Maserati hasn’t formally entered open-wheel motorsport since it entered a single chassis in Formula One for a single race in 1969. That’s set to change in 2023, which is when Maserati will be entering Formula E, the electric, open-wheel championship. That also makes Maserati the first Italian brand to compete in the series.

Basically, the automaker is going to build a car for Season 9, which will coincide with the introduction of the Gen3 vehicles. These cars will be faster, lighter, and more powerful than the current generation — in a nutshell, they’ll be more applicable and useful to actual electric powertrain development in road cars, which has always been Kind Of The Point. After all, the last time Maserati competed in open-wheel racing, it was helping make similar technological strides.

“We are very proud to be back where we belong as protagonists in the world of racing,” Maserati CEO Davide Grasso said. “ We are powered by passion and innovative by nature. We have a long history of world-class excellence in competition and we are ready to drive performance in the future.” Grasso continued: “In the race for more performance, luxury, and innovation, Folgore is irresistible and it is the purest expression of Maserati. That’s why we decided to go back to racing in the FIA Formula E World Championship, meeting our customers in the city centers of the world, taking the Trident forward into the future.”

Maserati has been making strides in the electrification realm with its Folgore line, which will be the name given to the first fully-electric vehicles built by Maserati. Right now, the Maserati Grecale, GranTurismo, and GranCabrio will all be part of the Folgore line. You can also count the MC20 supercar up there as well.

There aren’t many more details at the moment, but we’ll likely see more come through as the upcoming season starts.