Sanya E-Prix: The XXL preview of the race in the South China Sea

Following a forced hiatus of several years due to the pandemic, the Sanya E-Prix is making its comeback on the Formula E calendar in Season 12. At the last event held in the Chinese coastal metropolis to date, the drivers were still competing in the Gen2 era – for this comeback, the Gen3 Evo generation will now make its debut on the spectacular street circuit.

Gen3 Evo makes its debut on the South China Sea

The Electric World Championship last visited Sanya in March 2019 (Season 5) – more than seven years ago. Subsequent events had to be cancelled without replacement due to the global coronavirus pandemic and strict entry restrictions. When the lights turn green again next season, the teams will face a completely new technical challenge: for the first time, the new, all-wheel-drive Gen3 Evo cars will take to the circuit on the South China Sea.

Where exactly is the Formula E race taking place?

The holiday hotspot of Sanya is situated at the southernmost tip of the tropical island of Hainan and is considered one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations. Thanks to its kilometres of sandy beaches, palm-fringed coastlines and consistently warm weather, the region is often colloquially referred to as the "Hawaii of China".

For the drivers and the cooling of the batteries, however, the event is likely to be a real battle against the heat: with average temperatures between 23 and 32 degrees Celsius, Sanya has a humid tropical climate that will push both man and machine to their limits.

Quick Stats: Sanya E-Prix

• 2,646 days, or 7 years, 2 months and 28 days after the 2019 Sanya E-Prix, Formula E returns to the circuit. This is the longest gap ever between two races on the same circuit in the electric racing series.
• Only eight of the current regular drivers in the series were already competing in March 2019, when the Sanya E-Prix was held for the first time. Jaguar is the only team where both drivers have previously raced on the circuit. In contrast, neither of the regular drivers for Andretti, Cupra Kiro nor DS Penske has any prior experience on the circuit.
• In 2019, Oliver Rowland not only secured his first pole position in Formula E in Sanya, but also claimed the first podium finish for Nissan, which was a new manufacturer at the time.
• With his victory in Sanya in 2019, reigning champion Jean-Eric Vergne put himself back in contention for the drivers’ title, which he went on to win at the end of the season.
• The 2019 Sanya E-Prix marked the final Formula E race for two Brazilians: Nelson Piquet Jr. lost his Jaguar seat to Alex Lynn after the race, whilst Felipe Nasr, after just three races with Dragon Racing, handed his regular seat back to the team’s reserve driver – Maximilian Günther.

TV & Live stream: Where is the Sanya E-Prix being held?

The Sanya E-Prix is a single race and takes place on Saturday, 20 June 2026. The race weekend begins with the first free practice session on Friday at 10.30 am CEST. The action continues on Saturday at 2.30 am CEST with the second free practice session, followed by qualifying at 4.40 am CEST. The race starts at 9.05 am CEST.

As always, you can also follow all sessions of the race weekend in our popular Formula E live ticker.

All times are in Central European Summer Time (CEST)

What makes the circuit in Sanya so special?

The layout of the temporary street circuit in picturesque Haitang Bay presents drivers with both a driving and a strategic challenge. A defining feature of the circuit is the extreme contrast between long high-speed sections and tight hairpin bends. Whilst this classic "stop-and-go" nature ensures tough braking zones and correspondingly good overtaking opportunities, it also demands sensitive energy management from the engineers and drivers. In particular, efficient energy recovery via the front and rear axles will be crucial to the outcome of the race.

The varying road surface adds further complexity, making grip levels unpredictable and demanding absolute precision at the wheel. As the circuit is bordered by unforgiving concrete walls and crash barriers, even the slightest driving error is punished, even on the fast sections. Surrounded by tropical palm trees and luxury resorts, Sanya thus offers a backdrop for the Electric World Championship that is as picturesque as it is unforgiving.

Circuit update for the Gen3 era

To accommodate the increased performance figures of the current generation of cars, the circuit has been modified compared to its last appearance in Season 5. The circuit designers have adapted the layout to the requirements of the significantly faster Gen3 Evo cars. As a result of these adjustments, the circuit is now a few metres longer, which is also likely to have a significant impact on strategic calculations regarding the race distance.

In what order do the drivers take part in qualifying?

In Formula E, qualifying takes place in two stages: the group stage and the knockout stage. For the group qualifying session, the field is first divided into two halves, with all drivers in the odd-numbered championship positions (1st, 3rd, 5th, 7th, etc.) competing in Group A, and those in the even-numbered positions in Group B.

The four drivers in each group who have set the fastest lap times after ten minutes then progress to the quarter-finals, where they compete head-to-head for the best starting positions. This results in the following groups for the race in Madrid.

Weather forecast: Humid conditions and a chance of rain as training gets underway

Just in time for the eagerly awaited Sanya E-Prix, the tropics are showing their unpleasant side. Although the current weather forecasts for the race weekend on the South China Sea promise consistently high temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius, conditions are expected to be heavily overcast. In addition, the teams must factor in a latent risk of rain of around 35 per cent.

Dealing with the extreme humidity will be particularly challenging. The oppressively muggy air presents engineers with logistical and thermal challenges, as the cooling systems for the powertrain and the standard battery are pushed to their limits under these conditions. Just how the tropical microclimate and the resulting grip levels will affect the balance of the Gen3 Evo cars will become apparent as early as Friday afternoon during the first free practice session. e-formel.de will be covering the sessions as usual via its live ticker.

Who are the favourites?

Track knowledge could be a decisive factor this coming race weekend: only eight drivers from the current starting grid took part in the only Sanya E-Prix to date, held in 2019. It is worth noting that the entire podium from that race is once again among the series’ absolute frontrunners in Season 12. Back then, Jean-Eric Vergne (DS Techeetah) secured victory ahead of Oliver Rowland (Nissan) and Antonio Felix da Costa (BMW i Andretti). All three drivers have gone on to be crowned Formula E world champions over the years and have impressively demonstrated their dominance in electric motorsport. Given their driving prowess and track record, Vergne, Rowland and Felix da Costa are also among the top favourites for this year’s Sanya comeback.

Think someone else will win? Then take part in the free community prediction game on Kicktipp and show off your Formula E know-how!