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| Founded | 2013 (as Team China Racing (NEXTEV)) |
|---|---|
| Base | Silverstone Park,United Kingdom |
| Teamprincipal(s) | Alex Hui |
| Current series | Formula E |
| Current drivers |  3.David Beckmann 33.Dan Ticktum |
| Drivers' Championships | FIA Formula E: 2014–15:Nelson Piquet Jr. |
| Website | https://www.kiroraceco.com/ |
TheKiro Race Co, competing asCupra Kiro, is an American-owned, British-based motor racing team that currently competes in theFIAFormula E Championship, an all-electric racing series. The team was previously owned and managed by Chinese companies Lisheng Sports and Gusto Engineering respectively, before being acquired byThe Forest Road Company, aLos Angeles-based investment firm.[1][2][3]
The team, previously competing under the namesChina Racing,NEXTEV TCR,NEXTEVNio,Nio Formula E Team,Nio 333 Racing, andElectric Racing Technologies (ERT) Formula E Team, has participated in the FIA Formula E World Championship since itsinaugural season, winning the first Drivers' Championship withNelson Piquet Jr.[4]
China Racing was the second team (behind theDrayson Racing project, which then transformed intoTrulli GP) to announce its involvement in Formula E, back in March 2013.[5]
China Racing announcedNelson Piquet Jr. andHo-Pin Tung as their drivers for the inaugural season.[6] Over the course of the season, the team used multiple drivers in car no. 88, with Tung taking part in three rounds,Antonio García in two rounds,Charles Pic in four rounds, before ultimately pickingOliver Turvey for the final double-header weekend inLondon. Piquet, on the other hand, completed the full season and managed to win the championship in the final race of the season.[7]
In 2015, the China Racing name and branding had phased out. For theLong Beach ePrix, the team introduced radical changes to their livery, removing the red and yellow which had been previously associated with the team and replacing it withNEXTEV branding.[8] The move was finalised in the following round inMonaco, which the team entered asNEXTEV TCR instead of China Racing.[9]
Despite Piquet winning the championship, NEXTEV TCR only finished fourth in the Teams' Championship, as his teammates only added 8 points, the team scoring 152 points in total.
NEXTEV TCR chose to develop their own powertrain for the second season and began testing it in the summer of 2015. The team also confirmed Piquet, who was signed on a multi-year deal.[10] Turvey was later confirmed as Piquet's teammate for the season.[11] In 2016, NEXTEV acquired the whole team, which, at the time, was still partially-owned by Team China Racing (hence the 'TCR' part in its name).[12]
The 2015–16 season was a disappointment for the team. Piquet and Turvey only scored 19 points in total, falling down to ninth place in the Teams' Championship, only ahead ofTrulli, who withdrew from the championship in its early stages. Turvey scored the team's best season result with a sixth place at the first round inBeijing.
Piquet and Turvey were retained for the 2016–17 season.[13] The team, previously operated byCampos Racing, was set to form its own operational and engineering team, led by Gerry Hughes.[14] A new branding,NEXTEVNio, was introduced for the season.
While the team's performance was an improvement over the previous season, it was still unable to compete for either of the Drivers' and Teams' Championships, despite setting pole positions inHong Kong (with Piquet) andMexico City (with Turvey). NEXTEV Nio would finish sixth with 59 points.
Piquet left the team after a performance clause allowed him to exit the team forJaguar.Luca Filippi was announced as his replacement, while Turvey stayed with the team.[15]Ma Qinghua joined the team as a reserve driver.[16] During the season, he subbed for Filippi inParis and Turvey inNew York, who was forced to withdraw from the double-header after a hand injury.[17][18] The NextEV brand was slowly phasing out as the team now competed under the nameNio Formula E Team. The NextEV brand stayed in the name of the powertrain.
Nio cemented their position at the back of the grid and only finished eighth in Teams' Championship with 47 points. Turvey, however, managed a podium spot with a second-place finish inMexico City.
Tom Dillmann andOliver Turvey were announced as the driver pairing for the 2018–19 season, meaning Turvey would compete for the team for a fourth straight full season.[19] The NextEV brand remained on the car, but the powertrain only featured Nio in its name.
The season would prove to be another disappointment as the team only accumulated 7 points over the course of the season, all of them with Turvey, placing them last (eleventh) in the Teams' Championship.
The team underwent a change in ownership and is currently managed by Lisheng Sports and Gusto Engineering.[1] On 10 September 2019, the definitive entry list was revealed, in which the team was listed under the nameNio 333 Formula E Team.[20] The team will not be using its own powertrains and it instead acquired last year's powertrain fromGEOX Dragon.[21] Nio, however, kept their manufacturer status due to their new powertrain being homologated as such by theFIA in late August.[22]Ma Qinghua also joined the team on a permanent basis, racing alongside the team mainstay Turvey.[21] Qinghua, however, was unable to participate in the2020 Berlin ePrix due to Chinese travel restrictions, and was replaced byDaniel Abt.
Tom Blomqvist joined Nio 333 for the 2020–21 season to partner Turvey.[23] In February 2021,Adam Carroll was announced as the reserve driver.[24] The team scored points for the first time since the2019 New York City ePrix after Turvey secured two points finishes at theDiriyah ePrix double-header. Blomqvist achieved the same feat at the followingRome ePrix double-header.
Turvey was retained by the team while Blomqvist departed and was replaced byCarlinFormula 2 driver and formerWilliams Driver Academy memberDan Ticktum. The team scored their first points of theseason in the second race of theRome ePrix, where Turvey finished 7th and Ticktum finished 10th, which was his first points finish in Formula E.[25]
Turvey was released from the team to joinDS Penske as a reserve driver. He was replaced bySérgio Sette Câmara, who partnered with Ticktum.
Ahead of pre-season testing, it was announced that the team would rebrand intoERT Formula E Team, with theNio name leaving the team.[26]
The team was rebranded again asKiro Race Co ahead of the season. Acquired by The Forest Road Company, the team will race under an American license. The team has ceased to develop their own powertrain, becoming a customer team ofPorsche utilising the old 2023–24 powertrain.[3] The newly rebranded team tested Ticktum alongsideDavid Beckmann at theMadrid test.[27] Both drivers were confirmed as the full driver lineup, while Sette Câmara was released after two seasons with the team. This was also the last driver lineup to be announced and was done so the week of theSão Paulo ePrix . Ahead of theSão Paulo ePrix weekend,Cupra entered into a partnership with Kiro Race Co to enter the season asCupra Kiro.[28]
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