Formula E or Formula 2? – The racing series which is attracting former and current F2 drivers this season

Formula E is increasingly becoming an option for drivers considering their next steps after leaving Formula 2. Several drivers who have driven in the FIA Formula 2 Championship have now moved to Formula E on a full-time basis whilst others have taken part in Formula E rookie tests. Some drivers who are competing in the 2024 Formula 2 Championship have participated in Formula E races this season.

Andretti

Andretti driver Jake Dennis was the winner of the Formula E World Championship last season, however unlike his teammate Norman Nato he has never driven in Formula 2. Nato drove for Pertamina Arden in the 2017 F2 season, finishing in 9^th place. He has also driven in ELMS and WEC and was second in the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 2020, in the LMP1 class. Zane Maloney and Jak Crawford drove for Andretti during the rookie test at the Berlin E-Prix and are second year Formula 2 drivers who have previously been part of the Red Bull Junior Team. Maloney has since been signed by the Sauber Acadamy whilst Crawford is now a member of the Aston Martin Driver Development Programme.

DS Penske

Robert Shwartzman has driven for DS Penske’s Formula E team in rookie tests in Berlin (in April 2023 and May 2024) and at pre-season testing in Valencia last October. He is currently a reserve driver for the Ferrari F1 team and also competes in WEC (in the Hypercar category) with AF Corse. Shwartzman was 3rd in the Italian F4 Championship in 2015 and Formula Renault Eurocup in 2017. After this, he won the Toyota Racing Series and Formula 3 Championship and was runner-up in the 2021 Formula 2 Championship.     

ERT Formula E Team

Sergio Sette Camara is in his 4^th Formula E season and also drove in the second half of season 6 of the championship. His teammate Dan Ticktum has been driving in Formula E for three seasons. Sette Camara drove in the Formula 2 Championship between 2017 and 2019, ending the 2019 season in 4^th place. He has been connected to the Red Bull and McLaren F1 teams in the past. Ticktum is a two-time winner of the Macau Grand Prix and like Sette Camara also finished in 4^th place in his last F2 season (in 2021). He has been part of the Red Bull Junior Team and Williams Driver Acadamy.

Envision Racing

Paul Aron drove for Envision at both races in Berlin after Sebastian Buemi decided to compete in a WEC race (at Spa Francorchamps) which took place on the same day as the Berlin E-Prix. He also drove for the team at the rookie test in Misano. Aron has finished 3^rd in the Italian F4 Championship, FRECA and Formula 3 Championship and currently drives for Hitech Grand Prix in Formula 2. He was a member of the Mercedes Junior Team between 2019 and 2023 and is leading the Formula 2 standings, after having five podium finishes to date this season.  

NEOM McLaren Formula E Team

NEOM McLaren driver Jake Hughes drove for HWA and Van Amersfoort Racing in F2. He won the BRDC Formula 4 Championship in 2013 and was runner-up in the Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series in 2015. Hughes has also been a simulator driver for the Mercedes Formula 1 team. Taylor Barnard took part in races in Monaco and Berlin for the McLaren Formula E team after Sam Bird injured his left hand. He has finished 2^nd in the ADAC Formula 4 Championship and Formula Regional Middle East Championship and is in his rookie F2 season. Barnard won the F2 sprint race in Monaco.

Maserati MSG Racing

Current Maserati drivers Maximillian Gunther and Jehan Daruvala have driven in the FIA Formula 2 Championship. Gunther finished in 14^th place in his first and only F2 season in 2018 whilst Daruvala drove in the championship for four years and finished in 7^th place in 2021 and 2022. Both have previously been associated with F1 teams, with Gunther being a simulator driver for Mercedes between 2016 and 2017 and Daruvala is a former Red Bull junior who also tested the McLaren MCL355M car at Silverstone and the Algarve International Circuit in 2022. Former Formula 2 champion Felipe Drugovich drove the Maserati Tipo Folgore Gen3 car in the Berlin Rookie Test. 

Jaguar TCS Racing

Enzo Fittipaldi ended the Berlin Rookie Test in 6^th place. He is driving for Van Amersfoort Racing in Formula 2, having previously driven for Charouz Racing System and Rodin Carlin (now referred to as Rodin Motorsport). Enzo was a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy and joined the Red Bull Junior Team in November 2022. In March, he won the Feature Race at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.   

Mahindra Racing

Mahindra Racing’s Nyck De Vries won the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 Alps series in 2014. He was the winner of the Formula 2 Championship in 2019 and the Formula E champion in the 2020-21 season. Both Mahindra reserve drivers have raced in F2, with Jordan King finishing 9th in 2019 whilst Kush Maini is a second-year Formula 2 driver. Frederik Vesti drove for Mahindra at the Berlin Rookie Test and has also spent time in F2, having driven for ART Grand Prix in 2022 and Prema Racing last year.

Nissan Formula E Team

Oliver Rowland finished 3^rd in the 2017 Formula 2 Championship and has won the Formula Renault 2.0 UK Finals Series and Formula Renault 3.5 Series. He was part of the Renault driver academy and was also a development driver for the team, before becoming an ‘official junior driver’ at Williams. Rowland was a driver coach to Jehan Daruvala whilst the latter was racing in Formula Renault and has driven for Mahindra and Nissan’s (including the Nissan e. dams team) Formula E teams. Victor Martins and Luca Ghiotto drove for Nissan in testing in Valencia prior to the start of the current Formula E season. Martins is currently driving for ART Grand Prix in F2 and Ghiotto has driven for the Russian Time, Campos Vexatec, UNI-Virtuosi and DAMS Formula 2 teams.  

TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team

Dennis Hauger is another current F2 driver who took part in the Formula E rookie test in Berlin this year. He is a winner of the Italian F4 Championship (in 2019) and Formula 3 Championship (in 2021) and was runner up in the 2019 ADAC Formula 4 Championship. Hauger has been driving in Formula 2 for 3 years, firstly with Prema Racing and then MP Motorsport (the latter since last season). He was a reserve driver for the Red Bull F1 team last year, however he has since been let go by Red Bull due to his performances during his first two F2 seasons.