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Jack Mitchell will make his British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) debut at Oulton Park after taking the vacant seat at Team HARD. Racing left recently by Glynn Geddie.

The 23-year-old is new to Touring Car racing but has completed testing with Motorbase in 2014 which gained a lot of eyes on the talent who has competed recently in the Mini Challenge at Brands Hatch claiming second on his return to the series after four years away as well as beating current F1 driver, Lando Norris and current BTCC driver, Senna Proctor to the 2014 Ginetta Junior Championship.

As well as stints on the TOCA paddock, Mitchell has also competed in British GT taking the GT3 Silver Cup in 2017 and the GT4 championship the year after with GT3 honours also coming in the years following.

A lot of eyes were on the seat itself with James Gornall testing recently as well as rumours of Mike Bushell making a return to the championship but it will be Mitchell who will step up for his debut and he is looking ahead with excitement.

“I’m really looking forward to joining Team HARD. Racing in the BTCC,” said Mitchell. “It’s a series I have grown up watching and racing on the same weekend in some of the support packages, so to call myself a British Touring Car Championship driver from next weekend is something I am very proud of.

Edoardo Mortara is looking to rebound from a disappointing New York City E-Prix weekend as he returns to the track for the London E-Prix at the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) this weekend.

The ROKiT Venturi Racing driver went into the weekend in Brooklyn on top of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship standings, but the Swiss racer failed to score points in either race, and fell down to fourth place in the championship as a result.

Mortara says he is ready to fightback from his poor weekend in New York as Formula E makes a welcome return to London after a five-year absence, and he knows he will need to finish inside the points on a consistent basis if he is to be in with a chance of fighting for the title.

“New York wasn’t a great weekend for me but I’m looking forward to getting back out on track and I’m excited to race on the ExCeL circuit for the first time,” said Mortara.  

“As always consistency will be the key during our practice session and I’m preparing myself to face the usual challenges posed by qualifying in Group 1. If we can qualify well, I’m confident that we’ll be able to finish well if we focus on our own race.

Joel Eriksson says this weekend’s London E-Prix around the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) is another innovative event on the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship calendar, with the event being run on a course that is partly indoors.

The Dragon/Penske Autosport driver will compete in his third Formula E event this weekend after taking over the drive from Nico Müller ahead of the Puebla E-Prix.  The Swede has a best finish of fifteenth across his four races to date as he continues to adjust to life in the championship having not raced competitively prior to his Mexico appearance this year.

Eriksson is eager to try the unique layout of the London E-Prix circuit, which will partly run inside ExCeL as well as outside of the centre in London Docklands, and he is eager to find out how the different light levels or even different weather conditions come into play this weekend.

“It’s great to be back for another round in the championship,” said Eriksson. “The London E-Prix is yet another innovative event by Formula E.

“Racing at an indoors/outdoors track is not something that ever crossed my mind, but because we’re an electric, non-combustion series obviously it’s fully possible to do. It will be cool with the different levels of lighting, coming in and out of the building, and what if it rains outside?

Pascal Wehrlein sees no reason why the Tag Heuer Porsche FE Team cannot take their first official ABB FIA Formula E World Championship victory this weekend in the London E-Prix, with the German still stinging from being disqualified from first place during the Puebla E-Prix.

Wehrlein dominated race one in Mexico only to be disqualified through no fault of his own due to a procedural error by his team who failed to declare his tyres prior to the race. 

The German also showed good pace during the New York City E-Prix two weeks ago, and he says there are a lot of positives to take into this weekend’s London E-Prix.  He feels that if everything comes together in the British capital, he can secure that elusive maiden victory.

“We’ve already won a race, at least on the track,” said Wehrlein.  “In Puebla, I was the first over the line and that’s what matters to me. The fact that we lost this win doesn’t change our excellent performance or the fact that we were the fastest on the day.

“Sure, the first official victory is still missing, but we’re always among the leading pack. We were really strong at the last races and made it to Super Pole four times. There are a lot of positives that we’re taking with us to London.

Robin Frijns heads to the double-header of the London E-Prix this weekend sitting third in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship standings, and he knows he will have it all to do in Qualifying.

The Envision Virgin Racing driver has yet to win during the 2020-21 season but remains firmly in the battle for the title heading into the final four races, but he will start the weekend at the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) in group one of Qualifying.

Frijns knows he cannot afford a repeat of what happened in Qualifying for the New York City E-Prix as overtaking is likely to be trickier in London, so he is aiming to be in or around the top ten in order to be in contention for points.

“We’ve done some simulator work for London and the track looks a bit different, quite tight overall and quite narrow in some areas,” said Frijns. “We also have the 4Kw reduction to avoid flat-out racing, but I am not sure that will be enough.

“We now have both cars in Group 1 so it won’t be easy to qualify in front and, looking at the track layout, overtaking will be quite difficult; so qualifying will be important, as always. If we manage to start somewhere around P10 I think we can fight for the points, but I don’t think that starting from the back and finishing in the points will be as feasible as it was in New York.

