Sebastien Buemi has explained that Formula E and the World Endurance Championship’s expanded calendars will make it impossible for him to continue running dual programmes in 2027.
Ahead of this weekend’s London E-Prix finale, Envision announced that Buemi will leave Formula E as a driver at the end of the season, instead taking on an advisory and development role with the team.
Buemi had been one of Formula E’s original drivers from season 1, combining his commitments in the all-electric championship with a drive in the WEC. However, starting next year, he will focus his attention on his sportscar duties with Toyota, despite Formula E moving the Monaco E-Prix date to eliminate one of the two clashes between the series.
Buemi said the decision was driven by the increased commitments required in Formula E with the start of the Gen4 era, as well as a larger but more condensed 13-weekend schedule. The WEC is also adding a ninth round next year, creating an extremely busy summer.
“People tend to forget, but next year the championship is going to end something like a month before.
“WEC is going to have an extra race [at Silverstone] in that same period, and Formula E is going to have two extra races.
“It is not impossible to do. And I guess for the Stellantis drivers that will somehow do it next year. It’s the same employer, it’s the same brand, it may be easier to handle, but for someone like me competing in a totally different category with different brands, it was going to be extremely difficult to do it.
“I don’t think it would have been impossible, but you know, let’s say we would be in the fourth year of Gen 3, it would have somehow made it easier. But now with the Gen4 coming in, there are so many more test days planned, even if you are a customer team.
“Ultimately, you want to make sure that if you do compete, you compete at a high level with good preparation. There is lots at stake. We came to the conclusion that doing it would have been very, very difficult.”
Sebastien Buemi, Envision Racing
Photo by: Malcolm Griffiths / LAT Images via Getty Images
The Swiss described his departure from Formula E as a “joint decision”, but one that was ultimately “led” by his team based on how much time he would be able to devote to two categories.
“Ultimately, it’s a joint decision, even if I feel like I could have done it,” Buemi said. “We’ve discussed that already for the last four years, but mainly in the last few months we’ve looked at it.
“Obviously, the decision was also led by the team. I feel like I could have potentially done it. We spent some time analysing how it is possible to do simulator preparation, and somehow it’s very hard as a driver to just give up and stop.
“But I have to say that looking at the whole picture, I have a family, I have three kids. At some point, I want to be racing but things need to be done in a proper way.”
Buemi has been racing for Toyota in the WEC since 2013, with his current contract giving the Japanese manufacturer priority over his commitments with Envision in Formula E.
He also works as a simulator driver for Red Bull in Formula 1, requiring him to make several visits to the team’s factory in Milton Keynes.
Asked if Toyota or Red Bull played any role in his decision to exit Formula E, the 2015-16 champion said: “Toyota, somehow yes, because obviously I signed a priority deal with them last year, so at some point yes, they did have [a role].
“My contract priorities evolved quite a lot throughout the year, when I went from full priority to WEC to less priority and more to Formula E, to Toyota again.
“Ultimately, the priority to the WEC has closed the door.”
#8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota TR010: Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, Ryo Hirakawa
Photo by: JEP
Formula E’s 2026-27 schedule features just one clash with the WEC’s 2027 calendar, with the Shanghai E-Prix scheduled on the same weekend as the Sao Paulo 6 Hours.
The original calendar featured two conflicting events, but Formula E moved the Monaco event forward by two weeks to ensure drivers could race in both the principality and WEC’s Spa event.
“When they removed the clash, it obviously made it a lot easier, but ultimately I think it was more about the workload, and the fact that it would have been difficult to…even planning a test day for the team would have been nearly impossible with me; we would have needed to find days where I’m free.”
2027 WEC/Formula E schedule
| Date | Formula E | WEC | Dual-programme impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| 18–19 Dec 2026 | Jeddah E-Prix | — | FE |
| 16 Jan 2027 | Mexico City E-Prix | — | FE |
| 6 Feb | Austin E-Prix | — | FE |
| 20 Feb | Miami E-Prix | — | FE |
| 13 Mar | São Paulo E-Prix | — | FE |
| 21–22 Mar | — | WEC Prologue, Lusail | WEC |
| 27 Mar | — | Qatar 1812km | WEC |
| 11 Apr | — | Imola 6 Hours | WEC |
| 17 Apr | Sanya E-Prix | — | FE |
| 25 Apr | — | Silverstone 6 Hours | WEC |
| 1–2 May | Monaco E-Prix | — | FE |
| 8–9 May | Berlin E-Prix | — | FE |
| 15 May | — | Spa 6 Hours | WEC |
| 29–30 May | London E-Prix | — | FE |
| 12–13 Jun | — | Le Mans 24 Hours | WEC |
| 18–19 Jun | Zandvoort E-Prix | — | FE |
| 26–27 Jun | Madrid E-Prix | — | FE |
| 10–11 Jul | Shanghai E-Prix | Sao Paulo 6 Hours | Direct clash |
| 24–25 Jul | Tokyo E-Prix | — | FE |
| 12 Sep | — | Lone Star Le Mans, Austin | WEC |
| 26 Sep | — | Fuji 6 Hours | WEC |
| 6 Nov | — | Bahrain 8 Hours | WEC |
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– The Autosport.com Team
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