Montreal Formula E race cancelled for 2018

Formula E's planned season finale in Montreal in July 2018 has been cancelled by mayor Valerie Plante due to fears over spiralling costs to the city and local taxpayers.

Formula E first ventured to Montreal earlier this summer for a double-header final round of its third season, with the circuit being praised for being one of the best the all-electric series has raced on.

However, the layout caused mass disruption to the downtown area of the city, with locals also questioning former mayor Denis Coderre's decision to invest a significant amount of taxpayer money into staging the event.

Montreal initially signed a three-year contract to host Formula E with an option to extend by a further three years, but Plante made clear in her victorious mayoral campaign that she would look to relocate the race to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve if the series were to remain in the city.

With the Formula 1 track set to begin a significant redevelopment after the 2018 Canadian Grand Prix, no switch is possible, prompting Plante to announce on Monday she had pulled the plug on the race.

"Montrealers have made it clear that we can't waste their money on poorly planned projects that don't serve them," Plante is quoted as saying by CBC.

"It was clear as of last May that the organization was headed straight for a financial fiasco."

As per the report from CBC , 'Montreal it's electric', the non-profit organization behind the race, still owes creditors $6.2 million CAD following last year's race, and is only expected to get further into the red with a second running of the race in 2018.

"We are very surprised and disappointed by the unilateral decision and announcement of the Mayor of Montreal," a spokesperson from Formula E told Crash.net.

"This is a clear case of a new mayor undoing what the previous mayor did. Whilst there is a contract in place, we will not make further comments at this point as this is now in the hands of our Canadian legal counsel.”

With Montreal's cancellation, the New York E-Prix on July 14-15 is now slated as the final round of a 12-race season that started in Hong Kong earlier this month.