Lola Yamaha ABT has officially announced their season 12 driver line up and it’s the return of 2 familiar faces. Lucas Di Grassi and Zane Maloney have resigned for another year in Formula E.
Did we see this coming?
Di Grassi back for his 12th Season
Lola Yamaha ABT are honoured to have Lucas Di Grassi retained in their team. He provides the knowledge of a champion and the experience as the most successful driver in FIA Formula E.
The partnership between ABT and Di Grassi goes back to his championship winning days, showing that the duo understand each other well. For season 12, the duo feel optimistic that the partnership with Lola and Yamaha will continue in a positive direction.
“We’ve worked extremely hard this summer and added reinforcements to the team to ensure our second season is even better.”
Di Grassi during his retainment announcement
Maloney is no longer a Rookie
Zane Maloney joined the Formula E paddock last season fresh from Formula 2. Maloney himself is no stranger to winning, being in the championship battle for the 2024 F2 season.
Getting numerous race wins and fighting for the FE championship was never on his agenda last season, having little experience in Formula E, Maloney needed to adapt to this new sport.
This coming season, he will no longer be a rookie, having an entire years worth of knowledge and practice under his belt. He and the team feel confident that Season 12 will be constructive and that Maloney will be able to continue his fighting drives.
Lola Yamaha last season
The Champion – Rookie duo last season didn’t necessarily turn out how anyone expected. While Lola Yamaha ABT as a team is new to Formula E, they hold a lot of experience adapting from previous years. Their best result was Di Grassi’s podium during the Miami E Prix, finishing P2.
However, season 11 was about learning, not just for the team but for the drivers. Zane Maloney failed to score a single point last season but showed the team and spectators that he has a strong drive and ability to adapt.
“Lola, Yamaha and ABT have all been working extremely hard to apply the learnings from our first season to put ourselves in the best possible position for Season 12 and we are thrilled that Zane and Lucas will be continuing to drive this progress forwards”
Mark Preston – Motorsport Director, Lola Cars
An expected announcement
The news of the duo remaining at the team for another season doesn’t come as much of a surprise to most. Rumours of the resigning began bubbling towards the end of season 11.
It’s important to remember that Lola Yamaha have a lot of development and growing to do within the sport. Di Grassi gives the team a great amount of experience and Maloney is the young talent a growing team needs.
We’re all very excited about what next season will bring and anticipate another good year for Lola Yamaha ABT.