Energica to be single manufacturer for FIM and Dorna's brain child: FIM Moto-e World Cup in 2019 finally happening
There is no better time than the present to introduce a fresh wave of racing series to the world of two-wheeled motorsports as FIM (International Motorcycling Federation) and Dorna Sports gears up for the FIM Moto-e World Cup that’s set to become a reality in 2019.
It was also announced that there would only be one manufacturer for the upcoming event and it is none other than Italian firm, Energica Motor Company, whose ties to Formula 1 and other racing enterprises as well as the ownership of CRP Group definitely played in their favour during the bidding process. It was reported that Belgium’s Saroléa and the US’ Lightning Motorcycle were among those that were being considered.
“We are proud to have been chosen by Dorna,” said Livia Cevolini, CEO of Energica Motor Company, “and we are already committed to this project.” The teams will use the tuned version of the Energica Ego, the world’s first Italian, and street-legal, electric motorcycle. Presumably, it will retain its original motor – 134hp PMAC – and will then weigh lighter than its 570 lbs curb weight. Dorna, media rights holder to MotoGP and WorldSBK Championships, made it clear that it was important to use a bike that was already available to the public and therefore. Hence, they used a production platform as the base of the series.
Funny how much of a difference a few months can make as it was only early this year that Dorna stared talking about the possibility of a race series for electric motorcycles. Now it’s really happening. And where there were only speculations about the sole manufacturer beforehand, now there’s a definite answer.
“It makes us very proud to announce Energica will be the supplier in this new venture,” CEO of Dorna Sports, Carmelo Ezpeleta, said of their chosen one. “We believe in excellence, quality and performance and we cannot think of a better collaborator with whom to launch the FIM Moto-e World Cup.”
Vito Ippolito, President of FIM, added that Energica was proving itself to be a reliable and expert leader in the sector and, with the “highly qualified support of Dorna”, he was sure they were “taking the road to success”.
The FIM Moto-e Cup is said to hopefully become an open series that allows other brands to compete. The envisioned plan of Ezpleta on the new series is a five-round format that also functions as a support class to the Grand Prix races.