Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team

The Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team was a German racing team that competed in Formula E. The team made its debut at the 2019 Diriyah ePrix as part of the 2019–20 season.[5] Mercedes concluded their involvement at the end of the 2021–22 Formula E World Championship,[6] with the team being taken over by McLaren and returning under new ownership from the 2022–23 season.[7]

Germany Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team
Founded2018[N 1]
Folded2022
BaseBrixworth, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom[N 2]
Brackley, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom[N 3]
Team principal(s)Ian James[2]
Former seriesFormula E
Teams'
Championships		FIA Formula E:
2020–21
2021–22
Drivers'
Championships		FIA Formula E:
2020–21: Nyck de Vries
2021–22: Stoffel Vandoorne

History

On 24 July 2017, Mercedes announced that it would enter the FIA Formula E Championship in the 2019–20 season, and that it would leave the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) at the end of the 2018 season.[3][5] Mercedes also announced that its new venture would be backed by the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport Formula One team.[8]

2018–19 season
Stoffel Vandoorne qualified on pole at the 2019 Hong Kong ePrix.
89th Geneva International Motor Show
2019 New York City ePrix
Before it was officially launched, the Silver Arrow 01 had visited various promotional events during the 2018–19 season, sporting a 'teaser' black livery.

Mercedes unofficially entered Formula E a season ahead of their debut through their affiliation with HWA. On 9 May 2018, HWA confirmed that it will enter the 2018–19 season as a customer team, using powertrains from Venturi, who HWA had already been in partnership with regarding technical support.[9] On 8 October 2018, the HWA Racelab team has been officially launched, revealing the car along with Gary Paffett as its first driver.[10] Stoffel Vandoorne was later confirmed as Paffett's teammate, moving straight to Formula E from his McLaren F1 drive that was coming to a close.[11]

We have always said that HWA is preparing the entry for Mercedes and we are running as an independent team. We have an independent drivetrain too, but of course we want to take away as much knowledge as we can to Brixworth, Brackley and Affalterbach. So we are trying to achieve the best for this season but mainly get the best platform to be competitive in Season Six.

— Ulrich Fritz, "HWA Racelab Building “Platform” for Mercedes EQ", e-racing365 (27 December 2018)[1]

HWA had a very complicated start to the season, not scoring any points in its first four races. In the season's fifth race in Hong Kong, HWA surprised with their pace in wet conditions during the weekend, with Vandoorne even qualifying on pole, giving HWA its first three points in the championship. Paffett qualified fourth.[12] Vandoorne then retired from the race after a driveshaft failure, while Paffett finished eighth, which was HWA's first points finish. HWA then scored another points and first podium in Rome, where Vandoorne finished third. The car broke down immediately after the race due to another driveshaft failure.[13] Venturi's reliability improved in the second half of the season, giving HWA a better chance at good results. Vandoorne was a regular points scorer, but the car wasn't quick enough in races to compete for podiums.

HWA finished ninth in the Teams' Championship and scored 44 points in their one-off season (35 with Vandoorne, 9 with Paffett).

2019–20 season
Much like Mercedes' 2020 Formula One car, the Silver Arrow 01 (pictured at IAA 2019) originally sported a silver livery before it was changed to black. Mercedes then brought back this color scheme with the Silver Arrow 02 car.

Mercedes' official debut, under the name of Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team, took place in November 2019 at the Diriyah ePrix, which is a double-header event. In a form of continuity, the team will utilize the groundwork laid by HWA, rather than completely reworking the team structure.[14] In addition to the established pairing of Paffett and Vandoorne,[15] the team has also used Edoardo Mortara,[16] Esteban Gutiérrez[17] and Nyck de Vries in pre-season testing.[18]

Mercedes' first contender, dubbed the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01, was unveiled in March 2019. It featured a 'teaser' black livery, resembling the HWA car already in competition. The car went on to appear at various events, in promotion of Mercedes' Formula E entry, including the 89th Geneva International Motor Show.[19] In September 2019, the team announced it had signed Danish wind power company Vestas as a principal partner.[20] On 11 September, Mercedes revealed the definitive look of their car (now incorporating metallic silver), along with their new team principal and drivers. Stoffel Vandoorne will continue with team, becoming their 1st driver, but he will be partnering with the 2019 FIA Formula 2 Champion Nyck de Vries. The team will be managed by Ian James.[21] In October, it was announced that the team will supply its new powertrain to Venturi Racing, reversing the manufacturer-customer relationship in the favor of Mercedes.[22]

