Why Ford races EVs in events such as Pikes Peak is one of the topics in this week’s Sustainable Motorsport Roundup. As I missed last week, this week’s edition is jam-packed. I also have details on the various non-ICE cars that competed at Pikes Peak, how motorsport helps Michelin become more sustainable and using sustainable fuel to power a race series that has been in existence since 1967. All this plus much more!
Sustainable Motorsport News
The FIA has published their FIA Activity Report for 2024. The core objectives of the FIA’s sustainability initiative are the following:
- Reducing emissions from motor sport activities, in line with the FIA’s long-term goal of achieving net zero
- Minimising impacts on biodiversity and nature
- Limiting pollution and waste, while promoting circular economy principles and access to clean mobility solutions
- Regular reporting to the FIA Sustainability, Diversity & Inclusion Committee and, where relevant, to the World Motor Sport Council
Read the report here to see what was accomplished.
Despite the positive tone of the report, the FIA still decided to fire Sara Mariani, the head of sustainability, diversity and inclusion for what it calls “strengthening capabilities across strategic areas.”
Alejandro Agag, the visionary founder behind Extreme E, the upcoming Extreme H championship, Formula E, and the E1 Series, was Highly Commended in the prestigious Transition Advocator category at the 2025 Reuters Global Energy Transition Awards 2025, in New York’s Times Square. Read more at Green Racing News.
After scaling back its EV investments last year, Ford Performance Director Mark Rushbrook tells The Drive why the company still wants to break records with electric race cars. “What we’re learning in motorsport, whether it’s where we compete in ICE, in hybrid, or electric, is still informing all of our future products.”
Sustainable Motorsport Tech
Speakiing of Ford and EVs, last weekend’s Pikes Peak Hillclimb gave the company the opportunity to unveil their most hardcore EV yet. “Technically, the new Super Mustang Mach-E comes in two flavors. The version that Dumas will pilot at Pikes packs three motors (one front, two rear) with a combined output of 1,421 horsepower. However, there’s an even more extreme variant with four motors (two front, two rear) to achieve a 2,250-hp total.”
Not to be outdone last weekend, Hyundai teamed up with Evasive Motorsports to race a Hyundai Ioniq 5 N at Piked Peak. “The Ioniq 5 N loses its entire interior, as well as its stock doors and tailgate, which are replaced by carbon-fiber pieces.”
In my last piece related to Pikes Peak, Honda entered a hydrogen fuel cell-powered Honda CR-V e:FCEV. “The 2025 Honda CR-V e:FCEV will compete in the Exhibition Class on June 22nd, powered by a stock zero-emission powertrain on June 22nd. Other modifications include a one-inch lowered suspension, 18-inch wheels, racing brake pads, racing seat, and safety cage. There’s no hydrogen refueling infrastructure available at the local level, which means the CR-V e:FCEV is relying on ZEI’s FTcase, a portable hydrogen fueling system, to stay in the race. The refueling system allows a single driver with no hydrogen expertise to refuel a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle safely.”
BMW has announced it’s made a major breakthrough in the manufacturing of lightweight composite materials made from renewable raw materials. Specifically, the components are made using fibres from flax crops, the same plants that give us linen and linseed oil. Rather than being used for polishing wood or as a nice breathable fabric for wearing on holiday, though, BMW’s set to use it to make strong, lightweight bits of car.
“In fact, through a partnership with Swiss green tech company Bcomp, which BMW has a stake in, it’s already been doing it for a few years. The material first featured in BMW’s Formula E racer back in 2019, and has since appeared in place of carbon fibre reinforced plastic on the DTM and GT4 racing versions of the M4.”
Tire company Michelin explains how motorsport acts as a performance and sustainability pipeline for the company. “Unlike the past, when teams tested dozens of tyre variants in a single session, modern development uses the lessons learnt in simulation to narrow the shortlist of real-life products. Not only does that reduce the number of tyres that need to be made and tested it also halves tyre development time down from a year to around six months.”
The July issue of Race Tech magazine has a number of sustainable motorsport-related topics including:
- THE ELECTRIC RALLY CAR OF THE FUTURE: Opel’s new Mokka GSE Rally is the first machine built to the FIA’s eRally5 template
- ALPINE ALPENGLOW:EMISSION IMPOSSIBLE?: Pierre-Jean Tardy tells Chris Pickering about Alpine’s hydrogen combustion-powered Alpenglow Hy6
- TYRE TECH: The battle for sustainability Michelin is improving the sustainability of its motorsport tyres, revealing its latest breakthrough ahead of Le Mans. By Gary Watkins
You can get your copy here.
The 750 Motor Club has announced Sustain Fuels as the new title sponsor of the 2025 Formula Vee Championship. Following on from promotion at selected 750MC events including free sampling at the Club’s Donington Park pre-season trackday, drivers participating in the Vee are invited to use Sustain Racing C70, which can be purchased from AHS Motorsport, including trackside at race events.
As well as being a 100 RON race fuel to comply with Vee and other regulations, Sustain Racing C70 has been developed to support performance and the planet, and contains 70% sustainable content to deliver greenhouse gas savings of up to 65% compared to traditional fossil fuels.
