‘You know you’re serious about F1 when you bid $20 billion… and still get told to join the queue.’
Saudi Arabia’s not just dipping a toe in Formula 1 anymore — it’s cannonballing straight into the deep end.
A rejected $20bn takeover bid? Tick.
Aramco slapped all over Aston Martin. Naturally.
Now, whispers of a Saudi-owned F1 team are revving louder than a cold-started V10.
Add a new circuit in the desert, and you’ve got the making of a motorsport mirage… that’s entirely real.
Saudi Arabia’s F1 Grand Plan
2020 – Aramco signs on as a global F1 partner. That’s oil money literally fuelling the circus.
2021 onwards – Jeddah Corniche Circuit joins the calendar — a high-speed showcase of Saudi Arabia’s modern ambitions.
With sweeping coastal views, sculpted palm-lined straights, and enough floodlighting to rival a football final.
2023 – PIF reportedly offers $20 billion to buy F1 from Liberty Media.
Their approach was met with a polite refusal, but it’s fair to say Liberty Media may have underestimated the scale of the chequebook they were being handed.
Meanwhile – Saudi’s fingers slip deeper into the pie: 20.5% of Aston Martin Lagonda? Check.
Principal partnerships via Aramco and Ma’aden? Double-check.
Late 2024 – Prince Khalid says out loud what the rest of us were thinking: ‘We want a team.’ Alpine is rumoured, Renault denies, and the Monaco paddock chatters.
2027 (Target) – Qiddiya Speed Park opens—a futuristic, purpose-built desert temple to speed.
Next? – Team Saudi? Prince Khalid says, ‘it could happen soon.’
He’s not wrong.
‘If Formula 1 were a Monopoly board, Saudi Arabia’s already got Mayfair, Park Lane, and half the utilities.’
