Nissan revealed Oliver Rowland as its second driver to partner Sebastien Buemi for the 2018/19 FIA Formula E Championship.
Following the move from Alexander Albon to Formula 1 with Toro Rosso, Nissan e.Dams faced a hurdle even before getting started in the all-electric championship as a manufacturer succeeding alliance Renault.
It took months for the decision to be taken with Albon released eventually. For his replacement, Nissan announced Rowland ahead of Nissan’s NISMO Festival – the British driver had tested for the team when Albon had to pull out pre-season.
“The Formula E championship features some of the best drivers in the world, and it’s an honor to be selected by Nissan e.dams to represent them in season five,” said Rowland. To be able to work alongside Sebastien is also an incredible opportunity.
“I’m looking forward to challenging myself against the best of the best in Formula E.” Rowland thus joins Buemi with Nissan also naming its Super GT drivers Mitsunori Takaboshi and Jann Mardenborough in non-racing roles.
The Japanese will be the official test and reserve driver of the team while the British racer will take up the simulator role. “To get the opportunity to drive the car on Sunday at the NISMO Festival is a tremendous honor,” said Takaboshi.
“I can’t wait to show Japanese fans what Formula E is all about.” Mardenborough added: “With Formula E events featuring practice, qualifying and the race all in one day, doing your homework with tools like the simulator is quite important.
“I’m looking forward to helping the team in this role.” The season kicks off on December 15 with the first race in Saudi Arabia which will also feature a single-day test on December 16 where Nissan will field Carmen Jorda along with Buemi and possibly Rowland.
“The launch in Japan signifies a big milestone, with Nissan joining Formula E,” said the team’s senior driver, Buemi. “We’ve been working very hard as Nissan e.dams for half a year now, and I hope all this hard work from the team and from Nissan will pay off.”