Team Westbrook- Led By Will Smith, Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio and Alshair Fiyaz- Places Third in Its Inaugural E1- Series Race
Championed by a coalition of celebrity team owners- from Tom Brady to Steve Aoki to Rafael Nadal- electric racing’s new E1 Series has surged to international prominence and sparked widespread conversation around the potential of sustainable, electric nautical technologies for mass market adoption.
Founded in 2020 by Motorsport veteran Alejandro Agag and managed by former McLaren Applied´s managing director Rodi Basso, the E1 Series has debuted a brand new flying electric raceboat- called the RaceBird- and has expanded its roster with celerity, already having incorporated nine official teams each piloted by a female and a male captain.
While the sport may be growing fast in market popularity and teams, Basso the league office is taking great care to ensure that every new team in E1 is managed by capable stewards of sport and sustainability.
This past Sunday in Venice, E1’s newest team- Team Westbrook- debuted to a third place finish and gave fans a great demonstration of both the competitive spirit and leadership qualities the E1-Series is committed to providing.
Led by star owner Will Smith, Team Westbrook is just the latest major push to sustainable technological advancement by the Hollywood icon. Smith, for instance, is heavily invested in the Los Angeles-based startup Arc, which launched a new mass-market electric sport boat earlier in the year pioneered by venture firm Dreamers VC.
While Smith has received most of the limelight so far as the Team´s celebrity owner, Westbrook Racing will also continue to benefit from the extensive sports and sustainability leadership that co-owners and investors Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio and Alshair Fiyaz bring to the table.
For Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio- current President of Rayban and Chief Strategy Officer of the world’s largest eyeglasses firm Essilor Luxottica- Team Westbrook is also the latest in a high-profile series of green technology-related investments. Del Vecchio’s LMDV Capital Family Office has recently distinguished itself for salient investments aimed at the development of new sustainable techniques in the processing of materials like the Made in Italy packaging champion IMA Group for example.
According to Del Vecchio “I find it important to support the birth of a new sport, where innovation combines emotion and sustainability –The racing world has always tested technological improvements for the mass market. Cutting-edge solutions such as those applied in the RaceBird could, furthermore, touch the world of pleasure boats and reduce pollution from internal combustion engines. The presence of a male driver and a female driver competing on the same level was also an incentive. Finally, being present as a sponsor in the first electric powerboat world championship opens a new window of promotion and international relations for the initiatives of my family office LMDV Capital.”
Del Vecchio’s excitement is mirrored by the team’s other Italian co-owner, Tommaso Chiabra. Chiabra, who helped assemble the full group of investors behind Team Westbrook, eloquently encapsulated the ownership’s collective mission when he said: “This sport, full of adrenaline, will take us to different cities around the world, spreading awareness about electric and sustainable mobility.”
Team Westbrook’s other major investor and co-owner, Alshair Fiyaz also holds distinguished credentials in the fields of both sport and sustainability investment. Fiyaz has been instrumental in building the Saint Tropez Polo Club into one of Europe’s premier polo and showjumping destinations and has also backed the transformation of Bellakvarter, Copenhagen, into one of Scandinavia’s largest green-powered urban developments, before successfully exiting in 2019. For Fiyaz, E1 was an instant match for his proclivities for both competition as well as sustainable evolution:
“I have been involved in competitive sports my entire life”, elaborates Fiyaz. “When the opportunity arose to enter another team, there was no doubt in my mind about my support. The E1 series highlights an important message about the potential of electric power in marine transportation. The Blue Impact initiative by the E1 Series addresses coastal waste management challenges in some of the most iconic urban locations in the world, including Venice and Monaco.”
Team Westbrook will seek to improve on its 3rd place debut in its next race, set for June 2nd in Perto Banús, Marbella.
For more information on Team Westbrook or to follow the E1 Series circuit in real time, please visit the E1 online at www.e1series.com and follow @E1Series on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, #ChampionsOfTheWater.