The Zurich City Council has rejected a race for 2020 on the grounds of the ETH. In the event of a yes, however, Switzerland would first have had to find a place on the FIA calendar. The highlights of the race in Bern. When there will be another Swiss E-Prix is undetermined. The decision of the Zurich [...]
The highlights of the race in Bern. When there will be another Swiss E-Prix is undetermined.
The decision of the Zurich City Council to reject the Swiss E-Prix 2020 in Zurich on the ETH Hönggerberg site came as a surprise, according to a statement from Swiss E-Prix Operations AG. The city had previously favored this variant and evaluated it with ETH Zurich.
High international profile
The CEO and founder of Swiss E-Prix Operations AG, comments on the decision of the Zurich City Council, which became known on Wednesday.
Pascal Derron: "We very much regret the city council's decision and are disappointed. Now, unfortunately, the probability is small that a Formula E race can take place in Switzerland in 2020. The decision also raises the question of why Switzerland and Zurich 2020 let the opportunity pass by to position themselves as open, future-oriented and technology-friendly with this event with high audience interest and international appeal."
Swiss E-Prix Operations AG, with legal domicile in Zurich, is headed by Pascal Derron. The company is responsible for the entire race infrastructure, event operations, the supporting program and the marketing of the race in Switzerland. It is the license holder of Formula E in Switzerland until 2027.
Uncertain future
The organizer now wants to analyze this new initial situation and decide on the further procedure. It is questionable whether the Zurich City Council could agree to this.
In the provisional FIA calendar for the 2019/20 multi-year season, which has already been published by AutoSprintCH, there is no place for a Swiss race. This is also confirmed by the media spokesperson of Swiss E-Prix Operations upon request.
Stephan Oehen: "Switzerland does not have a reserved place in the current FIA calendar. On the contrary, Switzerland would have a chance if another city decided not to host the event - for whatever reason. This has happened occasionally in the past and is likely to happen in the future."
Formula E top event
According to long-time FIA chief functionary Paul Gutjahr from Bern, Switzerland would immediately find a place on the FIA calendar again if the staging could be guaranteed. Thus, St. Moritz shows concrete interest after the cancellation from Zurich. Both the Swiss E-Prix Zurich 2018 and Bern last weekend were the top events of the electric racing series in terms of spectator interest and ambiance, emphasizes Gutjahr.
In addition, neighboring Switzerland is also one of the most important sales countries for the German manufacturers involved in Formula E (Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Porsche). In addition, two Swiss companies, ABB and Bank Julius Baer, are the main sponsors.
