Lola Cars has returned to global motorsport in a multi-year technical partnership with Yamaha Motor and will enter the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in Season 11.
With more than 500 championship wins, Lola is working with Yamaha to develop and supply a powertrain to compete in the world’s first all-electric, single seater race series. This new technology partnership between Yamaha and Lola not only provides an opportunity to join the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship as it moves to the GEN3 Evo platform for the 2024-2025 season but also creates opportunities in the zero-emissions transportation space.
“This is more than just an opportunity to return Lola to the track, it’s also a fantastic platform for technological development,” said Mark Preston, motorsport director, Lola Cars. “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, strategically focusing on three areas of electrification, hydrogen and sustainable fuels and materials.
“As the technical partner, we hope to acquire more advanced energy management technologies through the highest level of electric racing in Formula E,” explained Heiji Maruyama, managing executive officer and director, Yamaha Motor.
“We are incredibly excited to be partnering with the Yamaha Motor,” noted Till Bechtolsheimer, chairman, Lola Cars. “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.”
Since acquiring Lola Cars in 2022, Bechtolsheimer and his team have been developing their program from a new global headquarters in Silverstone, United Kingdom.
