Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, (17th March) – Today marks the day that the FORMULA 1 STC SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX returns to Jeddah, home of the world’s fastest street circuit, The Jeddah Corniche Circuit. The pinnacle of motorsport’s third visit to Saudi Arabia in less than 16 months is the second race on the 2023 FIA Formula 1 World Championship calendar with the battle for the championship still wide open.
Thousands of fans from Saudi Arabia and beyond will once again pack the Grandstands along the Red Sea Coast to cheer on their favourite drivers as they take on the thrilling Jeddah Corniche Circuit – the fastest and longest street circuit in the world.
Saudi Arabia is one of the newest venues on the Formula 1 calendar, having hosted its debut race in December 2021 and its second race just 4 months later in March 2022. Both editions proved to be two of the most exciting races in recent memory, providing some of the most iconic and breath-taking moments of on-track action of their respective seasons. This year’s edition promises to be another thrilling weekend of racing action that simply cannot be missed.
The impact of F1 on the Kingdom in less than 16 months has been remarkable. A study by Portas on the economic impact of the first two races found that SAR 3.433BN ($915.5M) in overall economic activity can be linked to the 2021 and 2022 F1 race weekends. Moreover, over 210 public and private entities came together to deliver Race 2 (up from 185 in Year 1) with 85% of vendors incorporated being from Saudi Arabia – a 27% increase on Year 1.
The success of F1 cannot just be felt in economic terms, however, as Saudi fans young and old have fallen in love with the worlds’ greatest racing series. Indeed, the 2022 race saw an 84.4% overall spectator satisfaction – up 14% from 2021 – with 65.2% of Saudi fans indicating they would follow the sport more closely going forward since their visit to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
Today’s line up of events on and off track is set to be incredibly busy and full of memorable experiences for fans:
On-track, drivers will take part in the first two Free Practice sessions, providing an opportunity to adjust to the challenges posed by the Jeddah track and to test out the cars on the narrow, high-speed sections of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit before the all-important Qualifying session tomorrow.
In addition to the F1 action, today will also see the hugely popular F1 feeder series, Formula 2, as well as the longest running and most successful championship in the region, the Porsche Sprint Cup Challenge Middle East, return to Jeddah after their successful outings here in the previous two races.
Outside of the circuit, F1 was already making its presence felt in Jeddah yesterday with legendary F1 driver, Johnny Herbert, visiting and talking to young students at The British International School of Jeddah. Similarly, MoneyGram Haas F1 Team brought its Senior Race and Performance Engineers, Gary Gannon, and Trevor Green-Smith to meet with a selection of STEM scholars at the American International School of Jeddah (AISJ). Further student-focused activity took place at-track as hundreds of students were taken on a guided pit lane walk where they were addressed by Johnny Herbert and former F1 driver Felipe Massa as well as members of the Pirelli, Red Bull, Haas & McLaren teams on what goes on in the heart of an F1 garage during a race session.
In the evening, all visiting media and teams were treated to an exclusive Welcome BBQ in the F1 Paddock by the Saudi Motorsport Company.
With so much to look forward to the FORMULA 1 STC SAUDI ARABIAN GRAND PRIX 2023 is set to be an incredible, fun-fuelled weekend that will provide fans with exciting memories and unforgettable moments both on and off-track.
Follow us on social:
- Twitter: @SaudiArabianGP
- Instagram: @saudiarabiangp
- Facebook: @saudiarabiangp
