Supercharged by a coterie of celebrity team owners- including Tom Brady and Rafael Nadal- electric speed boat racing’s new E1 Series has exploded overnight into 1 of the world’s most riveting sport developments.
With only a Series A fundraising under its belt, the E1 Series- founded in 2020 by Motorsport veteran Alejandro Agag and managed by former McLaren Applied´s managing director Rodi Basso- has introduced a brand new flying electric raceboat- called the RaceBird- and has expanded its roster at record clip, already having incorporated eight official teams each piloted by a female and a male captain.
However, while the sport and its teams may be growing rapidly, it’s also clear that Basso is making sure that all the new teams in E1 are managed by proven stewards of sport and sustainability.
For instance, this weekend in Venice the E1 Series debuted its 9th official team. Led by Hollywood legend Will Smith, Team Westbrook (eponymously coined after Smith’s entertainment venture company) and finished 3rd with two internationally recognized superstar pilots- including Lucas Ordoñez- who entered professional racing from the virtual world as a GT Academy winner before racing at Le Mans five times- and Sara Price, professional racer and stuntwoman who has won 17 national motocross championships and competed in Extreme E, the X Games and the Dakar Rally.
For Smith, Team Westbrook, or Westbrook Racing (as emblazoned on the boats) will in fact be just the latest step in a series of bold initiatives the megastar has taken to drive the evolution of electric powered watercrafts. Smith, for instance, heavily invested in the Los Angeles-based startup Arc, which earlier in the year, launched a new mass-market electric sport boat pioneered by venture firm Dreamers VC.
Though Smith will naturally take center stage as the Team´s conspicuous celebrity owner, Westbrook Racing will also benefit heavily from the seasoned leadership in both sport and sustainability that co-owners and investors Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio and Alshair Fiyaz bring to the table.
For Co-owner Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio- current Chief Strategy Officer of the world’s largest eyeglasses firm Essilor Luxottica- Team Westbrook will also be just the latest in a high-profile series of green technology-related investments. Del Vecchio’s LMDV Capital Family Office has recently garnered recognition for its strong investments – for example in the Made in Italy packaging champion IMA Group – aimed at the development of new sustainable techniques in the processing of materials.
According to Del Vecchio, “I find it important to support the birth of a new sport, where innovation combines emotion and sustainability –The racing world has always tested technological improvements for the mass market. Cutting-edge solutions such as those applied in the RaceBird could, furthermore, touch the world of pleasure boats and reduce pollution from internal combustion engines. The presence of a male driver and a female driver competing on the same level was also an incentive. Finally, being present as a sponsor in the first electric powerboat world championship opens a new window of promotion and international relations for the initiatives of my family office LMDV Capital”.
The excitement is mirrored by Italian entrepreneur and philanthropist Tommaso Chiabra, who also invested into the team alongside Del Vecchio. “This sport, full of adrenaline, will take us to different cities around the world, spreading awareness about electric and sustainable mobility.”
Team Westbrook’s other significant co-owner Alshair Fiyaz also boasts a distinguished track record in both sport and sustainability. Fiyaz, who has been instrumental in building the Saint Tropez Polo Club into one of polo and showjumping’s premier global destinations and who has backed green-powered urban housing at scale through transforming Copenhagen’s Bellakvarter district into one of Scandinavia’s largest sustainability-led urban developments before successfully exiting in 2019, found the E1-Series to be a great match for his passions for both competition as well as sustainable paradigm shift.
Fiyaz affirms: “I have been involved in competitive sports my entire life. When the opportunity arose to enter another team, there was no doubt in my mind about my support. The E1 series highlights an important message about the potential of electric power in marine transportation. The Blue Impact initiative by E1 series addresses coastal waste management challenges in some of the most iconic urban locations in the world, including Venice and Monaco.”
Meanwhile Will Smith avowed that while Westbrook’s ownership team has all rallied around the sustainable technology revolution being driven by E1, that make no mistake about it, everyone’s main-focus is to win.
“Westbrook Racing is here to win’ declared Smith. “We were ready for Venice and to leave our mark on this championship season.”
After Team Westbrook's debut in Venice this past Sunday (May 12) it is set to subsequently race on the E1 Circuit at Puerto Banús, Marbella (2 June), Geneva (30 June), Monaco (27 July), Rotterdam (8 September) and Hong Kong (10 November).
———————————————————————————————————————
For more information on Team Westbrook or to follow the E1 Series in real time, please visit online at https://www.e1series.com/ and follow @E1Series on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, #ChampionsOfTheWater.
