Pascal Wehrlein was clearly satisfied. “Our new car feels great,” said the Porsche works driver, who clinched the first Formula E victory for Porsche last season in Mexico. He and his new teammate António Félix da Costa completed an intensive test programme with the Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 at the Circuit Mallorca, among other circuits. The all-electric race car, which underwent an evolution in Weissach, will make its world premiere on November 7 at the Porsche Experience Centre in Franciacorta, Italy.
In preparation for the start of the season in Mexico City on January 14, 2023, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team gained important insights during test drives at various tracks, most recently at the Circuit de Calafat in the Spanish province of Tarragona. In season 9 of the world’s first electric racing series, the third-generation racing cars will be fielded for the first time. This marks the beginning of a new era for Formula E. The new Gen3 cars, such as the Porsche 99X Electric Gen3, are the fastest, lightest, most powerful and efficient electric race cars ever built. They have been specifically designed for gripping wheel-to-wheel duels on tight city circuits.
“The cards are being reshuffled with the new Gen3 cars”
“There’s a sense of excitement and anticipation in the air heading into our fourth season of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship,” says Florian Modlinger, Director Factory Motorsport Formula E. “The cards are being reshuffled with the new Gen3 cars. All teams are at the same technical level. That’s a guarantee of exciting and fiercely contested races.”
He stated that it was great to see the Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 on the track and to work with the new factory driver António Félix da Costa, who has been testing on various circuits since joining the team in mid-August. “The tests over the past few weeks were demanding and challenging,” says Florian Modlinger, “but they allowed us to make some promising pre-season progess. For the most part, we were able to complete our programmes as planned and gained important insights to continue working on our car.”
World debut of the Porsche 99X Electric Gen3 on the 7 November
The new Porsche 99X Electric will be unveiled to the world on 7 November at the Porsche Experience Centre in Franciacorta. Pascal Wehrlein can hardly wait: “I’m very excited to see our new car decked out in its new design,” he says. António Félix da Costa, the 2019/2020 Formula E champion who joined the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E team in August, is excited for the season to begin: “I’m really looking forward to finally getting started and achieve success with this team.”
After the world premiere of the Porsche 99X Electric Gen3, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team enters the final preparation phase for season 9. All of the teams will attend the final rehearsal for the opening race on 14 January in Mexico City at the traditional Formula E preseason tests from 13 to 16 December in Valencia, Spain.