Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Yamaha

  • Lola Cars extends partnership with Yamaha

    Lola Cars and Yamaha Motor are set to continue their technical partnership through Formula E’s GEN4 era.

    The companies will continue working together to develop their 2026/27 powertrain, which will be introduced in Season 13 – with significant advancements in energy efficiency, race performance and safety to follow.

    The partnership say this continued collaboration provides the perfect platform for Lola and Yamaha Motor to advance technologies that will shape the future of mobility, leveraging the high performance and high pressure motorsport environment.

    They join Nissan, Jaguar, Porsche and Maserati as the confirmed manufacturers for Formula E’s next major leap.

    Working alongside Yamaha Motor on the development of the powertrain the Lola Yamaha ABT team is currently using in Formula E has been a mutually beneficial and positive experience. Having already committed to GEN4 ourselves, I’m so pleased that Yamaha Motor will be continuing this journey in electric racing with us. With their vast experience and commitment to advancing sustainable mobility, they are the perfect partner for Lola Cars and we look forward to continuing to drive innovation through motorsport with them.
    Till Bechtolsheimer, Chairman of Lola Cars.

    Yamaha Motor is accelerating its research and development of various technologies to acquire and enhance new core technologies that will provide Kando [a Japanese expression for the simultaneous feelings of deep satisfaction and intense excitement that we experience when we encounter something of exceptional value] to our fans and contribute to sustainability in the future. One of these initiatives is the acquisition of advanced energy management technology that will be honed in Formula E. We will continue to take on the challenge into the GEN4 era as a technical partner of Lola Cars. We are very proud and excited to enhance our technology on the world’s highest stage of electric racing with our reliable partner.
    Heiji Maruyama, Managing Executive Office and Director of Yamaha Motor.

    The continued partnership between Lola Cars and Yamaha Motor into the GEN4 era of Formula E underscores the championship’s pivotal role in driving technological innovation for sustainable mobility. With the significant performance advancements planned for GEN4, this collaboration will undoubtedly push the boundaries of electric powertrain development, showcasing the cutting-edge technology that Formula E champions. We’re thrilled to see these industry leaders commit to our vision of a future where high-performance and sustainability go hand-in-hand.
    Jeff Dodds, CEO of Formula E.

  • Maloney completes Lola Yamaha ABT Line-Up

    Lola Yamaha ABT will enter its first ABB FIA Formula E World Championship season with one of the grid’s most exciting driver pairings, having confirmed rookie Zane Maloney as the teammate of Lucas di Grassi.

    In combining the driver with the most races in championship history with the rookie confirmed, the team underscores its intent to shake up the status quo and drive the next generation of motorsport talent and technology.

    Born and raised in Barbados, Maloney’s blossoming career has already seen him win the British Formula 4 Championship, finish runner-up in the FIA Formula 3 Championship and was named FIA Rookie of the Year in 2022.

    The 20 year old is currently third in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, and is also a reserve driver for Stake F1 Team KICK Sauber.
    A reserve and development driver for the Andretti team since 2023, Maloney already has experience completing several tests.

    Maloney has already joined the team for testing in Varano, Italy and in the new car in Spain last week.

    The eleventh ABB FIA Formula E World Championship season kicks off in Sao Paulo on 7th December.
    In early November, all teams will gather in Valencia, Spain for the only official test sessions.

    We’re delighted to welcome Zane to the team for the upcoming Formula E season, completing our driver pairing as one of the most exciting on next season’s grid. Zane is a hugely talented young driver with an abundance of speed and potential and, alongside Lucas, we have an ideal combination of youth and experience. Zane has demonstrated his abilities in a variety of junior categories and proven himself as a race winner, and we’re looking forward to seeing him get behind the wheel in testing, and then at round one in São Paulo.
    Till Bechtolsheimer, Chairman of Lola Cars.

    We are very much looking forward to having Zane as part of the team for Season 11, and he has already brought a breath of fresh air during our first days working together. Giving young talent a chance and supporting them has been a strong tradition at ABT for many decades and that’s why it was clear to us that we would also follow this path in Formula E.
    ABT CEO, Thomas Biermaier.

    I am delighted to be part of the Lola Yamaha ABT team and looking forward to this exciting challenge. Although I already know the championship well, this is a completely new chapter for me, so working with such an experienced team, and alongside such a successful driver, is the perfect next step. I’ve followed and admired Lucas’s battles over the past seasons, including when he became champion. I’m sure that I will learn a lot from him and together we will push both ourselves and the development of the car forward.
    Maloney on the news.

  • ABT to partner with Lola and Yamaha from Season 11

    ABT have confirmed their entry for Gen3 EVO, starting next season, alongside newly-registered powertrain manufacturer Lola Cars, in technical partnership with Yamaha Motor Company.

    After a brief hiatus, the title-winning ABT team re-joined the Formula E grid in 2023 for Season 10 alongside CUPRA as its partner, equipped with a Mahindra Racing powertrain.

