Maserati has been busy in a different way in the past few years. The Italian luxury carmaker signaled that it intends to do things differently from the past with the unveiling of the Ghibli Hybrid in July 2020. The vehicle was the carmaker’s way of entering the world of electrification without betraying its core philosophy and values.It didn't take too long for Maserati to reveal its new strategy, dubbed as Folgore. Under this new strategy, Maserati will introduce fully electric vehicles, starting with the EV versions of the Maserati GranTurismo and GranCabrio. It will also build an EV version of its newly arrived supercar, the MC20.As part of the overall plan, the MC20 would mark Maserati’s first step in the new Era. The aerodynamically efficient MC20 (MC for Maserati Corse and 20 for 2020) features the new Nettuno engine – its first power unit after a hiatus of more than 20 years. Just like its MC12 predecessor, the MC20 announces Maserati’s intention to return to the world of racing.Now a part of Stellantis, Maserati is transforming that intention into reality – the Italian carmaker is returning to the world of racing. It intends to do so, in line with its Folgore strategy, by becoming the first Italian brand to enter Formula E in 2023.
Maserati Is A True Italian Brand Born From Motorsports
The Maserati brothers, in one way or another, had been involved with automobiles before they founded the brand. In early 1926, the brothers completed their first creation – the Tipo 26. It was the first car to wear the Trident logo, which was a creation of Mario, the artist among the brothers. Algieri Maserati drove the Tipo 26 to a class win at the 1926 Targa Florio.
In 1929, the 16-cylinder V4 set a new Class C world record by reaching 153 mph (stood until 1937). In 1939, Wilbur Shaw and his “Boyle Special” 8 CTF ruled the Indianapolis 500 in 1939 and 1940. Maserati presented its first car meant for daily drives instead of racing in 1947 -- the A6 1500.
Maserati started participating in Formula One in the 1940s, with the factory team winning a total of nine Grand Prix victories. In 1957, Juan Manuel Fangio won the German GP at the wheel of the 250 F, grabbing the world championship title in the process. The last time Maserati competed in Formula 1 was in 1958, with Maria Teresa De Fillipis on the wheel.
Maserati returned to competition in 2004 with the MC12. The race car drove to 14 championship titles and 19 victories, until it retired in 2010. Since then, Maserati is nowhere to be found in the world of racing.
Formula E Comes To Life With Electrifying Mission
About a year after Maserati's retirement from motorsport, the idea for an all-electric street racing series was conceived. The Formula E was soon founded, with the mission of racing through the streets of the most iconic cities in the world to show that sustainable mobility is also capable of high-speed racing.
Formula E officially kicked off at the 2014 Beijing E-Prix, with Lucas Di Grassi of German team Audi Sport ABT etching his name as the first race winner in Formula E. After six seasons of racing, Formula E finally gained World Championship status, as granted by the FIA in December 2019.
No Italian Formula E Team Since Inception
Interestingly, none of the current teams are from Italy. Moreover, no Italian brand – even those famous for their motorsport lineage, such as Ferrari – has entered Formula E since the motorsports’ inception years ago.
There are currently 11 teams competing in the 2021-2022 season of the Formula E. NIO 333 Formula E Team (China), Envision Racing (United Kingdom), Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team (Germany), Dragon / Penske Autosport (United States), Jaguar TCS Racing (UK), ROKiT Venturi Racing (Monaco), DS Techeetah (China), Nissan e.dams (France), Avalanche Andretti Formula E (US), Mahindra Racing (India) and TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team (Germany).
All these teams are running on Gen2 cars, which would be replaced by Gen3 racers in the 2022-2023 season.
Folgore Strategy Prompts Maserati To Join Formula E
The 2022-2023 season of the Formula E is when Maserati plans to make its return to motorsport since 2010. Once realized, Maserati would become the first brand from Italy to enter Formula E – barring any entry by the Trident’s neighbors in the country.
Maserati sees Formula E as the perfect platform to showcase its racing heritage and its Folgore electrification strategy. As Davide Grasso, Maserati CEO, puts it, Folgore is irresistible is the purest expression of Maserati and is the main reason for choosing Formula E for its return to motorsports.
The brand regards the all-electric road-racing motorsport series as an environment where high performance and innovation powerfully co-exist. Thus, there is no better way to promote its new and upcoming electric models such as the EV versions of the Grecale, GranTurismo, GranCabrio and the MC20.
The brand will make its debut in Formula with the new Gen3, which is far superior to the Gen2 in terms of power, weight and speed. Next season, the world will see the Trident logo on one of the fastest electric race cars in the world.
Source: Maserati