Nissan Formula E Team heads home for the first-ever Tokyo E-Prix next week, with the event on the streets of Tokyo taking place less than an hour away from the company’s global headquarters.
The event marks Round 5 of the 2023/24 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, with the squad in strong form after Oliver Rowland’s excellent double overtake in the last corner of the last lap in Sao Paulo made it back-to-back podiums for the Brit. Sacha Fenestraz was unlucky to miss out on the points in Brazil but returns to familiar surroundings in Tokyo, having raced in Japan from 2019 to 2022.
Nissan Formula E Team will mark the occasion with several special activities and events. The outfit’s two Nissan e-4ORCE 04 cars will sport a one-off livery which will highlight its Japanese DNA more than ever before, while 3,000 Nissan employees, fans and guests will sit in eight Nissan-dedicated grandstands around the track. In addition, several Nissan cars will hit the track on race day in a 30-minute demonstration, with the Nissan Formula E Gen2 car, the Nissan LEAF Nismo RC prototype and the new Nissan ARIYA Nismo all in action.
Formula E’s maiden race in Japan will take place at a 2.582-kilometre urban circuit surrounding the Tokyo International Exhibition Centre, commonly known as Tokyo Big Sight. Featuring 18 turns, the track includes a tricky first sector with lots of slow corners followed by three notable straights, combining all the elements for an excellent and challenging race, with overtaking most likely at Turns 10, 15 and 17.
The action begins on Friday 29th March with Free Practice starting at 16:25 (UTC +9). Saturday 30th March will see qualifying get underway at 10:20 before the race at 15:00.
Tommaso Volpe, managing director and team principal, Nissan Formula E Team: “The last two race weekends have been really positive for the team. Scoring podiums in both Diriyah and Sao Paulo has given us confidence and we know we have the pace to be competitive. To head into our debut home race off the back of these performances is great for team morale, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to compete in Tokyo for the first time.
“With the race being located so close to our global headquarters, everybody at Nissan is looking forward to the event and will be supporting us. The Formula E World Championship plays a key part in our electrification strategy, so to finally be able to race in front of our home crowd is amazing. We’ve been dreaming of an E-Prix in Japan for a long time, and have been excited for it to come ever since it was announced by the series!
“We want to make sure it’s a special occasion for the whole team, our employees and fans, so we’ve got plenty of special events happening, with car demonstrations on track, our Nissan grandstands and of course a one-off livery for the race. We’ve designed it with passion and enthusiasm to try to celebrate this special event even while racing. We can’t wait to reveal it and hope everyone with love it as much as we do!”
Sacha Fenestraz, driver, Nissan Formula E Team: “I’m extremely excited of course, I did a big part of my career in Japan so going back there will be awesome and I cannot wait for the race. I know how amazing and crazy the Japanese fans are, so that will make it even more special. It’s the first time the team and Formula E are going to Japan, so we are looking forward to seeing all the amazing support in the grandstands. It will be almost like a home race for me, the track looks really interesting so I’m excited to go racing!”
Oliver Rowland, driver, Nissan Formula E Team: “I’m delighted to have secured another podium in Sao Paulo and want to keep this positive form going into the team’s home race next week. I’m super excited to be racing in Japan, I went there a few times in karting, and from what we have experienced at the Nismo Festival, the reception we receive from the fans is second to none, so I’m really looking forward to getting on track. It’s positive pressure, when you have this type of support you have extra energy to focus on the challenge, we need to manage that in a balanced way, not get too excited but also not too nervous. It’s going to be a huge race for the team and I can’t wait to get out there and experience the atmosphere!”