    The contract with Mahindra has since been mutually terminated, coming to an end at the end of the current season. ABT now enters into a fresh alliance with motorsport icons.

    Preparations for the launch are well underway at Lola and Yamaha, with software refinement and hardware testing in progress on the dyno. The inaugural on-track shakedown of the powertrain is scheduled for June, Further updates, including the unveiling of a title partner, additional sponsors, team structure and nomenclature, driver line-up and car design will all be disclosed in the coming months.

    ABT is among Formula E’s most successful outfits, with Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler winners of the Drivers’ title at the hands of Lucas di Grassi in 2017/17 and the Teams’ Championship in 2017/18.
    The German outfit has been part of Formula E from the very first race in Beijing and has 47 podium finishes and more than 1,400 points to its name.

    The ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is thrilled to welcome Lola Cars and Yamaha Motor to the paddock, and excited for ABT as they embark on this exciting journey together for the highly-anticipated GEN3 Evo era. This partnership signifies their commitment to innovation and performance in the world of electric racing and EV development, and we will be eagerly waiting to see the impact they will make on track.

    Alberto Longo, Chief Championship Officer of Formula E.

    We are delighted to have found two renowned partners for our future in Formula E. Of course, it will be a big challenge for a new manufacturer to enter and establish itself in a world championship. But during our discussions and negotiations over the past few months, we have clearly sensed how skilled, motivated and determined Lola and Yamaha are to make this project a success – just like every member of our team. In the meantime, we are fully focused on the current season. Our goal is to achieve as many sporting highlights as possible in the coming weeks.

    Thomas Biermaier, CEO and Team Principal of ABT.

    We are thrilled to be partnering with ABT as we bring the technology we’ve developed with Yamaha Motor Company to the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. It’s exciting to be working with a team that has so much history and success in the sport. Operating factory-backed programmes is ABT’s bread and butter and their experience in Formula E will give us a critical leg up. We look forward to developing our relationship within and beyond the electric racing series.

    Till Bechtoisheimer, Chairman of Lola Cars.

  • Lola Cars returns to top tier Motorsport with Yamaha

    Lola Cars have announced that it is returning to global motorsport in a multi-year technical partnership with Yamaha Motor Company and will enter the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship from Season 11.

    The iconic, globally renowned motorsport brand. which has more than 500 championship wins, is working with Yamaha to develop and supply a powertrain to compete in the world’s first all-electric, single seater race series.

    With track racing deep in the DNA of both Lola Cars and Yamaha, this new partnership not only provides an opportunity to join the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship as it moves to the Gen3 Evo platform for the 2024/25 season but also creates opportunities across global motorsport and in the broader zero emissions transportation space.

    Founded by Eric Broadley in 1958, Lola Cars has designed and produced nearly 5000 race cars spanning 400 different model types, gaining unparalleled success in motorsport championships around the world, including:
    IndyCarm Le Mans, Formula 1, Can-Am, Formula 3000, Formula 5000, A1GP, Formula Ford and Touring Cars.

    This partnership continues Lola Cars’ longstanding prominence in Japan. Lola Cars has a long history of involvement in Japanese motorsport, primarily in what is now known as the Japanese Super Formula CHampionship, winning 13 Championships in two decades from 1987 when it was known as the All Japan F3000.

    We are thrilled to confirm our entry in Formula E. For us, this is more than just an opportunity to return Lola to the track, it’s also a fantastic platform for technological development. Lola Cars has a decorated history of success in chassis and aerodynamic design. This project will allow us to create a unique electrified platform with a software focus at its core to provide a basis for Lola’s wider plans in defining the future of motorsport technology. The partnership is the first of several major projects planned to re-establish the British company as an industry leader in sustainable engineering and motorsport, strategically focusing on three areas of electrification, hydrogen and sustainable fuels and materials.

    Mark Preston, Motorsport Director, Lola Cars.

    We are incredibly excited to be partnering with the Yamaha Motor Company as we enter the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship. To be selected by one of the most innovative OEMs in the world to partner on a project of this significance is a testament to the caliber of the team that we have been building at Lola. The focus of this project is squarely around technological development in which Lola is fully invested. We see the highly efficient 350 kW electric powertrain that underpins the manufacturer’s perimeter in Formula E, as a cornerstone technology with exciting applications across many forms of topflight international motorsport in the coming years.

    Till Bechtolsheimer, Chairman Lola Cars.

    Yamaha Motor Company is accelerating the research and development of various technologies that contribute to sustainability. As the technical partner, we hope to acquire more advanced energy management technologies through the highest level of electric racing in Formula E. We also share Lola’s new philosophy of sustainable motorsport and we are very pleased and honored to form this partnership with them.

    Heiji Maruyama, Managing Executive Office and Director of Yamaha Motor Co.