Barnard, who hails from Norwich, made his Formula E debut in 2024 at just 19-years-old, standing in at short notice for Sam Bird at the 2024 Monaco E-Prix. Since then, the young Brit has collected a plethora of records and made a lot of history in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship as our youngest driver to start a race, youngest pole sitter, youngest driver to claim a podium - and most recently, youngest race winner.
After departing the outgoing DS PENSKE operation at the end of the 2025/26 season, Barnard now embarks on a fresh start with Formula E newcomers, Fortescue Zero Racing. The Australian outfit are no strangers to motorsport, from their roots in Williams Racing (as Williams Advanced Engineering), to becoming an in-demand, high-performance engineering business, working at the cutting edge of electrification as the Official PIT BOOST supplier of Formula E.
READ MORE: Fortescue Zero to compete in Formula E with racing and innovation team
Their entrance into the championship as a competing team comes at an exciting time for Formula E, as we prepare to enter the all-new GEN4 era. Capable of reaching speeds in excess of 335kph, 0-100kph in approximately 1.8 seconds, and 0-200kph in just 4.4 seconds - 1.5 seconds faster than its predecessor - GEN4 will deliver 50% more power in race mode than the current GEN3 Evo race car. The GEN4 car will be an average of 10 seconds faster per lap than the GEN3 car in qualifying mode. In ATTACK MODE, GEN4 produces up to 600kW of power, a 71% increase in base output over GEN3 Evo, delivering performance that pushes the limits of electric racing. GEN4 is the only single-seater race car with permanent all-wheel drive.
Taylor Barnard, Fortescue Zero Racing driver, said: “I’m incredibly excited to join Fortescue Zero Racing and be part of building something from the ground up. This is a new team with a huge amount of ambition, and I want to help turn that ambition into results on the track.
“Fortescue Zero has a strong history of developing high-performance electric technology, and I’m looking forward to working with the team and helping push that technology further and faster than ever before. We know there is a lot of hard work ahead, but that is exactly what makes this opportunity so exciting. I can’t wait to get started.”
Fortescue Zero Racing's complete driver line-up will be confirmed in due course.
Find out more
GEN4: A new era of Formula E is about to begin
WATCH: How to watch every Formula E race in your country
CALENDAR: Here's every race set for the 2026/27 Formula E season
TICKETS: Secure your grandstand seats and buy Formula E race tickets
