Robin Frijns joins Amlin Andretti in Formula E - MotorSportsTalk

Amlin Andretti has completed its line-up for the second season of the FIA Formula E championship with former GP2 and Formula Renault 3.5 driver Robin Frijns.

Frijns tested for Andretti at Donington Park last month alongside IndyCar driver Simona de Silvestro, who has already been confirmed in one of the seats with the American team.

On Thursday, Andretti announced that Frijns would be taking the second seat for the beginning of the new Formula E season in Beijing on October 24.

“We’re very excited to have Robin join the team,” Michael Andretti said. “He’s only done one test for us, but he did a really good job and he has a great attitude. We feel that with him and Simona, we have a strong team put together and are ready for season two.”

Frijns was delighted to confirm his plans for the upcoming racing season, and is relishing the chance to get stuck into a new challenge in Formula E.

“It is an honor to be part of the Andretti family and to drive for them in Formula E,” Frijns said. “It’s a new championship and a completely new challenge for me. The way of driving and saving energy is going to be tough, but fun and I am really looking forward to the first race in Beijing in a few weeks time.”

Frijns has been something of a journeyman in motorsport over the past few years. Since winning the Formula Renault 3.5 title in 2012 ahead of Jules Bianchi, the Dutchman took part in a handful of GP2 races and also enjoyed a brief spell in a reserve role with Caterham F1 Team before it changed owners.

Most recently, Frijns has been racing in the Blancpain Sprint Series, but is still regarded as one of the brightest single seater talents not to have reached F1 in the past few years.

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An IndyCar executive said there is “absolutely” disappointment that its long-awaited video game recently was delayed beyond its target date, but the series remains optimistic about the new title.

“Well, I don’t know how quick it will be, but the whole situation is important to us,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said during a news conference Monday morning to announce IndyCar’s NTT title sponsorship. “Motorsport Games has spent a lot of money, a lot of effort to create an IndyCar title. What we’ve seen of that effort, which is not completely obvious, is very reassuring.

“I think it’s going to be outstanding. That’s our shared objective, that when it is released, it’s just widely accepted. A great credit both to IndyCar racing, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, something that our fans love.”

In June 2021, IndyCar announced a new partnership with Motorsport Games to create and distribute an IndyCar video game for the PC and Xbox and PlayStation consoles in 2023.

But during an earnings call last week, Motorsport Games said the IndyCar game had been delayed to 2024 to ensure high quality.

Somewhat compounding the delay is that IndyCar’s license for iRacing expired after the end of the 2022 season because of its exclusive agreement with Motorsport Games.

That’s resulted in significant changes for IndyCar on iRacing, which had provided a high-profile way for the series to stay visible during its 2020 shutdown from the pandemic. (Players still can race an unbranded car but don’t race on current IndyCar tracks, nor can they stream).

That’s helped ratchet up the attention on having a video game outlet for IndyCar.

“I wish we had an IndyCar title 10 years ago,” said Miles, who has been working with the organization since 2013. “We’ve been close, but we’ve had these I think speed bumps.”

IndyCar is hopeful the Motorsports Game edition will be ready at the start of 2024. Miles hinted that beta versions could be unveiled to reporters ahead of the time “to begin to show the progress in a narrow way to make sure we’ve got it right, to test the progress so that we’re ready when they’re ready.”

It’s been nearly 18 years since the release of the most recent IndyCar video game for console or PC.

“(We) better get it right,” Miles said. “It’s something we’re very close to and continue to think about what it is to make sure we get it over the line in due course.”