Tickets on sale for Diriyah E-Prix double-header in the dark

Tickets on sale for Diriyah E-Prix double-header in the dark
Formula E, motorsports most competitive championship, returns to the streets of Diritah on Friday, Jan 26. (Supplied)
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Updated 25 January 2024
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Tickets on sale for Diriyah E-Prix double-header in the dark

Tickets on sale for Diriyah E-Prix double-header in the dark
  • Formula E returns to the streets later this month
  • Spectacular night races to feature exhilarating battles and world’s best drivers

DIRIYAH, SAUDI ARABIA: Formula E has announced that tickets are still available for the 2024 Diriyah E-Prix, the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship mainstay that returns with back-to-back evening races on Jan. 26-27.

The e-prix once again welcomes the world’s best drivers for rounds two and three of the championship.

The Diriyah E-Prix is a major fixture in the international Formula E and motorsport calendars. Having garnered increased attention, influence, and popularity, the event has become a powerful driving force for positive change, supporting the Saudi Ministry of Sport’s ambitions to grow sport at every level in the Kingdom.

With more people following and participating in motorsport than ever before in Saudi Arabia, the event is destined to present electrified entertainment for all while showcasing the population’s ever-increasing demand for all things motorsports.  




Besides on-track thrills and an unforgettable race experience, the Diriyah E-Prix offers a sensational mix of sport, music, and entertainment. (Supplied)

Carlo Boutagy, founder and CEO of the event’s promoter CBX, said: “We’re thrilled that the Diriyah E-Prix is returning for a sixth successive year and we can’t wait for the action to get underway.

“The year-long wait for world-class motorsport on the streets of Diriyah is almost over and this time around we can promise that the 2024 Diriyah E-Prix will be the biggest and best yet.

“Recent years have really shown the ever-growing appetite for motorsports and Formula E here in Saudi. With each edition comes more on-track excitement, more entertainment around the venue, and higher attendances featuring fans new and old. This makes for another incredible event in a few weeks’ time and everyone should purchase tickets before they sell out.”

Live from the Diriyah Street Circuit, visitors can expect exciting racing and exhilarating battles in the double-header in the dark. While illuminating the historic desert surroundings of the UNESCO World Heritage Site at At-Turaif, the event will provide the ultimate all-electric racing spectacle under the lights in Diriyah.

Besides on-track thrills and an unforgettable race experience, the Diriyah E-Prix offers a sensational mix of sport, music, and entertainment with Grammy-nominated American boy band Backstreet Boys headlining a lineup of artists including Egyptian rock band Cairokee, Dutch DJ Afrojack, American pop rock band OneRepublic, Nancy Ajram, and Swedish DJ and music producer Alesso.

Fans can obtain their seats through the FIA Formula E website where grandstand and general admission tickets are available from SR100.

Ahead of the races, which start at 8 p.m. on both days, ticket holders can enjoy a full day of entertainment for the whole family in the Allianz Fan Village, with racing simulators in the gaming arena, plus live music performances, street food, and much more.

The Diriyah E-Prix races are part of Saudi Arabia’s investment in sport, which aims to inspire people to enjoy active and healthy lives as part of the country’s Vision 2030 cultural transformation.

From its investments in grassroots infrastructure through to hosting international events — including motorsport, football, tennis, and boxing — the Ministry of Sport has helped inspire a 48 percent increase in weekly sports participation among the local population. The number of Saudi-based sports federations is also up from 32 in 2015 to 97.


Jeddah set to host closing round of Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe

Jeddah set to host closing round of Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe
Updated 16 September 2024
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Jeddah set to host closing round of Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe

Jeddah set to host closing round of Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe
  • The global benchmark for GT3 racing is scheduled for Nov. 29-30

Jeddah: The Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS is set to stage the final round of the 2024 campaign at the world’s fastest street circuit, the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.

The global benchmark for GT3 racing is scheduled for Nov. 29-30.

The new addition to the Saudi Motorsport Company 2024 calendar will feature participants competing in the GT World Challenge Europe in a thrilling 1,000 km contest. Simultaneously, participants in the GT4 European Series will also engage in their customary format, with two one-hour races on the same circuit.

