On 6 May 2023, there will be electricity in the air in the Principality of Monaco with the return of Formula E. The sixth Monaco E-Prix will also be the ninth race of the FIA ABB Formula E 2023 World Championship season.
An idea made reality
On the evening of March 3, 2011, FIA President Jean Todt and Spanish businessman, Formula E Chairman Alejandro Agag, met in a Paris restaurant and gathered their thoughts in just a few words on what would become the world's first all-electric international single-seater championship.
Formula E’s founding mission was for its race through the streets of the most iconic cities in the world - with a grid full of the best racing drivers and teams around - to show just what sustainable mobility was capable of, driving electric vehicles to the fore in the race for a better, cleaner future.
Evolution or Revolution?
September 2014 marked the launch of the inaugural Formula E season. Initially, the category only permitted a single model of car (similar to Formula 2). But from 2015, Formula E rules were changed to allow constructors to build their own motors, and various other parts (gearbox, rear suspension, electronic management box).
The competition underwent a major shake-up, with increasingly more powerful and efficient cars and technologies.
For the 2018/2019 season, the Gen2 car was introduced in place of the Gen1. The restyled version boasted more power, increased from 180kW (240 bhp) to 250kW (335 bhp) with a top speed of 280km/h.
Formula E is reinventing motor racing, bringing in tactical innovations like "ATTACK MODE". It represents a real challenge for the teams and drivers: leaving the racing line to launch ATTACK MODE poses a risk, but the additional power for a few laps can be a game-changer.
It also happens to be the only sport in the world where fans can influence the outcome, by voting to give their favourite driver an extra boost of mechanical performance during the race: "Fan Boost".
Faster and faster…
The 2022/2023 season sees the arrival of the third generation of car, Gen3!
Learning lessons from the previous eight years of electric racing, the new car's battery pumps out 350Kw (470 bhp) of power, for potential top speeds of 320km/h. Compared with the previous generation, this latest model is 75% more powerful and its maximum speed is no less than 95 km/h faster!
©FIA Formula E
The Monaco E-Prix, un unmissable annual event
At the first Monaco E-Prix in May 2015, the cars raced through the Principality on a reduced circuit, since they lacked the range to complete a full race on the same circuit as that used for Formula 1.
The electric cars have been racing the full circuit since 2021, illustrating the huge technical strides made in the discipline since its creation.
Held in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2022, the Monaco E-Prix is now an annual fixture of the ABB
Formula E World Championship, after getting the green light from the FIA World Motor Sport Council in June 2021.
©FIA Formula E
Come and feel the electricity crackle in Monaco!