In pre-season testing, which was held at Circuit Ricardo Tormo, Mercedes were the second slowest team in overall classification, only outpacing NIO 333.[23] Vandoorne, however, won one of the two simulation races that were held during the week.[24] Felipe Massa from Venturi was the fastest Mercedes-powered driver of the week, finishing twelfth in the overall classification.[23] On 15 November, the team confirmed Gutiérrez to join Paffett as a second reserve and development driver.[25]

In July 2020, prior the season resuming after the COVID-19 pandemic, Mercedes brought back and updated the pre-season black livery to unify it with the design used on the F1 W11 EQ Performance car.[26] The drivers also wore black racing overalls.

The team completed the 2019–20 season with their maiden victory in the final race at Berlin with a one-two finish (Vandoorne won the race and De Vries got his first podium in second).[27] Vandoorne finished the season ranking second in the Drivers' Championship, while Mercedes finished third in the Teams' Championship.[28]

2020–21 season

On 29 October 2020, Mercedes revealed the new Silver Arrow 02 car, which returned to the traditional silver livery. Vandoorne and de Vries were confirmed as the driver lineup on the same occasion.[29] The development testing was handled in conjunction with Venturi Racing, who enter their second year as a Mercedes customer team.[30] In 2021, the team underwent a slight rebrand, now going by the name Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team.[31] At the 2021 Diriyah ePrix, De Vries took his first Formula E win and the second win for Mercedes. Three races later, at the 2021 Rome ePrix, Stoffel Vandoorne took his second Formula E victory. On 15 August, it was reported that Mercedes would quit the championship after the 2021–22 season.[32]

2021–22 season
World Champion Vandoorne testing ahead of the 2021-2022 season in Valencia

For their final season in Formula E, Mercedes-EQ retained Vandoorne and De Vries as their drivers. They would win the opening ePrix in Diriyah, with De Vries 1st and Vandoorne 2nd.[33] Vandoorne would go on to win the Monaco ePrix.[34] In Berlin, De Vries won race 2 whilst Vandoorne collected 3rd place in both races.[35][36]

After securing consistent points throughout the remaining rounds, and suffering no retirements during the entire season, Stoffel Vandoorne would win the 2021-22 Formula E World Championship, finishing 33 points ahead of Mitch Evans' Jaguar.[37] Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team were also crowned 2021-22 Teams Champion.[38]

Sponsors
Sponsor[N 4] 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22
Vestas[20] Yes Yes Yes
SAP SE[39] Yes Yes Yes
ON Semiconductor[40] Yes Yes No
Neom[41] Yes Yes Yes
Modis[42] No Yes Yes
TeamViewer[43] No Yes Yes
Kroll No No Yes
Past logos
  • 2019–2021
    2019–2021

Results
2018–19: HWA Racelab
Year Chassis Powertrain Tyres No. Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Points T.C.
Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team
2019–20 Spark SRT05e Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 M DIR SCL MEX MRK BER BER BER 147 3rd
5 Belgium Stoffel Vandoorne 3 3 6 NC 15 6 5 Ret 12 9 1
17 Netherlands Nyck de Vries 6 16 5 Ret 11 4 Ret 18 4 14 2
Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team
2020–21 Spark SRT05e Mercedes-EQ Silver Arrow 02 M DIR RME VLC MCO PUE NYC LDN BER BER 181 1st
5 Belgium Stoffel Vandoorne 8 13 Ret 1 3 Ret Ret 7 13 Ret 12 7 15 12 3
17 Netherlands Nyck de Vries 1G 9 Ret Ret 1 16 Ret 9 Ret 13 18 2 2 22 8
2021–22 Spark SRT05e Mercedes-EQ Silver Arrow 02 M DIR MEX RME MCO BER JAK MRK NYC LON SEO 319 1st
5 Belgium Stoffel Vandoorne 2 7 11 3 5 1 3 3 5 8 4 2 2 4 5 2
17 Netherlands Nyck de Vries 1 10 6 Ret 14 10 10 1 Ret 6 8 7 6 3 Ret Ret
2022–23: NEOM McLaren Formula E Team
Notes
  • Result in bold – Driver got pole position
  • Result in italics – Driver got fastest lap
  • G – Driver was fastest in group qualifying stage and was given one championship point.
  • † – Driver did not finish the race, but was classified as he completed over 90% of the race distance.

