motoring news February 2022 51 www.bahrainthismonth.com Maserati has announced the first step in its motorsport strategy and will make its debut in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship (the world’s first allelectric road-racing motorsport series) in 2023. With motorsport in its genes and rooted in the spirit of pure competition, Maserati is the first Italian brand to compete in Formula E. Maserati will now debut on the grid from Season 9 with the new Gen3, the fastest, lightest, most powerful Formula E racing car ever. The Gen3 is the world’s most efficient racing car featuring a series of industry-leading design, production and technological innovations. Maserati made its racing debut was 96 years ago. The first racing car to bear the Trident logo on the bonnet was the Tipo 26, which debuted at the Targa Florio in 1926, winning first place in the class up to 1.5 L, with Alfieri Maserati, of the Maserati brothers, at the wheel. Thirty-one years later, Juan Manuel Fangio won the F1 World Championship with Maserati in 1957. The last time Maserati was seen in a single seater was with Maria Teresa De Filippis, the first woman to qualify for a Formula 1 Grand Prix, on board of a 250F. Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. has announced plans to establish a new company through the integration of two affiliated companies, Autech Japan Inc. (Autech) and Nissan Motorsports International Co. Ltd. (NISMO). The new company is to be established on April 1, 2022. The integration is aimed to better globally utilise Autech’s know-how in developing and manufacturing customised vehicles and NISMO’s brand power built up through motorsports. Positioned as an important strategic subsidiary, the new company is expected to contribute to Nissan’s sustainable growth. Nissan aims to deliver a variety of exciting cars, provide experiences that better connect people and society, and to expand the possibilities of mobility. A NEW MOTORSPORTS COMPANY FOR NISSAN! Bentley Motors has announced total sales of 14,659 in 2021, an increase of 31 percent over 2020. This significant achievement was driven by new model introductions, a fresh product portfolio and increasing demand for Bentley’s new hybridised models, introduced under Bentley’s Beyond100 strategic path to full electrification by 2030. The success of this new hybrid option ensured Bentayga remained Bentley’s number one model selling more in its fifth year of sales than ever before. Furthermore, a full year of Flying Spur sales around the world and the introduction of the Continental GT Speed, among the launch of 11 new derivatives, added to this success. The Americas maintained its position as the biggest selling global market, selling more than ever before. China almost matched this performance for the first time in a decade. The Middle East region continued to grow, and saw a 29 percent increase from the previous year, with 915 cars delivered in 2021, against a total of 735 in 2020. A RECORD YEAR FOR BENTLEY MASERATI: BACK TO RACING.
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