Saudi Arabia is betting very strongly on the motor world. They host the Dakar, they have a Grand Prix in Formula 1 and Formula E, they will have an appointment in the World Rally Championship and have signed an agreement to have a race in MotoGP. And now, the saudis are working on creating a new city for formula 1 teams to move there.
The investment of the Middle Eastern country in the ‘Great Circus’ is capital. The official sponsor of the competition is the oil company Aramco, they have shares in both McLaren and Aston Martin and they want to have them in Liberty Media, owner of Formula 1. And now, they are working on the creation of Neom.
neom It is the futuristic city that the Saudis have planned to build for the teams to move to Arabia. The idea is to set up a ‘technological pool’ in that area taking Great Britain as a reference, which is currently the headquarters of seven of the ten Formula 1 teams.
This project is planned for 15-20 years and has the support of the royal family. Prince Khalid Bin Sultan Al Faisalpresident of the Saudi motorsport and motorcycling federation, explained the idea in an interview in ‘Motor Sport Magazine’: “We want to create a technology center. We have big companies that can help the future of motor sport. Hopefully we can bring one of the big manufacturers. This is what we expect and what we are working for.”
“With all the investment we’re making in cars, we’re going in that direction. Hopefully, we’ll be able to open up and take the headquarters to Saudi Arabia or hire people who can help us make cars or technology to create our own brands“, he added.
The second goal: have Saudi engineers and pilots
As Khalid Bin Sultan Al Faisal reaffirms, Neom is only one part of the project: “We have a 20-year program that will be launched at the end of 2023 or beginning of 2024. Our goal is not just to organize events, we want to get more involved. We want to have engineers , mechanics, build cars and be creative”.
“We want to have a champion, a driver who can compete for the Formula 1 and MotoGP World Championships.. We are investing heavily in the construction of tracks and infrastructure in Saudi Arabia. We want to build academies to have Saudi teams with Saudi drivers. There is still a long way to go, but we hope that by 2030, 2035 or 2040 we can achieve our goals,” he concluded.
