Envision Virgin Racing have unveiled their 2019-20 car, and with it confirmed that Sam Bird and Robin Frijns will remain at the team.
Both had been expected to keep their drives after a strong first season partnered together which saw them achieve three wins between them.
The team’s Managing Director Sylvain Filippi said that retaining the same drivers for another season would help give the team some consistency, and allow them to gain from the experience both drivers have in the series.
“Formula E has become the most competitive championship in the world and with new manufacturers joining – alongside those we were competing against in season five – having consistency is key for the team,” Filippi said.
“Retaining our strong driver line-up has allowed us to focus all our efforts on the upcoming season and to really utilise our knowledge and experience.
“Having concluded an extremely successful first full season with Envision Group, we’re now looking ahead to the upcoming seasons where we can develop our team experience, both as a team and with our partners.”
For Bird it marks his sixth straight season with the Virgin team, having driven for them since the inaugural season of Formula E.
And after finishing third in the team’s standings last year, the Brit is hopeful they can continue to make progress up the grid.
“I’m excited for season six, as a team we really showed that our experience in Formula E is a huge strength last season and with a top three finish I think we can continue to use this and push forward.
“The team, and our partners, have worked incredibly hard over the summer and are ready to head to Valencia for pre-season testing.”
And after an impressive debut season with the team that saw him finish fourth in the driver’s championship, Robin Frijns said he was hoping to keep his momentum going into the new season.
Frijns felt that he performed better as he got more used to the car, and after winning the last race in New York he was looking forward to pre-season testing.
“It’s great to be continuing with the team for a second season of Formula E,” Frijns said. “Season five was a real learning curve, as it was for all drivers with the introduction of the Gen2 car, so I’m excited to see what this new season has to offer.
“We ended last season on a high – with my season finale win in New York City – and we want to continue this momentum. We’ve worked hard over the summer period and are now looking forward to pre-season testing in Valencia.”
