Exclusive | Slow and boring? Formula E is cool and fun, says Richard Branson, and will overtake F1 in 10 years
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Being a billionaire business magnate means you must be good at something, but for Richard Branson racing was never his strong suit.
“I’ve tried racing myself at Silverstone and I remember being so far last that I was hoping the crowd would think I was first,” he told the Post, laughing, in an exclusive interview. “But I don’t think that worked.”
Luckily for the 67-year-old founder of the Virgin Group, estimated by Forbes to be the 324th wealthiest person in the world with a net worth of about US$5 billion, he doesn’t have to get behind the wheel for the DS Virgin Racing team in Formula E.
That job is left to Alex Lynn and Sam Bird, with the latter winning the first race of the season-opening Hong Kong E-Prix double header earlier this month.
“I was in New York when Sam won our first races last season, and it’s tremendously exciting when your team wins and anyone who says otherwise would be lying,” Branson said.
“We’ve got a couple of incredibly good drivers, our technicians are excellent as well. The team have a good chance to end the season high up in the rankings and if they can go the whole way so much the better.”