Formula E Announces Return to Mainland China for 2018/19 Season Five
The fully-electric racing series will visit Sanya, a city located on the Hainan island of China.
The FIA Formula E announced its return to mainland China in season five, which begins in December 2018 and concludes in the summer of 2019, when it visits the city of Sanya next year.
The all-new Gen2 FIA Formula E race cars will make their first appearance in Sanya on March 23, 2019, which fills one of the two empty slots of the 2018/19 season calendar. The street race will feature the Haitang Bay as a backdrop, which is a popular vacation spot for Chinese and international tourists. However, the racing circuit itself still pends homologation by FIA officials.
"Bringing the ABB FIA Formula E Championship back to Mainland China is an important step in a key territory for the series and a market that’s instrumental to the continued development and uptake of electric vehicles globally," said Alejandro Agag, founder and CEO of Formula E.
Sanya has grown in size and popularity in recent years, nowadays earning the nickname of "China's Florida" due to its evolving tourist industry. The seaside city of Southeast Asia is also known for its jungle-like flora and fauna as well as its low crime rates and above-average air quality. The Sanya E-Prix will be the second of two races to be held in Asia in season five along with Hong Kong on March 10.
"It's an idyllic setting for a Formula E race—not just with the stunning views on the shores of the South China Sea—but for the ongoing efforts of Hainan in the field of electric mobility, which has led to Sanya boasting the best air quality of any city in China,” added Agag.
While this announcement adds one more important piece to the Formula E puzzle, one more vacant slot still remains in next season's calendar. Round 3, which is set to take place on January 26, 2019, has yet to be confirmed.
