Historic Autonomous Racing Grand Final Lights Up Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi, UAE – 17 November 2025:

The Yas Marina Circuit saw history made as six of the world's first fully autonomous racecars competed in the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Racing League (A2RL) Grand Final. This groundbreaking event showcased record-setting speeds and advanced AI decision-making, underlining the swift progress in autonomous racing technology.

The TUM team from Germany successfully defended their title, with UAE's TII Racing coming in second and Italy's PoliMOVE securing third place. A total of eleven international teams battled for a remarkable prize pool of $2.25 million, reflecting the worldwide enthusiasm for high-tech racing.

Right from the onset, TUM experienced fierce competition from the Unimore team, which overtook them at Turn 6 by the end of lap two. Over the next ten laps, these teams raced neck-and-neck at speeds over 250 km/h, maintaining less than a second apart even while weaving through slower competitors. A collision involving Unimore and Germany’s Constructor allowed TUM to reclaim the lead, ultimately securing their victory. Notably, Unimore was awarded the Fastest Lap for their outstanding performance.

The awards ceremony was graced by His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, and His Excellency Faisal Al Bannai, Adviser to the UAE President and Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council (ATRC).

H.E. Faisal Al Bannai, the force behind A2RL, remarked:
"A2RL is not merely a race; it's a global initiative accelerating autonomous technologies. This event underscores how innovation flourishes through collaboration on an international scale."

Reflecting on the competitive spirit, Prof. Markus Lienkamp, Team Principal at TUM, stated:
"We anticipated a fierce challenge with Unimore. Their performance during colder tire conditions was impressive, and despite hoping for longer direct confrontations, the night revealed the tremendous talent and progress made across all teams."

Marko Bertogna, Team Principal of Unimore Racing, added:
"Our performance was exceptional, and the overtaking maneuver highlighted our technical prowess. Even top human drivers would have struggled to avoid the collision, emphasizing the nature of high-stakes racing."

This season of A2RL showcased significant advancements in the realm of autonomous racing technology. Cars powered by AI are not only rivaling human lap times but occasionally surpassing them, shrinking time differences from minutes to mere fractions. The Grand Final marked a milestone as the largest autonomous racing event globally, featuring the elite teams: TUM, Unimore, Kinetiz (UAE), TII Racing, PoliMOVE, and Constructor.

During a thrilling “Man vs Machine” segment, former F1 driver Daniil Kvyat raced against the TUM autonomous vehicle, HAILEY. Starting with a 10-second advantage, Kvyat finished his best lap in 57.57 seconds, while HAILEY recorded a time of 59.15 seconds, closing the gap impressively. Kvyat shared:
"Witnessing AI approach human racing times so quickly is astonishing. Competing alongside HAILEY was exhilarating and showcases remarkable advancements in technology."

Stephane Timpano, CEO of ASPIRE, highlighted the broader implications of A2RL:
"This Grand Final illustrates how competition fuels innovation. Teams have escalated from stagnant tests to achieving human-comparable lap times in a mere 18 months, affecting developments beyond just racing realms."

In addition to the main event, A2RL organized a STEM Competition, engaging over 140 students from all seven Emirates. Winners included ‘UAE University’ for the University League and ‘SABIS - Ras Al Khaimah’ for the High Schools League, inspiring future specialists in AI and autonomous technology.

The Grand Final also celebrated the conclusion of the inaugural Abu Dhabi Autonomous Week (ADAW), a six-day event filled with innovation, summits, exhibitions, and global showcases of AI, including the Abu Dhabi Autonomous Summit, DRIFTx Exhibition, and RoboCup Asia-Pacific.

With over 8,000 spectators present, the A2RL Season 2 Grand Final received support from major sponsors such as SteerAI, du infra, AD Ports Group, AWS, Abu Dhabi Mobility, WIO Bank PHSC, ExxonMobil, Castore, among other technical and event collaborators.

With this event, A2RL strengthens Abu Dhabi’s position as a leader in autonomous innovation, uniting elite talent, state-of-the-art technology, and thrilling motorsport, paving the way for AI-driven mobility advancements.