Extreme E performance gap between male and female drivers narrows by 70%

All-electric SUV championship requires every team to field one male and one female driver.

January 30, 2025
Cian Brittle

The average gap between male and female drivers fell from 4.5s to 1.1s in four years
Extreme E transitioning to hydrogen-powered World Cup later this year

All-electric SUV championship Extreme E has revealed the performance gap between its male and female drivers has fallen by almost 70 per cent over four seasons.

During the first season, female drivers’ were on average 4.5 seconds slower than their male counterparts. By season four, the gap shrank to just 1.1 seconds, equating to a 68.64 per cent reduction.

Extreme E only completed four rounds before cancelling the remainder of its 2024 season, meaning the pool of races to draw data from was much smaller.

In the third race of the 2024 campaign, Andretti’s Catie Munnings was the third-fastest driver overall in a 16-strong field.

“Extreme E is a championship that has proven on track against a stopwatch what giving opportunity to drivers can do,” said Munnings.

“When Extreme E started, a lot of the females had less experience than their male counterparts in their team. This data proves what opportunity and access to the best engineers and performance resources within top teams can really do for young drivers.”

Extreme E requires every team to field one male and one female driver, sharing the same vehicle and providing equal responsibility for performance. This format will continue when the series becomes the first-ever hydrogen-powered World Cup later this year.

Extreme H is set to reveal more details about the World Cup format and its wider plans in early 2025.

Commenting on the latest findings, Alejandro Agag, Extreme E’s founder and chief executive, said: “Our sporting format is more than just a race, it’s a statement. By levelling the playing field, Extreme E has demonstrated that the gender gap in performance isn’t a matter of ability, but opportunity and investment.”

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