Mon 08 Apr 2024

Rising American star Spiezia signs up for full season in RX2e

Ellis Spiezia has become the first driver to throw his hat into the ring for FIA RX2e Championship glory in 2024, after announcing that he will contest the upcoming fourth campaign of the FIA World Rallycross Championship support series.

Born in the United States but now based in Germany, Spiezia began his career in indoor karting and sim racing. A staunch advocate for sustainability and innovation, the New Jersey native has always prioritised electric motorsport and took a leap of faith by moving to Europe in 2020.

Following two successful seasons in e-karting – representing four different manufacturers – Spiezia graduated to car racing in 2022, participating in the YACademy US F4 Winter Series, ERA Championship and Ford Fiesta Cup, achieving multiple podium finishes. Last year, he took part in the NXT Gen Cup – the world’s first fully-electric junior touring car series – placing third overall.

Buoyed by a promising test in the ZEROID X1 at Spain’s Calafat Circuit two months ago – during which he impressed reigning RX2e champion, Nils Andersson – the 18-year-old will now make his rallycross debut with ZEROID Motorsport in the fiercely-disputed single-spec series.

“I’m super-excited to take the next step on my electric motorsport journey with QEV Technologies in RX2e this season,” enthused Spiezia, a nominee for the inaugural BBC Green Sports ‘Young Athlete of the Year’ accolade and a member of the ‘EcoAthletes’ and ‘High Impact Athletes’ organisations.

“Rallycross will be a new challenge for me and is an incredible application for electric powertrain tech. Everyone at QEV was amazing during my first test at Calafat, and I can’t wait to be part of their team, promoting the championship, the technology and the future of the sport.

“Being my first season in a discipline like this will be a big step-up and it’s definitely going to be a very tough challenge, but I’m more than ready for it. Getting sideways and taking jumps, I intend to represent QEV and the championship well and put on a great show for the fans!”

The forthcoming RX2e campaign will get underway at Essay in France on 8-9 June, followed by World Championship-supporting rounds at Höljes in Sweden (6-7 July), Nyirád in Hungary (27-28 July), Mettet in Belgium (17-18 August) and Montalegre in Portugal (7-8 September).