Oliver Rowland is looking forward to his home E-Prix this weekend in London, and he is hoping the local fans will support him by voting for him to receive Fanboost.

The Nissan e.dams driver has enjoyed some positive results in recent weeks, with a first podium of the season coming in the second race of the Puebla E-Prix last month.  He currently sits eleventh in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship standings, just twenty-two points behind championship leader Sam Bird.

Rowland says it will be important to keep up the momentum at Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) this weekend and put on a good show for the home fans in attendance.

“It’s my home race here in London and I really want to put on a show for the fans,” said Rowland.  “Hopefully the local fans will give me their Fanboost votes and help me win an extra power boost for the race.

“Now is the time for the team to score consistent points, so we’ll be racing hard.”

Nyck de Vries hopes the bad run the Mercedes-EQ Formula E Team are enduring ends this weekend in the London E-Prix, with the Dutchman looking to bring himself back in the championship contention.

De Vries is one of only two drivers during the 2020-21 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship season to win twice in the opening eleven races, but a run of only two points in six races has seen him drop from the top of the standings all the way down to tenth.

The former FIA Formula 2 champion says the team have done everything then can to prepare for the latest double header on the calendar, and he hopes to respond by scoring big points for them in both races.

“After the last event in New York, I’m really looking forward to competing in Europe again at the London E-Prix,” said de Vries.  “After all, it’s one of our home races and we want to put in a strong performance for the team members who work so tirelessly at the Brackley and Brixworth factories.

“We’ve obviously had a bit of a tougher period recently, so this will be a good time to bounce back and score some decent points. We have done our preps for the double-header, and I think we are ready to race on the new track in London for the first time this weekend.

Alice Powell, the current W Series championship leader, has joined the Envision Virgin Racing team as their official simulator driver.

Powell, who has won two of the opening three W Series events of 2021 including her home event at Silverstone last weekend, will reunite with the team that gave her the chance to run in the rookie test back in season six in 2020, and will also help with development work, race preparation and commercial activities.

She will be there to support the team’s race drivers, Robin Frijns and Nick Cassidy, as they fight for the 2020-21 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, with Powell eager to impress having been given this opportunity.

“I am really happy to be joining the Envision Virgin Racing team,” said Powell. “I have already worked with quite a few of the guys when I did my Rookie Test in 2020 and I am super excited to be part of such a fantastic team.

“I’ve seen how hard everyone works at the factory and to have this opportunity to help the team, who have a great driver line-up as well in Robin and Nick, is incredible.  We have a great car and great drivers, and I am very proud to be able to support the team in the simulator and contribute to the results.”

Alexander Sims is expecting this weekend’s London E-Prix at the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) to not be as much of an energy sensitive race as any other circuit the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship has visited during the 2020-21 season.

The Mahindra Racing driver comes to his home event on the back of a positive sixth place finish in race two of the New York City E-Prix, and he will be looking to build on that result this weekend in the capital city of the United Kingdom.

Sims says the track will be very technical due to its short straights and many turns, and he foresees Qualifying being difficult to get the all-important clean lap in to get near the front of the field.

“This will be quite a different circuit to the majority that we’ve raced on this season, and we’re expecting it to be less of an energy sensitive race,” said Sims.  

“It has quite short straights and a lot of technical sections, which will be challenging in terms of qualifying – a clean qualy lap is going to be tough and very important, but good fun.

Sam Bird arrives for the London E-Prix at the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) as the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship leader after his race two triumph in the New York City E-Prix, and he is eager to further extend his advantage at the top this weekend.

The Jaguar Racing driver has not raced in Formula E in his homeland since the 2015/16 season, where he took a seventh place in race one whilst racing for DS Virgin Racing before retiring from race two at the former venue of the event in Battersea.

Bird is one of only two drivers alongside Nyck de Vries to have won more than once in the 2020/21 season, but the British round of the championship is one he is particularly eager to impress in, especially when it’s the first home event for his team for seventeen years.

“It’s been over five years since I’ve raced on British soil in Formula E,” said Bird.  “The return to London can’t come soon enough.

“To race on the streets where you grew up and in front of your home crowd is an experience like no other. I also can’t forget this is the first time I’ll be racing as a Brit with Jaguar Racing – the iconic British manufacturer.

Lucas di Grassi feels like the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship is coming home this weekend as it returns to London for the first time in four years.

The Audi Sport ABT Schaeffler driver says there have been a few emotional moments for him in London when it raced at its previous home at Battersea, but this weekend will see an all-new, part indoor, part outdoor circuit at the Exhibition Centre London (ExCeL) in London Docklands.

Di Grassi says the track is not expected to be that quick and will have limited opportunities to overtake, but he is ready for the experience of a track that is partly inside ExCeL and partly outside.

“We have already experienced many emotional moments in our Formula E history in London,” said di Grassi. “The headquarters of the series is based here, as is the case for many teams and drivers. You could say that Formula E is coming home.