Suresh Nahar, from SUSTAIN, said: “We’re delighted to sponsor the 750 Motor Club’s Formula Vee Championship for 2025. For over 50 years, this championship has worked to make single-seater racing more accessible to drivers. Now, through our partnership, we hope to do the same for sustainable fuels, inviting competitors to experience one of our pioneering products and learn more about how it can support their performance and the planet. Sustain Racing C70 has already been embraced by other races in the Club’s portfolio, as well as a host of other icons in the industry. We look forward to extending this reach to the Formula Vee entrants and hearing their response.”
Read more at https://sustain-fuels.com/
David Richardson, business development director at Coryton, spoke to Motor Trade News on the outlook for sustainable fuels. “We developed some sustainable fuels for the classic car sector,” he explains. “The reason why we were specifically developing for that sector was because we’re looking at the protection efforts. A lot of classic cars don’t like modern fuels, so we design these fuels that mimic some of the chemistry you might have had in in those vehicles in the bygone era.”
The hydrogen-engine Corolla is racing in the Fuji 24 Hours for its fifth straight year. Once again, Toyota Times asked automotive analyst Shinya Yamamoto to provide a rundown of the attempt.
Sustainable Racing
FAT Karting League (FKL), the youth karting program redefining grassroots motorsport, is proud to announce its launch in California this summer. After successful rollouts across the UK and the U.S. Midwest, this marks FKL’s third regional hub – bringing its proven karting model to the West Coast for the first time.
Targeted at drivers aged 5-17, the California hub will serve as the entry point for young talent to access high performance racing without the traditional barriers of cost and equipment ownership.
“FKL offers a unique arrive and drive model with fixed and transparent pricing, no need for families to own or maintain their own karts! Every driver competes in fully electric, high-performance karts engineered by F1 engineers, with top speeds reaching 70 mpg for the junior category.”
EKN has all the details.
Series News
Ars Technica looks in detail at Formula E’s upcoming Gen4 racecar. “From the start of the 2026–2027 season, all-wheel drive will finally be permanent for the single-seater EVs. It is long past time, given that virtually every high-performance EV on the road powers both its axles, and it marks the first time the FIA has approved a permanent AWD single-seater since the technology was outlawed from F1 decades ago.”
In other Formula E news, The Race reports that Citroen could be in line to replace Maserati in Formula E as early as next season via major changes to the Stellantis suite of brands and the firm’s approach to FE. “Some longer-term plans are believed to have already been formed internally at Stellantis Motorsport for Citroen to be part of the Gen4 era of Formula E alongside the Opel brand, although the exact make-up of these operations in terms of their working structures is not known at present.”
FIA has approved updated bodywork rules for the World Rally Championship 2027 regulations. “Chief among them related to bodywork, including requirements for sustainable materials, homologation criteria and the definition and shape of inner volumes – with freedom surrounding this volume to allow manufacturers and constructors to create their designs with flexibility.”
Starting in 2027, MotoGP is preparing for a momentous change that will redefine the face of motorcycling’s premier class. The new technical rules, announced by the Grand Prix Commission and ratified on April 26, 2024 in Jerez, promise to make racing safer, more sustainable and more spectacular, without sacrificing the adrenaline rush that makes the sport unique. RTR Sports Marketing has all the details.
Looking at MotoGP in 2025, KiSS Mugello was once again the sustainability program of the Gran Premio d’Italia Brembo MotoGP. “The KiSS Programme (Keep it Shiny and Sustainable) made its debut at the 2013 MotoGP™ Italian Grand Prix — the first initiative of its kind in the world of motorcycle racing — thanks to the joint efforts of Mugello Circuit, Yamaha Motor Racing and FIM (Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme), in collaboration with DORNA and IRTA. The aim has always been clear: to raise awareness and engage the motorsport community on sustainability issues by leveraging the visibility and reach of a major international sporting event.:
Extreme E has released its Season 4 Sustainability Report, produced in collaboration with EY, the championship’s Official Sustainability Partner. Marking a number of impactful celebrations and learnings, the purpose-driven series continued to deliver world-leading environmental and social impacts through sport.
Despite running a reduced calendar, the championship still made significant progress both on and off the race track. The report reveals impressive strides across gender equality, clean energy use, and enduring nature-based legacy impact.
You can read the full report here.
Getting to the Track Sustainably
- Deutsche Aircraft prepares to fly D328eco testbed, focusing on SAF rather than novel propulsion technologies (Green Air News)
- IATA Report Urges SAF Policy Changes (AIN)
- IATA chief hits out at “profiteering” fuel suppliers as SAF production expected to double in 2025 (Green Air News)
- Kuehne+Nagel & Milence: Proving the Power of Electric Trucks (EV Magazine)
- Wincanton ramps up net zero drive with 24 new electric-powered HGVs (MotorTransport)
- JetZero’s Blended-wing-body Airliner Passes Critical Design Review (AIN)
- INERATEC opens Europe’s largest commercial-scale e-fuels production plant (Green Air News)
- FedEx secures 3 million gallons of SAF for its LAX operations in one-year deal with Neste (Green Air News)
- Eurostar to run direct trains from London to Germany, Switzerland (Executive Traveler)
- French Partners Plan Hybrid-electric Genav Aircraft (AIN)
Author: Mark Boudreau
Mark is the publisher of Motorsport Prospects. As a lawyer, he applies his legal background and research skills to assist race drivers by showcasing the resources they need to make their motorsport careers happen.
