Saudi Arabian Grand Prix: track and statistics

The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix debuted at the end of the 2021 season, becoming the fourth event on the calendar in the Middle East. Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar will be joined on the Jeddah circuit, in keeping with the ambitions of the largest country on the Arabian Peninsula.

Initially, a project for the route was presented in the grandiose city park of Qiddiya, 45 kilometers from Riyadh, but work there had only just begun and they wanted to hold the race earlier.

To do this, they decided to build a temporary city circuit in Jeddah, and later move the stage to Qiddiya when everything is ready there. In 2020, the national oil company Saudi Aramco became a global partner of Formula 1, and in the autumn, when the situation with the pandemic returned to normal, a ten-year contract was immediately signed to organize the event.

Jeddah is the second largest city in the kingdom after Riyadh, the economic capital, the main port on the Red Sea, on the coast of which there is a holiday resort of the Corniche, where the architectural firm of Hermann Tilke was commissioned to build in just one years to design and construct a wide, modern and fast highway on the dike.

Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al FaisalChairman of the Saudi Arabian Automobile Federation: “Given the time we have, we realized it was best to contact Tilke directly.

We didn’t want this to just be a race. I wanted to create something special, unlike anything else, to make our stage the best. We don’t want a boring race without overtaking; we want the spectators to have fun, and this is exactly why we are holding the Formula 1 round.”

The deadlines were urgent. Construction started in April 2021 and the first Grand Prix was scheduled for December. Work continued around the clock, with crews constantly changing – in fifty-degree heat, local laws limit time spent in direct sunlight.

3,000 contractors from 50 countries took part in the work. 37,000 tons of asphalt, 600,000 tons of cement, 30,000 square meters of brick and 1,400 tons of glass were laid. There are seven grandstands around the circuit and it is fully lit to allow racing in the dark.

Characteristics of the trajectory

Tilke’s agency was given the difficult task of creating the best circuit in the Middle East: fast, with overtaking opportunities, challenging for the drivers and unlike other desert circuits: Yas Marina, Sakhir and Losail. The configuration was designed by Karsten Tilke, son of Hermann. More than 600 light poles have been installed for artificial lighting.

The Jeddah Corniche Circuit is the longest city circuit on the calendar. With a lap length of 6175 meters, it is only in second place after Spa this season. During the design, we tried to avoid the 90-degree turns typical of city highways, integrating three DRS zones with the ability to jockey for position in the most scenic spots. It is one of four circuits on the calendar this season, along with Bahrain, Spielberg and Mexico City, with three DRS zones.

The configuration includes a record 27 corners surrounded by barriers, which will deliver a truly exciting race with an average speed of 252 km/h – higher than Silverstone. One of the most spectacular and most difficult turns is the profiled 13th with a slope of 12 degrees, the estimated speed in it is up to 322 km/h.

Jeddah is a circuit with powerful engines. With the accelerator pedal fully depressed, the drivers complete 79% of the lap. The slowest bend is the second, which is taken at a speed of approximately 90 km/h.

The route over the dike has typical problems for such a location: sand on the asphalt and changes in the wind direction day and night. The cars will be set up for a low level of downforce, it is important to minimize air resistance. There is a good chance that a safety car will be deployed.

Weekend schedule

You can follow the progress of all Formula 1 sessions on our live broadcast page.

Tire kits issued to teams for the weekend

Pirelli traditionally chose the “middle” three compositions for Jeddah – C2, C3 and C4.

One set of the softest tires must be saved for the final qualifying – then those who raced in the final must return this set to Pirelli.

One set of medium and hard tires must be kept for the race. Unless declared wet, drivers are required to use at least one of these sets.

Fernando Alonso: “In Jeddah there is always a high load on the tires, which will increase the interest in the race – the level of degradation will be different for different cars, which will increase the speed difference. Combined with the fact that it is now easier to chase opponents, this will lead to exciting battles.”

Performance of current riders in Saudi Arabia

Lando Norris: “I’m happy to be back on the track in Jeddah, it’s great and very fast for a city circuit. We prepare ourselves with fighting spirit for the coming weekend. The stage in Bahrain was difficult, but the team continues to progress; We will apply everything we learned two weeks ago and try to perform as best as possible.

I trust the team, all its specialists working both at the track and at the base in Woking, because I know they are working around the clock so that we can better carry out our tasks in Saudi Arabia.

We know we can do this, so in Jeddah we will have to give everything.”