The event is set to launch a new long-term partnership between Saudi Arabia and SRO Motorsports Group, which will likely expand over the coming seasons.

Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al Abdullah Al-Faisal, chairman of the Saudi Motorsport Company and the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, said: “The arrival of two more exhilarating world-class racing series in Saudi Arabia from 2024 confirms the scale of the Kingdom’s transformation into the new hotbed of motorsport in the region. In doing so, we continue to accelerate the pace of progress we see through hosting these major events. We look forward to working with SRO Motorsports and continuing to provide more opportunities to enrich the lives of all our residents.”

The Saudi Motorsport Company on Monday officially launched ticket sales for the Jeddah GT Race 2024, set to take place in Jeddah.

The Jeddah GT Race 2024 has a variety of ticket options, including GT general admission, general child admission, and VIP tickets, available as single-day or two-day passes. Early-bird tickets offer discounts for a limited time.


Al-Mansoori grabs pole position as powerboat title race takes twist in Portugal

Al-Mansoori grabs pole position as powerboat title race takes twist in Portugal
Updated 15 September 2024
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Al-Mansoori grabs pole position as powerboat title race takes twist in Portugal

Al-Mansoori grabs pole position as powerboat title race takes twist in Portugal
  • Team Abu Dhabi star grabs the honors as world champion Al-Qemzi finds the going tougher

Peso da Regua, Portugal: Team Abu Dhabi’s Mansoor Al-Mansoori upstaged teammate and hot favorite Rashed Al-Qemzi to secure pole position in Sunday’s Grand Prix of Portugal, the penultimate round of the UIM F2 World Championship.

After four-time champion Al-Qemzi surprisingly missed out on a place in the six-boat qualifying shootout, Al-Mansoori underlined his growing championship challenge with a superb performance to take the honors in Peso da Regua.

There was late qualifying drama when Sweden’s Mathilda Wiberg, who trails Al-Qemzi by eight points in the F2 title race, crashed spectacularly, leaving her mechanics with a big repair job to carry out before she starts in fifth place tomorrow.

Lithuania’s Edgaras Riabko, who qualified in third position, is just one point further away in what now promises to be an exhilarating climax to the season in Portugal over the next eight days.

This has been one of the most closely contested seasons in the championship’s 30-year history, and the intensity was evident even in today’s official practice session for the 16 starters.

Wiberg edged out Al-Qemzi by five-thousandths of a second, with Al-Mansoori another fraction away in third and less than a second separating the top seven.

That set the stage for a fascinating qualifying session that saw Q1 and Q2 being combined into a single 40-minute battle to qualify for the six-boat Q3 shootout.

While Al-Mansoori was fastest just past the halfway point, Al-Qemzi was down in eighth spot and went into the pits to allow the Team Abu Dhabi mechanics to fit a new propeller.

Almost immediately, Riabko squeezed his way to the top of the standings, only for Palfreyman to quickly take the initiative before Al-Mansoori set another fastest time as the drama continued.

It was not to be this time for Al-Qemzi, who was unable to improve and will start in eighth place tomorrow, with the world championship hanging in the balance.

Leading championship standings

1 1 Rashed Al-Qemzi UAE 52pts

2 7 Mathilda Wiberg SWE 44

3 41 Edgaras Riabko LTU 43

4 36 Mansoor Al-Mansoori UAE 31

5 14 Matthew Palfreyman GBR 29

6 33 Nelson Morin FRA 24

7 45 Duarte Benavente POR 16

8 74 Giacomo Sacchi MON 12

9 91 David del Pin ITA 12

10 9 Mette Bjerknæs GBR 11


Ferrari’s Charle Leclerc claims fourth straight pole in Baku

Ferrari’s Charle Leclerc claims fourth straight pole in Baku
Updated 14 September 2024
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Ferrari’s Charle Leclerc claims fourth straight pole in Baku

Ferrari’s Charle Leclerc claims fourth straight pole in Baku
  • Title challenger Lando Norris of McLaren qualified only 17th
  • Max Verstappen was sixth in the second Red Bull as his recent struggles continued

