By Brian Stark – April 2, 2021

Despite our doubts a year ago when we introduced the electric off-road racing series to you, Extreme E is set to kick off this weekend in Saudi Arabia, and it could be a humdinger. Founded by Alejandro Agag, CEO to the electric formula car series Formula E, Extreme E features some carryover technology from the Formula E series, like the batteries from Williams Advanced Engineering (although battery specifics are limited). The series has also been quite busy through the pandemic, attracting several big name team owners, like Formula 1 champions Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button.

Button, it should be noted, will be co-driving for his JBXE team, while Hamilton will not.

Multiple tests of the Odyssey 21 race car have taken place over the last year, including a run at the 2020 Dakar Rally, with Ken Block piloting.

Now, one year after voicing our concerns, the series is set to hit the sand this weekend. “The time has come to go racing and I can’t explain how proud and excited I am,” Agag said in an official statement. “A huge amount of hard work under unprecedented circumstances has gone on behind the scenes to get this revolutionary racing series together and I can’t wait to see some of the biggest names in motorsport go head-to-head in just a few days.”

Extreme E claims the Odyssey 21 will run from 0-60 mph in 4.5 second.

The inaugural race weekend will involve some 18 drivers competing in Saudi Arabia’s Desert X Prix in what is being touted as the “world-first gender equal motorsport format.” Therein, the field of nine teams with two drivers per team is split 50/50, with each team sporting a male and female driver.

Beyond Button, Sebastien Loeb is one of the more notable drivers, with the multi-time WRC rally champion piloting a car alongside teammate Christina Gutierrez for Hamilton’s X44 Extreme E team.

Sebastien Loeb is set to drive for Lewis Hamilton’s X44 Extreme E team.

The electric race cars themselves, called Odyssey 21, feature 550 hp in a 3,640-pound SUV-looking tube-frame package. The fleet of Odyssey 21s will be transported to race locations around the globe via the St. Helena, a converted British Royal Mail cargo vessel.

The St. Helena is a 30-year-old vessel that has been completely refurbished for the task at hand, which includes transporting not only the Odyssey 21s, but also hydrogen fuel cells that will recharge the race car batteries.

The St. Helena is set to transport all Odyssey 21s and equipment for the nine Extreme E teams from race to race.

Extreme E organizers describe the hydrogen fuel cell process thusly:

In a world-first, each car will be charged using zero-emission energy via hydrogen fuel cell technology created in collaboration with AFC Energy. The system offers a completely sustainable fuel production process, using water and sun to generate hydrogen power which will then be used to charge all the Odyssey 21 electric SUVs off the grid. Not only will this process emit zero greenhouse emissions, but its only by-product will be water, which will be utilized elsewhere on-site.

As for the ship’s fuel, the refurbishment included converting its engines and generators to run on low sulfur marine diesel rather than standard heavy diesel. The organizer also notes that much of the original interior remains in order to minimize waste.

The series schedule has understandably shifted over the last year, with the series failing to launch in January 2021 as originally planned. Still, Extreme E is not far off, as Saudi Arabia, now the kickoff, was slated as the second stop. Therein, the current schedule is:

2021 Extreme E Schedule
April 3-4: Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia
May 29-30: Lac Rose, Dakar, Senegal
Aug. 28-29: Kangerlussuaq, Greenland
Oct. 30-31: Santarém, Pará, Brazil
Dec. 11-12: Tierra Del Fuego, Argentina

Extreme E’s race locations should prove to be as unique as the series itself. Here, the team scouts Saudi Arabian locations.

For this weekend’s races, Saturday will see “precision and pressure of time trial qualifications,” with Sunday’s races being “short” and “sharp.” While qualifying is easy enough to understand, Sunday’s race will be slightly more confusing, with the Shoot Out, the Crazy Race, the Semi Final, and the Final.

Basically, it’s elimination rounds, with each team deciding which driver hits the track when:

Each driver will complete one lap behind the wheel, with a changeover – the ‘Switch’ incorporated into the race format. The teams will determine which driver goes first to best suit their strategy and driver order selections are made confidentially, with competitors kept in the dark as to other teams’ choices until the cars reach the start-line. Contests between males and females will therefore be ensured. A ‘Hyperdrive’ boost will also be available to each driver on each lap of the race. Activated when the driver presses a button on their steering wheel, they will enjoy an increase in power for a fixed amount of time.

And because modern racing wouldn’t be complete without an element intended to confuse, Extreme E introduces GridPlay:

Fans can get involved too via GridPlay, which puts the starting line-up for the Desert X Prix Final in their hands. From 31 March until 60 minutes after the start of the Crazy Race on Sunday 4 April, fans will be able to vote twice per day via the Extreme E website and on Twitter using #GridPlay #DriverName for their favorite driver, with the votes added together to complete the team standings.
The teams that don’t reach the concluding race have an important role to play too, in gifting their votes to a team of their choice, so every vote really does count. And the team with the most votes will then be able to select its starting position for the Desert X Prix Final.

So how can you watch this weekend? Friday shakedowns and Saturday’s qualifications can be viewed through Extreme E’s website, plus social channels (@extremeelive on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Twitch). The finals, meanwhile, will be shown on global broadcasters including Fox Sports in the USA.

Qualifying runs from 2-3:30 a.m. and 7-8:30 a.m. EDT on Saturday, with racing kicking off on Sunday at 2 a.m. EDT – so hopefully qualifying and the races will also be available on-demand.

(Images courtesy Extreme E)

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