The upcoming London ePrix will be Team Aguri’s final race in Formula E, as the deal to sell their license to new investors has concluded.
The Japanese registered team was the sixth outfit to announce their participation in the inaugural FIA Formula E championship, with Aguri Suzuki and Mark Preston returning the Aguri name to motorsport back in 2013.
The team showed a lot of promise initially, signing Antonio Felix da Costa and Katherine Legge for the first season, but former Super Aguri driver Takuma Sato took the place of Da Costa at the first race of Formula E’s history. Da Costa gave the team their first and only win to date at the 2015 Buenos Aires ePrix.
Many other drivers have represented Team Aguri over the two seasons alongside the likes of Legge, Sato, and Da Costa. Salvador Duran, Sakon Yamamoto, Nathanael Berthon, and Rene Rast are all former drivers, while Ma Qing Ha currently partners Da Costa.
Team Aguri is one of the teams still using a developed version of the Season One power train, and Da Costa especially seems to have managed to find extra performance in the car, despite his inherent bad luck.
“I am proud to say that Team Aguri can be considered true pioneers in the development of electric vehicles, pioneering new technologies and showcasing them to the world,” Team Principle Mark Preston said in the official press release.
“While this is the final chapter in Team Aguri’s history in the FIA Formula E Championship, this also represents the start of something new, with the sale of the team to new investors. As such, this will be the final race for Team Aguri and I would like to thank all involved for their hard work and dedication over the past two seasons.”
Team Aguri currently lies eighth in the Teams’ Championship on 24 points, with 60 points up for grabs during the two London ePrix rounds at Battersea Park this weekend.
