Have you heard about a race with hydrogen-powered cars? It seems like something from the future, but it’s happening now. For the first time in history, there will be a competition between cars similar to Formula 1, but powered by hydrogen. The event promises to revolutionize the automotive industry and give visibility to important topics within the sport. Find out everything about Extreme H, the program behind this race, and what we can expect from this new event.
What is Extreme H, and how will it work?
The Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) – the regulatory body for Motorsports – launched Extreme H, a program that aims to provide races with hydrogen-powered cars. Along the same lines as Formula E and Extreme E – a competition exclusively for electric cars –, this category aims to provide more sustainable, technologically advanced, and less polluting races. This year, the sport will launch a championship, the first hydrogen off-road World Cup.
This championship is promoted in partnership between the FIA and Extreme H, and will follow the same format as Extreme E: a knockout event with a fixed 8km course, with each team consisting of two competitors. The aim of the two companies with this new competition is to raise awareness of the sport, introducing the sustainability agenda for racing in the automotive world, and demonstrating that racing with clean energy sources is viable.
“The FIA is committed to supporting initiatives that set new standards in sustainability and equality. We look forwards to the positive impact Extreme H will have on Motorsport, the automotive industry and beyond, accelerating the transition to clean energy and fostering an inclusive racing culture” — Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA president.
The choice of hydrogen as a fuel for the new race
The partner companies have joined forces in a joint Working Group to study and research cars powered by hydrogen and other more sustainable fuels. This partnership aims to be strategic in evaluating the development and applications of hydrogen in Motorsports. This category, despite being recent, has revolutionized the automotive industry by promoting this agenda in a sport that ends up having a great impact on encouraging and propagating a clean form of energy.
The choice of hydrogen as a fuel for this sport was not in vain. The so-called “fuel of the future” uses an electrolysis process – the separation of hydrogen from water – in its formation, becoming highly energetic, and best of all, without emitting polluting gases in this process. In a world that is moving towards more sustainable energy options, hydrogen becomes a great option. The automotive industry has been flirting with this technology for years, but now it is definitely entering the world of racing, an environment that demands high energy consumption.
“The FUA is at the forefront of advancing sustainable technologies. Motorsport must evolve and adapt to remain sustainable, and the adoption of hydrogen fuel is a key part of our future” — Mohammed Ben Sulayem, FIA president.
The impact of Extreme H on racing and the world
In addition to the sport’s important sustainability agenda, Extreme H has another positive and innovative aspect positive and innovative aspect within Motorsport, which is its gender equality agenda. In all teams in the sport, it is mandatory to have the same number of male and female competitors. This is an essential opportunity to give visibility to female racing drivers, inspiring a new generation in a sport that is predominantly male.
All these changes that accompany the arrival of Extreme H and its automotive event not only serve to make racing more sustainable and cleaner with hydrogen-powered cars. For the world, it becomes a huge potential for transforming the global automotive industry. This change is not just for those who like to follow racing, it is something that will generate a positive impact on society as a whole.