Other teams supplied by Mercedes
Year Team Chassis Powertrain Tyres No. Drivers Points T.C. Source
2019–20 Monaco ROKiT Venturi Racing Spark SRT05e Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 01 M 44 10th [22]
19 Brazil Felipe Massa
48 Switzerland Edoardo Mortara
2020–21 Monaco ROKiT Venturi Racing Spark SRT05e Mercedes-EQ Silver Arrow 02 M 48 Switzerland Edoardo Mortara 146 7th [30]
71 France Norman Nato
2021–22 Monaco ROKiT Venturi Racing Spark SRT05e Mercedes-EQ Silver Arrow 02 M 11 Brazil Lucas di Grassi 295 2nd
48 Switzerland Edoardo Mortara

Footnotes
  1. The team entered the 2018–19 season as HWA Racelab, a customer team using Venturi powertrains. This move was done in order to adapt to the Formula E environment before entering the series as a full-fledged works team.[1][2]
  2. The team shares the Brixworth base with its Formula One counterpart for its powertrain development.[3]
  3. HWA continues to run trackside operations of the team, which continues under the Mercedes-Benz banner.[2] Move from Affalterbach to Brackley in 2021. [4]
  4. This list only includes companies whose logos have appeared on the team's cars. Mandatory logos of series' partners are also excluded from the list.

References
  1. Smith, Sam (27 December 2018). "HWA Racelab Building "Platform" for Mercedes EQ". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  2. "Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team". FIA Formula E. Archived from the original on 13 October 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
  3. "Mercedes Reveals First Details Of Formula E Plans". insideevs.com. 25 June 2019. Archived from the original on 2 April 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  4. "Mercedes Formula e team to relocate to Brackley F1 base". 4 November 2020. Archived from the original on 5 August 2021. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  5. "Mercedes-Benz to enter Formula E in Season 6". FIA Formula E. Archived from the original on 7 May 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  6. Kew, Matt (18 August 2021). "Mercedes to officially leave Formula E after 2022". www.motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 24 January 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  7. Brown, Zak (14 May 2022). "McLAREN RACING TO COMPETE IN FORMULA E FROM SEASON NINE". www.mclaren.com. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
  8. "Mercedes F1 team to support Mercedes EQ Formula E assaut". jamesallenonf1.com/. 18 May 2018. Archived from the original on 16 February 2019. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  9. Kilshaw, Jake (9 May 2018). "HWA Confirms Season Five Entry as Venturi Customer". e-racing365. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  10. Kilshaw, Jake (8 October 2018). "HWA Racelab Launched; Paffett to Drive". e-racing365. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  11. Smith, Sam (15 October 2018). "Vandoorne Confirmed at HWA Racelab". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  12. Lloyd, Daniel (9 March 2019). "Vandoorne Claims First Formula E Pole in Hong Kong". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 30 March 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
  13. Smith, Sam (15 April 2019). "Vandoorne Had to Nurse 'Driveshaft Issue' to Claim First Podium". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 17 April 2019. Retrieved 7 September 2019.
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  23. "Valencia Testing - Overall Classification" (PDF). FIA Formula E. 18 October 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 October 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  24. Smith, Sam (16 October 2019). "Vandoorne First in Trial Race; Frijns Sets Fastest Lap". e-racing365. Archived from the original on 16 October 2019. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  25. Kalinauckas, Alex (15 November 2019). "Mercedes names Gutierrez as FE reserve driver". motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  26. Smith, Sam (29 July 2020). "Mercedes Formula E team switches to black livery too". The Race. Archived from the original on 1 December 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
  27. Kew, Matt (13 August 2020). "Berlin E-Prix: Vandoorne heads Mercedes 1-2 in season finale". Archived from the original on 15 January 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
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  34. "VANDOORNE MASTERS MONACO TO TAKE STANDINGS LEAD WITH ROUND 6 WIN". FIA Formula E. Archived from the original on 18 August 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
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