Techeetah, Mortara, DS and BMW: the latest news from Formula E

Techeetah now has a main sponsor:

The Chinese team of which Jean-Éric Vergne is co-owner and also a driver has signed a primary sponsorship contract with Dragon Inc. This company specializes in manufacturing gaming tokens for the entertainment industry, specifically for casinos. This contract will be materialized by displaying the brand’s logo on the sides of the team’s two single-seaters. Both Techeetah cars, in fact, sported the Dragon logo for the first time during the last e-Prix.

Edoardo Mortara will not be able to compete in the Berlin ePrix.

Venturi driver Edoardo Mortara will not be able to participate in the Berlin race due to a scheduling conflict with his DTM program with Mercedes. Indeed, the two races scheduled in May at the Lausitzring, in the German championship, will take place the same weekend as the Berlin ePrix. The identity of his replacement is not yet known, but it is unlikely to be Gary Paffett, who has already driven the car in tests, as he is also competing in the DTM championship with Mercedes. The Monégasque team also had Moroccan driver Michael Benyahia participate in rookie tests in Marrakech, but it is difficult to say whether the team’s development driver will be chosen. Mortara might also be absent for the double final round of the Formula E championship, which will take place in New York in July due to a scheduling conflict with the two Zandvoort races. This will likely depend on his ranking in the German touring car championship.

DS Performance ran their second-generation single-seater for the first time:

DS ran its DS E-TENSE FE 19, which will compete in the next Formula E season, in Satory, near Versailles where its headquarters are located. This first test took place as part of the six days of promotional filming planned by the manufacturer. This strictly supervised run, limited by regulations, aimed to carry out the first technical checks on the car before sending it to Montblanco for the first collective tests. It was Stéphane Sarrazin who was at the wheel of the single-seater and not the regular DS Virgin drivers, as DS intends to part ways with Virgin to join Techeetah next season. The French driver will also be at the wheel for the collective tests that began this Monday.

BMW skips the Montblanco collective tests.

The Bavarian brand announced that it would not participate in the initial testing of the new single-seater, reserved for manufacturers, which began this Monday. The German manufacturer reportedly faced last-minute issues. The propeller company, which will join the Andretti team next year, is expected to be present for the second session scheduled at the Calafat circuit next month. Seven out of nine manufacturers will be present at these tests, with NIO also not participating. The manufacturers present include Audi, DS Performance, Jaguar, Mahindra, Nissan, Penske, and Venturi. These tests are strictly supervised by the FIA and Spark, which manufactures the chassis. Very few details will emerge from this session, but Monday was mainly dedicated to system checks. Tuesday is expected to be devoted to work on the cars before the single-seaters return to the track on Wednesday.