Agag explains cost explosion for Formula E: "Continue to face obstacles, but nothing compared to season 1"

First the COVID19 pandemic, then the Russian war against Ukraine: two global events that have also had, or even still have, a major impact on the Formula E World Championship. According to CEO Alejandro Agag, however, the electric racing series has faced major problems in its past.

"Of course, we have faced challenges in the past years," Agag said at the Mexico City E-Prix press conference on Friday evening German time. "The pandemic has been a challenge for everyone. The biggest challenge for us is the explosion of logistics costs."

"In a championship like this, everything you see here has to be moved around the world," the Spaniard elaborates. "Transporting this whole circus around the globe is a big challenge and extremely expensive. The cost of logistics has increased to more than double, even more than triple, in some of the areas where we are moving. That's a big challenge, although fortunately costs are now coming down again. We continue to face obstacles."

Spectators make the difference for Agag

"These obstacles are immense, but they are nothing compared to those in Season 1," Agag described. "We had no money at all then and were almost bankrupt. The track in Miami was not ready an hour before the start. Nor was it ready an hour after the start."

In the recent past, however, things have taken a turn for the better, he says. "We're coping with it," Agag explained further. "It's been tough, but it's gotten better. It's great to see spectators (at the track) again. That makes all the difference. During the pandemic, the grandstands were empty, so that wasn't exciting. To see those big crowds again makes it all fantastic."

Formula E expects around 40,000 visitors at its season opener. At 2:30 p.m., the 2nd free practice starts, which we will broadcast in the livestream on 'e-Formel.de' and also accompany in the ticker. Qualifying starts at 4:40 p.m., which you can also follow in the stream on ran.de. The race starts at 9 p.m. - ProSieben will begin its pre-event coverage at 8:30 p.m.