Formula E postpones the season-starting round in Chile
The FIA Formula E World Championship has announced that it would postpone its season-opening race in Chile following the recent spread of the latest mutation of the Covid-19 coronavirus in the United Kingdom.
Season 7 of the FIA Formula E Championship, which will acquire championship status next year, will delay the start of its 2020/2021 season as Chile has closed its borders to the United Kingdom. The action was set to kick off with a double header in Santiago, Chile on January 16 and 17, but the recent Covid-19 cases owing to the latest mutation of the coronavirus led to logistics issues.
“In consultation with the Santiago municipality, the Santiago EPrix has been postponed,” Formula E confirmed.
Formula E said it hopes to rearrange the Santiago round for later in the first quarter of next year: “The races will no longer take place as a double-header on January 16th and 17th and we are working with the city to finalise dates on which to stage the races later in [the first quarter] of 2021.”
In consultation with the Santiago municipality, the #SantiagoEPrix has been postponed.
— Formula E (@FIAFormulaE) December 22, 2020
The races will no longer take place as a double-header on January 16 and 17 and we are working with the city to finalise dates on which to stage the races later in Q1 of 2021. pic.twitter.com/l4mERGpU0K
The field completed its pre-season testing at Valencia’s Circuit Ricardo Tormo circuit between November 28 and December 1. The cars have already been freighted by sea following the Valencia test, but the main problem was that six of the twelve teams are based in the United Kingdom.
Following the postponement of the season-opening Santiago round, the season is expected to get underway in Saudi Arabia on February 26 and 27 with a double-header event, but that round is also in doubt after Saudi Arabia also suspended flights arriving from the UK.
