James Calado has joined Jaguar Racing as the British outfit has revealed its 2019/20 FIA Formula E Championship car.
Following its announcement of extending the Formula E contract with Mitch Evans for two more seasons, Jaguar has confirmed the signing of GT racer Calado to complete its 2019/20 driver line-up and has also revealed the new Jaguar I-TYPE 4 car.
Together with the car launch and Calado’s announcement, Jaguar has signed a sponsorship deal with Castrol and LEGO Group and Scalextric as well, with the latter to produce mini versions of the car which will be available in the market soon.
“This was one of the most sought-after seats in Formula E and I’m extremely proud to have been offered it. Jaguar’s motorsport history is iconic and to be a part of this team in Formula E is a great opportunity for me,” said Calado.
“Although electric racing is new to me, I’m confident in my own single-seater experience to secure some great results for the team. Expectations are high and I can’t wait for the first race in Diriyah in November [and the season after].”
The British racer has held test runs with Jaguar prior to signing the deal. He replaces Alex Lynn, who joined the team when Nelson Piquet Jr left midway in the 2018/19 season. “I would like to welcome James to the Panasonic Jaguar Racing Formula E team.
“His experience in multiple formulas and outright pace will be a huge asset to the team. We learnt how to win as a team last season and we are hungry for more. To be successful in Formula E you need two drivers who can compete for podiums at every race.
“With Mitch and James we can look to build on the success of last season by securing even more points, podiums and wins. The start of a new season is an exciting time for the team. After months of hard work we are excited to show the world the new Jaguar I-TYPE 4.
“We have applied all of our experience in Formula E to date and our latest innovations into the new racecar and the development team have created what we believe will be our most competitive Formula E car to date.
“We’ve learnt how to win as a team and we are hungry for more in season six. We can’t wait to get racing,” summed up, team principal James Barclay. The car features an all new motor, gearbox, inverter, rear suspension and dampers.
This has helped in overall weight reduction which offers improved handling and performance. In fact, the I-TYPE 4 is the lightest and most efficient powertrain the team has produced in its short Formula E journey.
2019/20 Formula E line-up so far:
Audi: Lucas di Grassi & Daniel Abt
DS Techeetah: Jean-Eric Vergne & Antonio Felix da Costa
Porsche: Neel Jani & Andre Lotterer
GEOX Dragon: Brendon Hartley & Nico Muller
Nissan e.Dams: Sebastien Buemi, Oliver Rowland
BMW Andretti: Maximilian Gunther
Mercedes: Stoffel Vandoorne & Nyck de Vries
Jaguar Racing: Mitch Evans & James Calado
Here’s the announcement of Mitch Evans joining Jaguar