Jean-Éric Vergne (born 25 April 1990), also known as JEV, is a French racing driver who competes in the FIA Formula E Championship with the TECHEETAH Formula E team. He became the 2017-18 ABB Formula E Champion, after clinching fifth in the New York ePrix in 2018, and he became the first Formula E driver to win two consecutive championships after his repeat success in the 2018-19 season. He competed in Formula One for Scuderia Toro Rosso from 2012 to 2014, and was a Ferrari test and development driver from 2015 to 2016. He won the British Formula 3 Championship in 2010 and then finished runner up to teammate Robert Wickens in the 2011 Formula Renault 3.5 Series season.

Career

Karting

Born in Pontoise, France, Vergne started competing in karting at age 4 at his dad's kart circuit near Paris. He entered his first competition in 2000 and became French champion in the "kids" ("Minimes") category in 2001. Three years later, he became runner–up in the French Rotax Max championship. In 2005, he finished as runner-up in the ICA class of the European Championship, behind James Calado, with the highlight of his karting career coming the following year when he finished seventh in the premier KF1 World Championship, held at Angerville, another track near Paris. Formula Renault 1.6 and 2.0

In 2007, Vergne moved up to single-seater racing, joining the French Formula Renault Campus series which he won comfortably at the first attempt, taking ten podium places from thirteen races in the process. Vergne became a member of both the renowned Red Bull Junior Team and the French Automobile Sport Federation (FFSA), at the conclusion of the 2007 season.The following season, Vergne competed in both the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup championships for SG Formula.