Deadline extension for Swiss ePrix organisers
The organising body of the proposed Switzerland round of the 2015-16 season have been given until the end of November to raise the required funding for the event.
It was revealed in July that the city of Lugano in Switzerland would host an ePrix, after laws that banned motor racing in the country were relaxed to allow racing electric cars to go ahead. Originally, the race was to be added to the 2016-17 calendar, but organisers pushed to move the race a year earlier.
The original deadline to raise the €10 million necessary to host the event was the 30th of September, but the deadline has been pushed back to the 30th of November, following a meeting between Formula E CEO Alexander Agag, Lugano mayor Marco Borradori, and Trulli Formula E team owner Francesco Guarnieri.
If the funds are raised, a three-year deal for the lake side city to host the race would be signed, with the possibility of a further three years should the race be successful. It would be the first motor race to take place in the country since 1955, when 77 people were killed in a collision at a Le Mans 24-hour endurance race, prompting the ban.
With major Formula E sponsors Julius Bär and TAG Heuer originating from the country, Switzerland has already been playing a part in the series and, providing the deadline is met, will likely be hosting the eighth round of the 2015-16 season, between the already scheduled Paris and Berlin ePrix.
Article by Bethonie Waring
Photo credit: FIA Formula E Media
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