BAKU: Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc secured pole for the fourth consecutive year at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Saturday ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.
As title challenger Lando Norris of McLaren qualified only 17th, the Monegasque driver, who won the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in his last outing, continued his supreme single lap form to wind up three-tenths of a second ahead of Piastri.
It was the 26th pole of his career at a track where he has yet to win.
Carlos Sainz was third in the second Ferrari and Sergio Perez fourth for Red Bull ahead of Mercedes’ George Russell.
Three-time world champion and series leader Max Verstappen was sixth in the second Red Bull as his recent struggles continued.
Verstappen leads Norris by 62 points in the title race with eight races of the season remaining.
Seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton was seventh for Mercedes ahead of two-time champion Fernando Alonso of Aston Martin, Argentine new boy Franco Colapinto of Williams and his team-mate Alex Albon.
“It’s one of my favorite tracks of the season,” said Leclerc.
“It hasn’t been an easy weekend for me with the crash in first practice and then a problem in second practice with a new part.
“I wasnt worried, but the pace was already there and in my last lap I went for it a bit more. It is amazing to be on pole again!“
The session began in slanting sunshine across the old city by the Caspian Sea, the Mercedes duo quick to enter the fray on medium tires for two exploratory laps of the slippery street track.
As the conditions improved, Leclerc produced a lap in 1:42.775 to go top while Mercedes switched to softs, Russell swiftly jumping to second and Hamilton to fourth.
But in a final scrabble for places, as Piastri went third behind Leclerc and Albon, Norris pitted and missed the cut, eliminated in 17th place ahead of only the Saubers and Alpine’s Esteban Ocon. RB’s Daniel Ricciardo was also out.
It was Norris’s first Q1 elimination since the Las Vegas race last year (2023).
“The lap was good enough, but it was a yellow flag so I had to back off,” said Norris.
Q2 saw Verstappen on top ahead of Leclerc with Perez and Sainz third and fourth.
After a final flurry, Alonso rose to fifth and Colapinto to sixth while Albon hung on to 10th to push Bearman out in 11th along with RB’s Yuki Tsunoda, Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, Nico Hulkenberg of Haas and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll.
The top-ten shootout began with Leclerc, in 1:46.610, on top ahead of Sainz after an early lap by Russell.
As the final laps began, Albon left the pits with an airbox fan still attached to his Williams car. He pulled it off and threw it to a marshal.
This bizarre incident did not distract Ferrari or Leclerc, however, as he reeled off 1:43.365 to grab his fourth consecutive Baku pole.


Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint

Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint
Updated 07 September 2024
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Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint

Martin roars to victory in San Marino sprint
  • Martin has not won a GP since May but his consistency has helped him accumulate a decent advantage

MISANO ADRIATICO: Jorge Martin claimed a statement victory in Saturday’s sprint race at the San Marino and Rimini Riviera MotoGP, extending his overall lead over reigning champion Francesco Bagnaia with a stunning performance.

Pramac rider Martin is 26 points in front of pole-sitter Bagnaia ahead of the main event Grand Prix on Sunday after charging to an unexpected second sprint win of the season.

The Spaniard, who won at Misano Adriatico last year, started in fourth on the grid but got away like lightning and was ahead of Bagnaia by the first turn.

He comfortably held off Ducati’s Bagnaia for the rest of the 13-lap sprint and crossed the finish line 1.495 seconds in front of his Italian rival, improving his position at the top of the standings.

“Today I expected maybe to be fighting with Pecco (Bagnaia) but I didn’t expect to do that start,” said Martin.

“I even had a gap to keep for the last two laps so super happy. For tomorrow it’s another story but I feel confident that we are in a good way, super good and super fast.”

Martin has not won a GP since the French back in May but his consistency has helped him accumulate a decent advantage as he searches for his first MotoGP title. The 27-year-old had finished second in both the sprint and GP at four of the previous five events and his display on Saturday means he cannot be overtaken in the standings this weekend by Bagnaia, regardless of what happens in Sunday’s race.

It was a big blow for Bagnaia, who was favorite to cut the gap separating him from Martin after claiming pole position with a record-breaking fastest lap at the “Marco Simoncelli” circuit earlier on Saturday.

Two-time champion Bagnaia is riding with injuries to his shoulder, neck and collarbone after crashing out of last weekend’s Aragon MotoGP but looked in great form before Martin left him for dust.

