Aussie Molly Taylor signs for new global EV series

The Australian rally champion Molly Taylor has been signed to race in a groundbreaking new electrified off-road racing series for a team founded and owned by 2016 Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg.

Taylor has established herself as a factory driver for Subaru in the Australian Rally Championship, which she won in 2016.

The rally program ended at the end of the 2019 season.

But Taylor is probably best known to many Australians for her starring role in the recent reality TV hit SAS: Who Dares Wins Australia, from which she was eliminated in the very last episode.

The inaugural Extreme E season kicks off in Saudi Arabia next March with a total of  five ‘X Prix’ for identical electrified 450kW off-road vehicles scheduled for 2021.

All five race events, which also include Argentina, Brazil, Greenland and Senegal are in locations impacted by climate change.

The series is being promoted by the founder of the Formula E openwheeler racing series, Alejandro Agag.

Rosberg Xtreme Racing announced Taylor’s signing this afternoon. She had earlier joined the Extreme E Drivers’ Programme designed to promote professional drivers with a view to joining the series full time.

“It feels amazing to be joining Rosberg Xtreme Racing and Extreme E on this new adventure,” Taylor said.

“I’m so excited to be able to compete on the international stage again, and to be part of a completely new team and series makes it even more special.

“Alongside fighting climate change, I’m excited to work together as a team and series to promote equality. One part of motorsport I’ve always admired is that once the helmet goes on, your gender becomes irrelevant and the stopwatch has no bias.

“There’s still a lot of work to do to improve the diversity in our industry, but the work RXR and Extreme E are doing will provide new opportunities to reshape the image of our sport in the eyes of young fans, and I’m thrilled to be a part of that.”

Rosberg, who won the world driver’s championship for Mercedes-AMG ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton, who also owns an Extreme E team, welcomed Taylor to the RXR squad.

“Her experience and success in off-road racing speaks for itself, however Molly’s determination to be proactive in addressing climate change, and support our mission to promote and implement equality are also key factors in Molly joining the team.”

Taylor’s team-mate at RXR will be Swede Johan Kristoffersson. The requirement of Extreme E is that both drivers share the one car and one is male and the other female.