Gérry Hughes has become the permanent team principal of NextEV NIO Formula E, the team has confirmed.
He was previously made acting team principal after the passing of Dr Martin Leach in November 2016, but will now fulfil the role on a full-time basis.
Hughes joined NextEV in December 2015 as the chief race engineer. Alongside his team boss position at the team, he will also take up a new role as the head of NIO’s performance programme.
Prior to joining NextEV, Hughes held a number of Formula 1 roles at teams such as Jordan, Jaguar, Super Aguri and Red Bull.
He then moved into Formula E with Team Aguri as its chief engineer and technical director before moving over to NextEV at the end of 2015.
His new roles with NextEV will also see him work on NIO’s supercar programme.
“Taking on the role of project lead for both the Formula E team and EP9 supercar programmes will include new challenges for me, but they are challenges that my team and I relish,” Hughes said on the news.
“I must thank everyone at NIO for their support and confidence in me during this transitional period.
“I am extremely honoured that William Li and Lihong Qin have given me this opportunity and I will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that both programmes are a success going forwards.”
