Cape Town E-Prix

Cape Town E-Prix
E-Prix Details
Name	ABB Formula E Cape Town E-Prix
Location	Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa
No. Held	1
Circuit	Cape Town Street Circuit
Previous Circuits
First Race
Last Race
Only Race	2023 Cape Town E-Prix
Most Recent Results
Name	2023 ABB Formula E Cape Town E-Prix
Pole
First	Second	Third
Fastest lap

The Cape Town E-Prix is an annual motorracing event that forms a round of the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, staged in the city of Cape Town in Western Cape, South Africa. The first sub-Saharan city to host an E-Prix, the Cape Town E-Prix was first staged in 2023 as the fifth round of the 2022/23, having previously been featured in the 2021/22 season calendar, only to be cancelled due to multiple issues with the planned host venue.

City History

The area around modern Cape Town was first settled between 15,000 and 12,000 b.c., although it was only when European explorers reached the area under the command of Bartolomeu Dias that the area began to have any consistent written history. In 1488 the area was named by Dias as the Cape of Storms, although under John II of Portugal the area was renamed as the Cape of Good Hope prior to the 1510 Battle of Salt River, where Portuguese troops fought and lost to the native Uriǁ’aekua. Regardless, the area became a key point of trade between European traders and the native population, before a serious attempt to form a permanent settlement was made in 1652 by the Dutch United East India Company in order to form a way-station.

Imperial Balance

Dutch control over Cape Town would remain unopposed until the late 18th century, when the Dutch Republic's influence faltered due to becoming a vassal of France under the guise of the Batavian Republic. Great Britain duly swept in to add Cape Town to its existing colonies, although after initially capturing Cape Town in 1795, the city was handed back to the Dutch in 1803 after a treaty was signed. In 1806 the city was again captured by British forces from the Dutch, and after 8 more years of fighting was eventually ceded to the Great Britain permanently with the signing of the 1814 Anglo-Dutch Treaty, with Cape Town becoming the capital of Cape Colony, a huge new territory controlled by the British Empire.

Cape Town quickly evolved with its new status, gaining its own parliament, Prime Minister and various other infrastructure programmes including railways and electric power throughout the 19th century. The city also became the base of British Colonial Government during the Boer Wars, with British victory in the Second Boer War in 1902 laying the foundation for the formation of the Union of South Africa in 1910. Cape Town became the legislative centre for the new Union, a role it would retain when the Republic of South Africa was formed in 1931.

Apartheid and Appeasement

Cape Town would be one of the major centres for the clashed in South Africa around the Apartheid, with its historic status as a racially integrated city as well as a centre point for the Apartheid supporting National Party coming head-to-head. Robben Island off the coast of Cape Town would be used to house anti-Apartheid leaders, although the city would also be the centre of attention upon the release of Nelson Mandela in 1990, who delivered a famous speech from Cape Town City Hall on 11 February 1990 which heralded the end of the institutional elements of Apartheid. Since then, Cape Town has remained a hub of political interest in South Africa, albeit with its own growing independence movement.

Formula E History

Cape Town was first investigated as a potential host for the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship in 2019, when Formula E Operations conducted feasibility studies into hosting an E-Prix in the city. In 2020 a group called e-Movement formed in order to organise the Cape Town E-Prix, having secured backing from Jaguar South Africa and an initial blessing to use the area around the Cape Town Stadium due to the lack of impact it would have on the rest of the city. A formal deal to host the Cape Town E-Prix was duly signed ahead of the 2021/22 season, with the Cape Town Stadium forming the centre piece of a near 3 km circuit.

Dropping and Dipping

The inaugural Cape Town E-Prix was scheduled for 26 February 2022, although upon the second draft of the calendar released in October 2021, the Cape Town E-Prix was removed form the schedule amid reported issues about work on the Cape Town Stadium and ongoing issues with the Covid-19 Pandemic. The race was pushed back to the 2022/23 season, although when the provisional calendar for the ninth FE campaign was unveiled the city was notably absent from the schedule. That omission was only brief, however, with the Cape Town E-Prix subsequently included in an updated version of the 2022/23 calendar, with the South African city staging the fifth round of the season on 25 February 2023.

Circuit History

The Cape Town E-Prix is set to be staged on the Cape Town Street Circuit, formed around the roads around the Cape Town Stadium and the Green Point District of Cape Town. Measuring just under 3 kilometres and with only twelve corners, the circuit is expected to be one of the fastest to feature on the FE calendar, and would be one of the longest to be featured on an FE calendar.

Records

A full list of records for the Cape Town E-Prix are outlined below, including a list of race winners.

Winners

Below is a list of all of the winners of the Cape Town E-Prix:

Cape Town E-Prix Winners List
Season	Name	Circuit	Date	Winner	Report
2022/23	2023 ABB Formula E Cape Town E-Prix	Cape Town Street Circuit	25 February 2023		Report

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