Unable to secure a seat on the 2017 Formula One grid after being booted from the Haas F1 Team, Esteban Gutiérrez will be making the switch to Formula-E. Although he was at one time linked to the Manor seat for 2017, it would appear that the Mexican is making his exit from Formula One.
Gutiérrez will make his Formula-E debut on April 1 of this year for the Mexican ePrix at the Circuito Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City. It is unknown which team will be giving Gutiérrez the chance to make a debut in the sport, although he may be taking on a full-time seat in the 2017/2018 Formula-E season. It’s believed that Gutiérrez will be participating in other events and races in the 2017 Formula-E season, likely preventing him from taking part in Formula One with Manor.
Gutiérrez is a likely candidate to replace Loïc Duval at the Faraday Future Dragon Racing team. Duval was recently signed with Audi DTM and will miss multiple Formula-E races because of date conflicts. It’s believed that Duval will be removed from the Formula-E team and swapped out with another driver because of this.
Gutiérrez lost his Formula One seat to Kevin Magnussen and has been unable to secure a Formula One seat. As it stands, there are still a few Formula One seats that have not yet been confirmed. It is believed that Pascal Wehrlein will be signing with Sauber, leaving Felipe Nasr to sign with Manor and another pay driver to take the other vacant Manor seat. A seat in Formula-E appears to be the only valid option for Gutiérrez’s career.
Jean-Eric Vergne also made the move to Formula-E during the sports debut season, after being bumped from the Toro Rosso lineup at the end of the 2014 season. He has enjoyed a successful Formula-E career. Formula-E also features many former Formula One drivers, including Nelson Piquet Jr, Jérôme d’Ambrosio, Sébastien Buemi, Lucas di Grassi and Nick Heidfeld; all of which have had success in the new electric racing series.
