For the 2021 season, the UK British Rallycross Championship 5 Nations Trophy will for the first time feature electric and internal combustion vehicles racing together in its headline Supercar class, making it the first series to combine both forms of propulsion competitively in the UK. The inclusion of electric vehicles in the series is currently being approved by Motorsport UK.
Electric entrants will have to use the STARD ERX powertrain, developed for use in the World RX Projekt E championship. Having already been used during competitions internationally, the system is now being adopted by domestic championships around the world, including those in Germany, Italy and Norway.
Conversion kits are available from the manufacturer that enable current cars in the Supercar class to be converted from internal combustion engines to electric power. STARD-built cars will also be offered in the form of a Ford Fiesta Mk8 ERX, and a Rally2-based Citroen C3 ERX.
Michael Sakowicz, CEO of STARD, concluded, “We’re delighted that 5 Nations BRX recognizes how suitable the STARD ERX concept is for British rallycross. The relatively short runs and rallycross scheduling lend themselves very nicely to charging requirements with around 15 laps possible on a single charge. We believe that the ERX cars will be attractive to drivers looking for the next era of competition.
“ERX is the most cost-efficient high-level electric racing concept on the market and at the moment the only one available for customer motorsport teams to purchase worldwide. Cheaper than a comparable ICE Supercar in purchase price, an ERX Supercar also has a significantly lower running cost of around 60% less than conventional ICE cars, which has a big appeal. It will be good to see the mixed-power grid in an already hotly contested championship.”
