South Africa and China are teaming up to launch a new race series called the Elite World Cup where national teams will compete against one another in all-electric hypercars.
The announcement came a few hours ahead of the BRICS Summit being held this week at the Sandton Convention Centre in Gauteng, where representatives from the two nations stated their intention to create a first-of-its-kind racing championship within the world of motorsport.
An all-new championship
The Elite World Cup will take the form of an all-electric hypercar race series, which will be held in multiple countries around the world.
The three founding members of the consortium, Tokyo Sexwale, Liu Yu, and Stephen Watson, announced that they intend to stage the first race by September 2024, describing it as an “international showdown of premium performance, elite talent and innovation.”
The Cup is expected to draw in high-profile drivers with serious motorsport credentials, with backgrounds that cover everything from NASCAR and the Indy 500 in the United States to global Formula 1.
“The Cup is called Elite for a reason,” said Stephen Watson. “We want the drivers and teams who have established themselves and represented their countries in various prestigious motorsport championships around the world.”
The Elite World Cup will take place on multiple continents, from European and American race tracks to Asian and African city circuits, with a season that comprises eight to ten race weekends.
The inaugural season is planned to take place from September 2024 until March 2025, placing it in what is traditionally the off-season for more established motorsport events.
A taste of what’s to come
The BRICS Summit also provided a glimpse of what motoring enthusiasts can expect from the hardware side of the race, displaying a Lotus Evija in Sandton Square near the event hall.
“There are three primary questions one asks when it comes to the selection of electric hypercars: how big is its performance, how far is its range, and how rapidly can you recharge?” said Liu Yu.
The Lotus has a staggering 1,491kW (2,000 horsepower) at its disposal, which lets it accelerate from 0-100km/h in under 3.0 seconds, and to 300km/h in just over 9.0 seconds, with an electronically-limited top speed of 350km/h.
The one on display in Joburg is a limited-edition Emerson Fittipaldi model taken from another BRICS member – Brazil – and is one of only eight units in the entire world.
It uses a 93kWh battery pack, which takes just 18 minutes for a 100% charge, or 12 minutes for an 80% charge, and it has a maximum range of 400km, letting it stay competitive during a race with its electric rivals.
Keyword: South Africa teams up with China to launch Elite World Cup – A world-first hypercar race series