‘Electric Renegade’ Ellis Spiezia was guest at our latest World eX Bizz Talk, held just ahead of Round 6 of the World eX Championship at Interlagos. The American racing talent, now based in Austin, Texas, shared insights into the current state and future of electric motorsport, as well as his ambitions and recent activities in racing and development.
Spiezia opened up about his journey over the past year, which took him from Germany to Texas, immersing himself in a mix of combustion and electric racing projects. After competing in the now-defunct Nitro Cross championship he wrapped up an exhilarating season at Road America and looked forward to new opportunities, including development work on a fully electric series slated to start in 2026.
His passion for electric racing clearly remains at the forefront of his career. “We’re still focused on it. It’s still been a huge part of my career. So, any of the opportunities that come up, whether it’s development, whether it’s racing, we’re all for it, and we’re still going,” Spiezia stated. He’s now channelling his efforts into projects aimed at expanding the presence of electric categories in the U.S. and highlighted that NASCAR is already making strides with its EV program.
Currently, Spiezia enjoys the motorsport community and favourable conditions in Texas – close to Circuit of the Americas and with more space and racing activity than his previous home in New York. He plans to stay for the foreseeable future, emphasizing he does not want to have to move all his stuff again.
Electric racing’s status in the U.S. faces significant challenges, especially after Nitro Cross folded. Ellis has been involved with some electric car development, testing for new cars to be launched in 2026. As for the FC1-X electric rallycross car, Spiezia explained that they’re currently mostly performing demos, both in the U.S. and Scandinavia, since only a handful of tracks support the cars’ speed and charging requirements. Until American rallycross revives, these vehicles will remain as showpieces.
On the future of electric racing, Spiezia acknowledges uncertainty but sees strong potential. “I’m sure something will come up at some point. It’s definitely not the end for rallycross in America,” he said, underlining a quiet optimism for the next era.
Beyond real-world racing, Spiezia continues his involvement in sim racing and looks forward to returning to the World eX grid once his setup is complete. “My real world racing calendar has kind of slowed down now. Once I get my sim set back up all the way, I’ll definitely jump back in,” he promised, expressing enthusiasm to reconnect with the unique World eX sim racing community.
