Join on WhatsApp
Join on Telegram
By Zainab Calcuttawala
Rabat – Formula E is “keen” on holding a race at the Moulay El Hassan circuit in Marrakech in the “near future,” Stephane Roux, chief organizer of World Touring Car Championship (WTCC), told Motorsport.com on Sunday.
The Formula E championship, which only allows fully-electric cars to compete in its races, is part of the WTCC”s sustainability initiative to encourage the development of the future of the motor industry, according to the official website of the International Automobile Federation (FIA). The FIA oversees the annual WTCC, which is held annually in cities all over the world.
“His Majesty Mohammed VI is very devoted to clean, new technologies, with many large-scale plans for the country, including the photovoltaic infrastructures in Ouarzazate, which are among the largest in the world,” Roux said.
“The constructors are for it, too, because the Moroccan automotive market is growing fast – it is among the few markets in the world with a double-digit yearly growth, after India and China.”
The track, named after the crown prince of Morocco, “appeals” to Formula E organizers also because it gives them an opportunity to develop racing in Africa, “the only continent where the series is not established yet,” Roux added.
Marrakech has hosted a WTCC race on the 4.6km-long flat street circuit every year since 2009. Due to ongoing renovations that will shorten the track to 3km, the race will not be held there in 2016.
Morocco also hosted the Grand Prix Formula 1 race at the Ain-Diab circuit in Casablanca in 1958, which was the first WTCC event in Africa. The Formula 1 race is the highest class of single-seat racing organized by the FIA.
