Lotus Evija Fittipaldi, an exclusive limited edition paying tribute to the brand's history

New generations see Lotus as a sports car brand, or rather, we should say these days a hypercar brand, because as you well know, the English marque based in Hethel changed the course of its history towards new forms of mobility with the Evija, a spectacular electric car that currently stands as one of the most powerful production vehicles you can find in the world.

But new generations may not know that a few years ago Lotus was also a renowned name on the racing circuits, specifically in Formula 1, with single-seaters that marked an era and were etched into the history of the competition. One of these models was the Lotus Type 72 with the great Emerson Fittipaldi at the wheel, which took five wins out of eleven possible in the 1972 season, enough to secure both the drivers’ championship and the constructors’ championship.

Fifty years after this great feat, Lotus has decided to pay tribute to its distinguished single-seater and its illustrious driver with an exclusive limited edition based on its current hypercar, resulting in the Evija Fittipaldi, limited to just eight units, all of which have already been sold and which will begin to be delivered in early 2023. In addition, this beauty has been tested by another Formula 1 great, Jenson Button, who was pleasantly impressed by the Evija’s characteristics, and who has also been able to get behind the wheel of the legendary Type 72 that Fittipaldi drove.

The Lotus Type 72 carried one of the most recognisable liveries of the Lotus team, that of John Player Special, so the bodywork of the Evija Fittipaldi features black paint adorned with gold detail lines, all applied entirely by hand and combined with a selection of parts made from carbon fibre. We must not forget the wheels, unique to this edition, with a red centre-lock nut on the left-hand side and a green one on the right-hand side; all of it complemented by details such as the Union Jack on the front wheel arches, the number 8 that Fittipaldi carried on the “B” pillars, and graphics on the wing that recall those five victories in 1972.

Inside the Lotus Evija Fittipaldi we find the same formula for the chosen tones, with black as the main protagonist accompanied by gold elements such as the air vent surrounds, the pedals and even the seat inserts and their stitching. To finish off the interior and make it even more special, we find Emerson Fittipaldi’s signature embroidered in gold and, in addition, on the centre console there is a rotary dial made from recycled aluminium from the Type 72.

In mechanical terms, the Lotus Evija Fittipaldi holds no surprises, although to be honest it doesn’t need any, because under its skin we find four electric motors delivering a spectacular 2,039 CV together with a brutal torque of 1,704 Nm, figures that allow it to reach 100 km/h in under three seconds and a top speed of 350 km/h.