By Saleh Fareed

RIYADH — The Saudi Automobile & Motorcycle Federation (SAMF) held a joint press conference with Jaguar Land Rover, at the company’s showroom here, when they revealed the new drivers of the Saudi Racing Team participating in the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy Championship — Capt. Fahed Al-Kosaibi and Capt. Mashour Bin-Hojaila.

Prince Khaled Bin Sultan Al-Abdullah Al-Faisal, president of SAMF, and Eng. Anees Abduljaleel Jamjoum, CEO of Mohamed Yousuf Naghi Motors (MYNM), the authorized dealer of Jaguar Land Rover in KSA and the main sponsor of the Saudi Racing Team, attended the event.

The SAMF previewed the Saudi Racing Team’s program for the upcoming season of the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy Championship (10 rounds held at 8 different cities around the world), which consists exclusively of electric Jaguar cars and is held as a support racing series for the ABB FIA Formula E Championship.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will host the two inaugural rounds of the latter championship at the historic surrounds of Diriyah here, with the support of the General Sports Authority (GSA) and MYNM Company.

Prince Khaled praised the notable positive results the team achieved in its first participation, which “has encouraged us to continue supporting it in the second season. However, this time we decided to choose new promising talents behind the wheel, namely Capt. Fahed, a talented and experienced driver who achieved good results in previous participations and won several races, and Capt. Mashour, who is renowned as a rising racing talent teeming with great and promising potential to become a future champion.”

He added, “The most important goal of the team is to reveal the true extent of Saudi talent and potential in the championship, while promoting the Kingdom’s status on the international stage.”

For his part, Jamjoum said, “The results achieved by the Saudi Racing Team during its first participation in the international Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy championship encouraged us to renew our support for them alongside the General Sports Authority, in the hope of nourishing a new and ambitious generation of youths who can promote the Kingdom’s status on the international sports stage in this distinctive championship.”

Jamjoum added, “We are very pleased to be the main sponsor of the Saudi Racing Team under the supervision of the SAMF. We believe this step is a continuation of our programs aimed at supporting the society as a whole, especially the youthful Saudi generation, in accordance with Saudi Vision 2030.”

Additionally, Capt. Fahed expressed his pleasure at being chosen as a driver for the Saudi Racing Team. He stressed his readiness to work tirelessly to demonstrate his racing aptitude and the team’s competitive capability, while building upon the positive results achieved by the team in Season One and promoting the Kingdom’s status on the international stage.

For his part, Capt. Mashour thanked the GSA and the SAMP for providing him with this valuable opportunity. Additionally, he stated, that the Kingdom’s participation in the Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy would launch his career globally, expand his experience and promote his race craft.

During the launch event, Jaguar revealed its new four-wheel-drive I-Pace racecar for the 2019/20 season. It is powered by electric motors producing 400 hp and 700 Nm of torque, and equipped with a sports suspension and brakes along with all the safety features mandated by the FIA.