The VW tuner and Formula E title winner, ABT Sportsline, has announced it will be one of 12 teams competing in the Extreme E off-road racing series.
One of motorsports most well-known outfits, ABT Sportsline, is just as well-known as a “world market leader for tuned Volkswagen Group automobiles”. The company has won five DTM titles, took out Formula E in 2016-17 and has been a top-three team in every season since it joined in 2014-15.
Making the announcement, Alejandro Agag, Founder and CEO of Formula E – operating partner of Extreme E – said: “ABT Sportsline was one of the first outfits to commit to what was a then-new series and concept in Formula E some six years ago, and I’m delighted to welcome them as one of the first teams to join Extreme E.
“The team has seen great success in Formula E, DTM and other top-tier motor racing championships throughout the years. The unique challenge offered up by Extreme E with its formidable environments, head-to-head format and the need for real engineering ingenuity undoubtedly acts as a major draw for those with competition at their core. I can’t wait to see how ABT Sportsline respond to that challenge.”
We’ve already covered the launch of Extreme E and the unveiling of the Odyssey 21 E-SUV that teams will race (read more by clicking the link). ABT Sportsline will get one Odyssey 21 in March 2020 to start testing and developing its own engine and “select areas of bodywork, such as the engine cover, front and rear bumpers, side skirt, and lights in a bid to replicate everyday car models and gain a competitive advantage”.
Hans-Jürgen Abt, CEO of ABT Sportsline, said: “Everyone at ABT Sportsline loves competition, innovation, electric mobility and breaking new ground in the world of motorsport and elsewhere. That’s why we were one of the first teams to join Formula E back in 2013 and also why we chose to become a member of the Extreme E family at this early stage.
“We believe in the concept – both in terms of its ideas for racing and its marketing potential off the track.”
