Jaguar’s James Barclay Hails Riyadh Street Circuit as ‘Formidable’

Jaguar TCS Racing Team Principal James Barclay has hailed the Riyadh Street Circuit, this weekend’s host, as a “formidable” track, one that is a “real test for driver and car”.

This weekend’s Diriyah E-Prix will see rounds two and three of the 2022/23 ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, as Gen3 hits the Middle East for its first time this season. The opening round in Mexico City was a mixed one for Jaguar, with Sam Bird having retired early on due to a technical issue with his Jaguar I-TYPE 6. Mitch Evans, though, and both drivers at Jaguar’s customer team Envision Racing managed to score points, meaning that three Jaguar’s featured in the top ten.

Barclay sees this as a “positive sign”, with the hope now being that the team can “build” on their result at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. It won’t be easy, though, with this weekend likely to be the most challenging for the Gen3 cars, given how unforgiving the circuit is. A mistake by any of the drivers this weekend will result in their car hitting the barrier, with the luxury of run-offs not featuring for the vast majority of the circuit.

As daunting as the Diriyah E-Prix is, Barclay also labels it as being “memorable”, with it being the only night race on the calendar.

“We are looking forward to getting back out on track for two exciting night races in Diriyah this Friday and Saturday. This is a formidable street circuit, a real test for driver and car and made even more memorable as we race at night.

“The opening race in Mexico City has shown us just how competitive the new Gen3 era of Formula E is. With three Jaguars, including our customer Envision Racing, in the top ten we have seen some positive signs of the potential for the season ahead. We are aiming to build on this potential and will be doing all that we can to extract the best performance possible from our Jaguar I-TYPE 6.”  

“We go into the event expecting high track evolution” – Phil Charles

Jaguar Technical Manager Phil Charles also looked ahead to this weekend’s double header, with the first race taking place on Friday with the second on Saturday. Charles discussed the interesting nature of the circuit, which boasts twenty-one corners.

The first two sectors of the lap are incredibly twisty, with the drivers having absolutely no room for error, with a small misjudgement on corner entry or exit, resulting in a shunt with the barrier. The circuit does open up, though, in the last sector, which included a long straight with an incredibly heavy braking zone at Turn Eighteen. Turn Eighteen is arguably the best overtaking spot on the circuit, with the first two sectors being largely single-file areas.

Charles also pointed out the challenge of the “changing conditions”, with the race taking place during the night, whilst qualifying takes place at dusk.

“Diriyah is a brilliant circuit and one that we are familiar with as this will be our fifth-year racing in this historic location. The lap begins with a series of challenging twists and turns in the first two sectors of the lap. The last sector is characterised by longer straights with big braking events.

“Having a car that changes direction and can be positioned well in those flowing early corners is an advantage.  The drivers need to take account of lots of changing conditions as we move between day and night and we go into the event expecting high track evolution as the racing line cleans up. The team is ready to take on the challenges to deliver the best results possible around the street circuit.”

Credit: Simon Galloway courtesy of FIA Formula E