Formula E CEO Jeff Dodds Is Betting Big On The Future Of The Racing Series

Formula E continues to grow and will see racing in the U.S. at Portland International Raceway again … [+] in 2024. (Photo by Jaguar Racing via Getty Images)

Getty Images for Jaguar TCS Racing

Less than a year into taking over the CEO of Formula E, Jeff Dodds is pushing to grow the global series in key markets and on the grid.

Formula E has big ambitions. The all-electric open-wheel racing series continues to provide a technology showcase which in turn has seen the series move from a racing oddity to the mainstream. In its infancy, drivers would have to swap cars due to limited battery life. In more recent years, full races with no scheduled pit stops have been served up making “peloton” type racing to conserve battery power the norm.

Now in its 10th season, Formula E is about to enter the next technology phase with fast charging, and with it, a staple of motor racing enters the picture: pit stop strategy. Beginning with the Misano E Prix in Italy, and on through Berlin, Shanghai, Portland, and London, Formula E will look and feel more and more like what fans have long come to expect with combustion engine racing.

Less than a year into the position, CEO Jeff Dodds mirrors Formula E’s evolution. As Formula E is quick to point out, their trajectory compared to Formula 1 at the 10-year mark is healthy. Not one to shy away from saying the growing interest in F1 in the key U.S. and China markets “floats all boats” and therefore is opening doors to Formula E, Dodds is actively increasing Formula E’s profile more than ever. Before officially taking over this full season, Dodds was on the ground at the inaugural Portland E-Prix, London and Jakarta races which allowed him to hit the ground more clearly in 2024. “I wanted to ensure we had some clear objectives as an organization,” Dodds said to me in an exclusive interview for Forbes. “We would deliver on our ambition and be clear on how we begin to measure success.”

Formula E’s Cost Value

If Formula 1 has been tight in expanding the grid, most visibly by denying entry of Andretti-Cadillac, Dodds is openly courting adding to the Formula E grid and using ROI as an enticement for manufacturers and technology partners to join the series. With a starting price of 30m EUR for a team franchise and an operating cost cap of 13m EUR per season, Formula E has value. By comparison, one can enter into Formula E at around one-tenth the cost of entering Formula 1 (F1 is approx. 135 million USD in 2023 or 124.8m EUR).

On the racing side, Dodds and Formula E continue to tout the competitiveness of the series. While Dodds made waves this week by saying he’d give $250,000 to the charity of the driver that would unseat Max Verstappen as the 2024 F1 Driver’s Champion, the larger point was that while Formula 1 is entertaining, Red Bull really has their grip on the grid at the moment. Last year Verstappen won 19 of 22 races making the championship more of a formality. As I witnessed at the Portland E-Prix in 2023, the level of competitive racing with Formula E is extraordinary by comparison with over 400 overtakes during the race.

The other return that Formula E continues to offer is technology and software development. As an example, DS Automobiles (EV maker Stellantis) and Penske Autosport are partnered as part of the Formula E grid. This week they showed off the DS E-Tense Performance vehicle designed around what they’ve learned through racing in Formula E. The car uses the Formula E race car powertrain, using twin electric motors that make 804bhp combined and 8,000Nm of torque, with power sent to all four wheels.

Between cost to enter and run teams, and the value of development, Formula E continues to see a diverse group of manufacturers partnering with the teams. Porsche, Jaguar, Maserati, and Nissan. While Dodds would not say who, he did say that a non-traditional manufacturer would be entering the field soon.

“You could look for a manufacturer that is at the cutting edge of EV development that’s going to use Formula E as a platform to refine its product lines,” Dodds said. “Then you’re talking about brands like BYD and Li Auto out of China.” He added that brands that are exploring the role of EV within their portfolio could look at Formula E such as Toyota and Honda.

Google Cloud To Partner With Formula E

Dodds also revealed to me that while not yet announced, Formula E will be partnering with Google Cloud.

“Google Cloud worked very closely with us when we broke the indoor land speed record in London last year, “Dodds said. “They recognized this is a good way in a good environment to test some of their AI capability, their cloud capability, and benefits of software enhancement.”

Expanding The Number Of U.S. Races

As reported earlier for Forbes, when initially inked, the race in Portland, OR was thought to be only a two-year bridging date on the schedule. After leaving the race in New York, many up and down the grid that I talked to said that it was just a matter of time before Portland would end and places like Los Angeles would take its place. With the inaugural race a success last year, and Portland getting a double-header this season, the idea of keeping Portland on the schedule and adding dates seems what could occur beginning in 2025.

Dodds noted that what Formula E offers in terms of virtually no noise compared to other forms of moto racing allows them to bring the racing to urban centers, as opposed to many permanent tracks that are often away from population centers. Portland International Raceway, with its light rail access, and closeness to downtown plays into that format. Plus, the fast charging will now allow for racing to occur on more permanent tracks along with street courses.

“In the end, the kind of the epicenter of for sale around electric vehicles is going to be China and North America,” Dodds said. For both of those locations, I think there’s scope to go to a second menu of races. So not to flip out Shanghai for a different Chinese venue but to look at Shanghai and another Chinese venue. And not necessarily to flip out Portland for another US venue but to look at Portland and another U.S. venue. “Our partners want to go racing there. Americans want us to go racing there. So I think that’s really important.”

Dodds Looks To The Importance Of Media Deals For Formula E

As with all the competing types of sports looking to grab attention, media exposure via television and streaming becomes critical, and Formula E fits into that equation. Prior to becoming CEO of Formula E, Dodds was the COO, Managing Director and Chief Marketing Officer for Virgin Media, so he understands the importance.

“In the time between my starting as CEO and when we started season 10, I think we signed 40 deals in the media space,” Dodds said. “We recognized quite quickly, that the breadth of media is really important for us.”

To highlight that, Dodds pointed to the two rights deals reached in the U.S. with CBS and Roku. Formula E got a significant viewership bounce for the season opener in Mexico City when CBS aired the race right after an NFL playoff game allowing for a 57% increase in viewership compared to the Mexico race in 2023.

Other deals were reached with CCTV in China, and Fuji TV in Japan. In Europe the series moved to TNT Sports.

For the future of Formula E, Dodds remains optimistic.

“You know, I think we’re a pretty compelling — an open arm environment for people to come and test technology, develop technology, use it as a marketing platform, without some of the inconsistency that might go away and go along with some of the other series.”