ABU DHABI: Yas Marina Circuit is set to host the largest ever Asian Le Mans grid as part of an international festival of motorsport in the February edition of the Yas Racing Series, with 48 cars vying to qualify for the prestigious grid at this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.
After the Asian Le Mans series for 2023 kicked off in Dubai, the action heads to Abu Dhabi for the final two races to determine which teams will compete at Le Mans in the 100th edition of the illustrious endurance race.
In a season that has seen races across Dubai and Kuwait so far, the Formula 4 UAE Championship is also set to conclude its 2023 calendar with the final rounds of action taking place this weekend at the Yas Island track.
Heading into the final race weekend, the Mumbai Falcons’ duo of James Wharton and Tuukka Taponen are separated by just six points with only three races remaining. The pair are closely followed by Ugo Ugochukwu of Prema Racing, whose four race victories have him closing in on the title.
The debut F4 UAE season for Yas Heat Racing Academy, the official circuit racing team of Yas Marina Circuit, will wrap up at home following a successful opening campaign, with the team gunning for back-to-back podiums following Keanu Al-Azhari’s second place for the side in Dubai last weekend.
The weekend sees the final round of the new Formula Regional Middle East Championship, with the title set to be decided in the final three races at Yas Marina Circuit this weekend.
Following a successful season in the 2022 Formula 4 UAE championship, including five podiums in just eight races, Andrea Kimi Antonelli of Mumbai Falcons Racing is aiming to become the inaugural FRMEC champion in his rookie F3 season. The young Italian driver returns to Abu Dhabi atop the leaderboard going into the final races with a 34-point lead over Taylor Barnard of PHM Racing.
This year’s Yas Racing Series will continue with the fourth and final round in March, featuring local favorite championships including UAE ProCar, Gulf Radical Cup, and UAE Time Attack, and a range of high-powered sports cars speeding round the Yas Marina Circuit track, home to the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.