“It’s the first time that a track is half open and half covered.  The layout is not particularly fast overall. It has low energy consumption, many corners and, at first glance, offers few overtaking opportunities, making the circuit quite different to other Formula E circuits.”

The Alpine F1 Team had an excellent British Grand Prix, with both Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon finishing in the points in seventh and ninth respectively.

Alpine had a much needed double points finish at Silverstone, after the team managed a great strategy with both drivers. Alonso with his seventh place finish extended his run of consecutive points finishes to five races, it could have come to a crashing end for the Spaniard after he had an off on his way to the grid. Thankfully for Alonso the damage to the diffuser wasn’t extensive.

It was a much welcomed return to the points for Ocon at the British Grand Prix, the Frenchman’s last time finishing in the points before Silverstone was the Monaco Grand Prix.

Alpine Executive Director Marcin Budkowski is very pleased to have both cars finish in the points and also sends his best wishes to Max Verstappen. The Dutchman had a heavy crash on the opening lap after colliding with Lewis Hamilton, the red flag was brought out as a result.

“Overall it’s been a positive weekend for us; a great Sprint, double points and nice to see Esteban back to form. The race didn’t start the best way with Fernando having an off on his way to the grid and damaging his diffuser. We made all the repairs we could on the grid but had to start the race with a slightly damaged car and a performance deficit. Both drivers lost some positions at the start, but it went a lot better on the restart after the red flag.

Fernando Alonso extended his points scoring run to five consecutive races, after finishing seventh at the British Grand Prix. Alpine F1 Team team-mate Esteban Ocon finished ninth.

After inheriting seventh place on the grid after an amazing sprint qualifying, Alonso performed valiantly at Silverstone to extend his impressive point scoring run. Alonso remained well in the points the entire race, the Spaniard found himself in sixth after the race restarted because of Max Verstappen’s heavy crash. The veteran was quickly overtaken though by fellow Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr, who’s pace was much stronger.

Other than that it was a comfortable race in the points for Alonso, who kept Lance Stroll behind with ease. Alonso believes the team executed a good strategy.

“It was a good result today and I am happy to score more points for the team. It was a very long, hot race so it was very challenging. I thought we managed the temperatures and the tyres in a good way, and we also kept enough of a gap to Lance (Stroll) behind. We made some good calls on strategy and executed everything well. It was a little bit of a different weekend and we’ll have to see if the fans enjoyed it. We now have two weeks until we go again.”

“We’re back on the pace after three difficult races” – Esteban Ocon

After a troublesome triple-header, Esteban Ocon finally found himself finishing in the points for the first time since the Monaco Grand Prix.

The Mclaren F1 Team achieved their best combined result of the season at the British Grand Prix, with Lando Norris finishing fourth and Daniel Ricciardo finishing fifth at Silverstone, but could it have been even better?

In front of a sold-out home crowd, Mclaren blew the chance of a podium for Norris after a lengthy pit-stop following a wheel nut issue. Norris was running third at the time of making the stop, however the long tyre change allowed Valtteri Bottas to overcut the Mclaren driver. In the end Mclaren didn’t quite have the pace for a podium but with a quicker stop their chances would’ve been much greater.

A fourth place finish for Norris does mean though that he is still the only driver on the grid to have scored points at every race this season, could he really go all the way?

Ricciardo had his best race yet for Mclaren, the Australian who didn’t quite have the pace to keep up with those ahead of him like his team-mate, defended with everything he had to keep a rapid Carlos Sainz Jr behind for almost the entire race.

Overall a fantastic home grand prix for Mclaren who yet again added an impressive haul of points to their constructors tally. Team Principal Andreas Seidl is extremely proud of the team but is also apologetic to Norris for the poor pit-stop. Seidl also sends his best wishes to Max Verstappen after the Dutchman’s heavy crash after colliding with Lewis Hamilton.

Lando Norris continued his immaculate form of finishing every race so far this season in the points, after finishing fourth at the British Grand Prix. Team-mate Daniel Ricciardo secured his best finish yet for the Mclaren F1 Team after crossing the line in fifth.

Had it not been for a slow pit-stop, Norris may have found himself on the podium at his home race. Unfortunately for him his stop was horrendous, a wheel-nut issue meant he was in the pits for much longer than he would’ve liked. Norris was third at the time of making his stop with Valtteri Bottas following closely in fourth.

The slow stop allowed the Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team a chance to pit Bottas to perform the overcut on Norris, dropping the Brit off the rostrum. In the end Norris simply didn’t have the pace for a podium, nevertheless an excellent fourth means he is still the only driver to finish in the points at every race so far this season.

Norris is frustrated to have missed out on the podium but is still happy with the end result.

“A bit of a frustrating race, but also a lot of positives and in the end I’m happy with the result. I would’ve loved to have a chance to fight for P3 – the pit-stop meant we weren’t able to, but I don’t really think it would’ve changed the end result. A good job by the whole team and thanks to them for giving me a great car this weekend. Fourth and fifth for us is a great result and now for one more race before the summer break. We’ll keep it up and try to do better next time.