Extreme E: Mikaela ÅHlin-Kottulinsky to Partner Jenson Button

The duo will be at the wheel of the ODYSSEY 21 challenger, driving for JBXE, the team launched by Button to compete in the Extreme E Championship inaugural campaign.

“I am delighted to be joining the JBXE team alongside Jenson Button, it feels like a dream come true,” said Åhlin-Kottulinsky.

“Not only do I get to race with such a fantastic teammate, but we both really believe in the platform of the series. Extreme E is more than just another motorsport; it is a sport for purpose which we can use to showcase electric vehicles and motivate people to rethink their views on the consequences of climate change.”

The Swedish driver has been acting as a test driver for the championship’s Founding Partner, Continental, developing the CrossContact Extreme E tire.

“I am delighted to be welcoming Mikaela to JBXE and to have her as my teammate,” commented Jenson Button Founder and driver, JBXE.

“In Mikaela, I also have no doubt we have an incredibly valuable ambassador to represent JBXE, and Extreme E as a whole, in the fight to raise awareness of climate change and to help implement the Extreme E Legacy Programme projects along the way.”

The Red Bull athlete began her racing career in karting (2004), switching to touring racing, achieving great success.

In 2014, she crossed the finish line in the first palace competing in the Volkswagen Scirocco R-Cup in Norisring, Germany.

In 2015, the Swedish landed third place in the Audi Sport TT Cup, and two years later, she would become a member of the Audi Sport racing academy.

In 2018, the driver joined the Scandinavian Touring Championship (STCC) behind the wheel of an Audi RS 3 LMS driving with the PWR Racing Team, making history as the first and the only woman to ever win races in the series.

In 2019, the 28-year-old debuted in the TCR Scandinavia – a replacement series for the STCC – claiming the first pole position for a female driver at the opening round of the season and ending up in first place on home soil.

Åhlin-Kottulinsky has been competing in the championship ever since.

Alejandro Agag Founder and CEO, Extreme E welcomed JBXE’s new addition.

“Her work with Continental has been integral to helping create the championship tire, and while she is the latest to join the party, I’m sure that her previous knowledge and her early experience in the car will help her get stuck in quickly. 

“Mikaela and Jenson are certainly going to make a strong driver pairing, and I can’t wait to see them racing in just 22 days at our first X Prix in Saudi Arabia.” 

TEAM TECHEETAH ANNOUNCEMENT

Extreme E confirms that Team Techeetah is postponing its entry into the series, pointing to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic as the trigger to take this decision.

“Team Techeetah remains committed to competing in Extreme E in a later race and will update on its future competitor status in the coming weeks,” the series informed.

DRIVERS AND TEAMS – SEASON 1

Promoting gender equality is among Extreme E set of distinctive features.

In that regard, each team will have a male and a female driver´s lineup competing as a driver and co-driver in every two-lap race. 

Following the announcement of Mikaela Åhlin-Kottulinsky joining Jenson Button at JBXE, an exceptional grid is now complete ahead of the electric SUV off-road racing series debut season.

Chip Ganassi Racing (CGR) – the first team to announce its driver’s duo will contest the championship with six-time Pro-4 Short Course Off-Road Champion Kyle LeDuc and Off-road Truck Champion and X Games Medalist Sara Price.

Motorsport legend Sébastien Loeb joins Cristina Gutierrez will represent Team X44, the team founded by seven-time Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton.

Gutierrez is the first Spanish female driver and the second woman to win a stage since 2005 on the Rally Dakar in 2021.

“El Matador” Carlos Sainz is the founder of the ACCIONA | Sainz XE Team – the first fully Spanish team of the competition, and as well as Button, he will also be at the wheel of the ODYSSEY 21.

The Spaniard has teamed up with five-time Enduro World Champion Laia Sanz, who recently took on and finished her 11th consecutive Rally Dakar after a challenging 2020 in which she contracted Lyme Disease.

Veloce Racing driver´s duo features two-time Le Mans Series winner Stéphane Sarrazin and W Series Champion Jamie Chadwick. 

Andretti United Extreme E has confirmed FIA World Rallycross Champion Timmy Hansen and British Catie Munnings to drive for the American team in its inaugural season.

ABT CUPRA XE signed multiple DTM and FIA World Rally champion Mattias Ekström and Claudia Hürtgen. 

Notably, in 2005 Hürtgen won the VLN Endurance Championship, making her the first female to do so since 1998.

Rosberg Xtreme Racing (RXR) announced Australian Rally Champion Molly Taylor – an ambassador for FIA Girls on Track, to drive alongside three-time World Rallycross champion Johan Kristoffersson for the team’s first electric racing venture.

2016 Formula One World Champion Nico Rosberg is the team´s founder.

Former motocross rider Oliver Bennett, and off-road racer Christine Giampaoli Zonca – an expert on off-road races and winner of the women’s category in the Spanish Gravel Rally Championship, will serve as drivers for the HISPANO SUIZA XITE ENERGY TEAM.

THE TECHNOLOGY

All outfits will use the same spec-vehicle, the E-SUV ODYSSEY 21.

Williams Advanced Engineering is producing the battery that powers the E-SUVs, while Spark Racing Technology is responsible for the design of the off-road, all-terrain, electric vehicles.

The electric SUV also features a niobium-reinforced steel alloy tubular frame supplied by CBMM and purpose-built tires by Continental.

Furthermore, the vehicles will be using zero-emission energy to charge the fleet, thanks to a partnership with AFC Energy.

As part of its innovative structure, the series becomes the first event organizer to utilize hydrogen, a fuel cell power generator, for charging. 

The Extreme E Championship is set to kick off in Al-‘Ula, Saudi Arabia, on April 3rd.

Photo Credit: Extreme E Media.