McLaren Racing CEO hails Diriyah E-Prix as ‘first class’

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown (right) with NEOM McLaren Formula E Team Principal Ian James (center). (Supplied)

• ‘I like when you land at an airport and as soon as you land you know there’s a race going on. It means the city and the country are fully behind the race’: Zak Brown
• The 2024 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race calendar consists of 16 races

RIRIYAH: Zak Brown, the CEO of McLaren Racing, has praised the Diriyah E-Prix as “first class” ahead of this weekend’s ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race.
The Californian, a professional racing driver before entering motorsport’s business and commercial worlds, is in Saudi Arabia supporting NEOM McLaren Formula E Team drivers Jake Hughes and Sam Bird at the Diriyah E-Prix.
Brown, 52, is relishing rounds two and three of the all-electric Formula E season in Diriyah on Friday and Saturday – where both races take place at night under the lights – and he lauded the Kingdom’s hosting of elite motorsports.
Describing the Diriyah E-Prix as “great” at a pre-race press conference, Brown said: “Everything out here is first class. It’s one of the drivers’ favorites.
“The facilities are great, and I always like when you land at an airport and as soon as you land you know that there’s a race going on. It means you know that the city and the country are fully behind the race.
“As soon as you land at the airport here, you’re seeing Formula E signs – and that’s a good, early indication of how much a territory is getting behind the races it is putting on.”
Brown noted that the Diriyah E-Prix, in its sixth edition this year after the inaugural outing in December 2018, was “very important” as part of Saudi Arabia’s wider ambitions of growing motorsport in the country.
“Just look at what Saudi Arabia has done through different races in different territories – there’s been lots of different fans exposed to different forms of motor racing.
“The race in Diriyah is really well attended, looks great under the lights and represents Saudi Arabia really well,” he added.
The 2024 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship race calendar consists of 16 races, with the opening race of the season having taken place in Mexico earlier this month.
Ian James, team principal of the NEOM McLaren Formula E Team, said: “We are absolutely committed to Formula E. It is very much going on an upward trajectory.
“If you look at the start of the season with the engagement figures we’ve got, that’s really going in the right direction. The calendar is looking strong both in terms of races we’ve had for some time now and some new venues as well. All of that is moving in the right direction.”