“I’m absolutely not happy ... The start was a disaster, I lost first position and from that moment it was very difficult,” said Bagnaia.

“In any case, second position after what happened last week is OK. We will work to improve the start because it was a disaster and try to be in a better shape tomorrow.”

Bagnaia is at least helped by this weekend being the first of two in a row at the Misano, as the same circuit is being used later in September for the Emilia Romagna GP which replaces the canceled race in Kazakhstan.

Marc Marquez, a double winner at Alcaniz last weekend, had a harder time in Italy and lost ground on Martin, dropping to 77 points off the summit in third after finishing the sprint in sixth place.

Six-time champion Marquez battled up the rankings from his starting position of ninth on the grid, but has been caught on 234 points by Enea Bastianini.


Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc wins Italian Grand Prix as Max Verstappen falters again

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc wins Italian Grand Prix as Max Verstappen falters again
Updated 01 September 2024
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Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc wins Italian Grand Prix as Max Verstappen falters again

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc wins Italian Grand Prix as Max Verstappen falters again
  • Huge roars engulfed the stands as Leclerc took the chequered flag for his second win over the season
  • Verstappen finished nearly 38 seconds off the pace in sixth

MONZA, Italy: Charles Leclerc won the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday to delight Ferrari’s massed ranks of fans as Lando Norris again chipped away at struggling champion Max Verstappen’s lead in the Formula One drivers’ standings.
Monegasque Leclerc claimed victory at Monza for the second time after winning in 2019, holding off McLaren pair Oscar Piastri and Norris in a thrilling race in which Verstappen finished nearly 38 seconds off the pace in sixth.
Huge roars engulfed the stands as Leclerc took the chequered flag for his second win over the season, after his own home Monaco GP, after holding out on a set of hard tires he had changed during his one and only pit stop on the 16th lap.
“I thought that the first time would feel like this and the second time wouldn’t feel as special,” said Leclerc as he basked in the cheers of fans who made the track a joyous, noisy sea of red after the race.
“But my god the emotions in the last few laps; Monaco and Monza are the two races I want to win every year and I’ve managed to win them this year. It is so, so special.”
All of Leclerc’s major rivals, apart from teammate Carlos Sainz who ended up finishing fourth ahead of his Ferrari replacement Lewis Hamilton, pitted twice and McLaren were hoping that the Ferrari pair would do the same.
Instead Leclerc managed to keep his tires in good enough condition to stay ahead and in the end finish the race comfortably in front of Piastri, who had taken the race lead early on after an overtake maneuver on Norris which was as daring as it was tactically questionable.
“Not going to lie it hurts a lot. I did a lot of things right today,” said Australian Piastri.
“Happy with the race, the pace I achieved but when you finish second it hurts.”
Briton Norris — who clocked the fastest lap right at the end — will be disappointed by his finish after starting on pole but he managed to chop Verstappen’s championship lead to 62 points with eight races remaining as his Dutch rival’s barren run continued.
“We considered (pitting once) the whole race but it was impossible with our graining. Just disappointed. Ferrari did a better job, so hats off to them,” said Norris.
Verstappen has now failed to win any of the last six GPs after claiming the honors in seven of the first 10, and his and Red Bull’s dominance of F1 looks increasingly in question.
A fourth straight world title looked a near certainty when Verstappen won in Spain back in June, but since then he has only finished on the podium twice.
And his teammate Sergio Perez finishing in eighth meant that McLaren are now only eight points behind Red Bull in the constructor’s standings and look favorites to win it for the first time since 1998.
Argentine rookie Franco Colapinto, who replaced axed Logan Sargeant for Williams following his disastrous showing at the Dutch Grand Prix last weekend, finish in 12th in his F1 debut.
Earlier Leonardo Fornaroli became the first Italian to win the F3 title, the 19-year-old doing so without winning a single race in this year’s championship.
Trident driver Fornaroli overtook Australian Christian Mansell on the final corner of the 10-race season to grab third place and snatch the title from Gabriele Mini by two points.
Gabriel Bortoleto won the F2 race in dramatic fashion after starting last on the grid, cutting Isack Hadjar’s lead at the top of the stands to just 10.5 points with three races remaining in the season.