Nissan announced Sebastien Buemi and Alexander Albon as their drivers for the 2018/19 FIA Formula E Championship.
The Japanese manufacturer, who took over the entry of Renault from the new season onward, will feature a new line-up of Buemi and Albon as the Swiss driver remains not only in Formula E but also with the e.dams team for the fifth year running.
The 2015/16 champion will be joined by Formula E debutant Albon, who joins the all-electric series from the FIA Formula 2 Championship, where he is racing for the DAMS’ team in the current season.
“Season five will be a whole new beginning for me in many ways,” said Buemi. “There’s so much that’s new – the cars, the race format, the venues. I look forward to continuing to work with e.dams and bringing the excitement of Nissan’s world-leading electric vehicle technology to motorsports fans all over the globe.”
Albon added: “The level of competition in the series is intense, and I’m looking forward to testing myself against some of the best drivers in the world. Electric street racing will be a new challenge for me, but working with Sebastien as my teammate will be a huge help, as he has set the benchmark for performance in the series.”
Both were rumoured to be in contention for Toro Rosso F1 drive, however, the chances were pretty slim as Buemi anyways serves as the reserve of the team along with Red Bull. At the same time, Albon had little chance after he was dropped by Red Bull early on.
The two will get their official on-track action in the brand new Nissan Gen2 Formula E in October at Valencia with the two-day pre-season test as they gear up for the new season to start in Saudi Arabia on December 15.
Speaking on the line-up, Nissan’s motorsports director Michael Carcamo said: “Sebastien’s impressive record in the Formula E championship speaks for itself, and pairing him with a young star like Alex is a great combination. We can’t think of a better team to showcase our innovative technologies and our Nissan Intelligent Mobility vision.”
Jean-Paul Driot, team principal of e.dams added: “Sebastien has been an important part of the e.dams team since our first Formula E race four years ago in China. We know Alex well from his performances with DAMS in Formula 2, and we’re excited to bring his talent into the Formula E championship.”
Formula E 2018/19 line-up till now:
Venturi: Felipe Massa & Edoardo Mortara
Jaguar Racing: Nelson Piquet Jr & Mitch Evans
Audi: Lucas di Grassi & Daniel Abt
BMW Andretti: Antonio Felix da Costa & Alexander Sims
Nissan: Sebastien Buemi & Alexander Albon