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02:25in our second race of Season 2,
02:27there's a lot of changes
02:29and everybody is really picking it up in a hurry.
02:31But I think we got such a good team
02:33that everybody is putting everything together perfectly
02:35and it's going quite well.
02:37We're gonna be ones to watch for sure.
02:39Unlike other racing championships,
02:41like Formula 1, E1 teams currently
02:43don't design their own boats or batteries.
02:45Rather, they all race in this same design,
02:47the race bird, inspired by birds
02:49in so-called glide mode when they fly
02:51really close above the surface of the water.
02:53And that position is the sweet spot
02:55that all teams are aiming for.
02:57They just all have their own thoughts and secrets
02:59on how best to achieve it.
03:01This foil is kind of what it's all about, isn't it?
03:05It is, yeah. It all centers around this.
03:07So, it essentially,
03:09if you imagine it like an airplane wing.
03:11So, although it's emerged in water,
03:13it's the same principle.
03:15As the boat gets faster, you have an area
03:17of low pressure and it lifts the boat water.
03:19So, the faster you go, the more will lift up
03:21and that's essentially how it works.
03:23The E1 isn't just about racing
03:25towards a sustainable future.
03:27It also champions gender equality
03:29for this generation and the next.
03:31I think the gender equality side
03:33is one of the biggest messages behind the championship.
03:35So, each team has one male and one female driver.
03:37That's become normal to me,
03:39but in other racing series, it's not normal.
03:41And I think what we learned is that giving drivers,
03:43whether you're a female or a male,
03:45the same access to the testing, to the engineers,
03:47to the seat time, you see that the talent
03:49levels itself out between the males
03:51and the females quite equally in a sport like this.
03:53The weekend is coming to a close
03:55and Team Alula didn't quite get the result
03:57it was hoping for, as Team Rafa
03:59delivered its first ever win.
04:01But with a packed race calendar
04:03scheduled throughout the year, there's no time
04:05to dwell, as they all push forward
04:07to be crowned E1's kings and queens of the waves.
04:14The E1 championship is the brainchild
04:16of CEO and co-founder Roddy Basso.
04:19I sat down with the Italian former
04:21aerospace and racing engineer
04:23to talk about his move away from
04:25traditional motorsport and his drive
04:27to launch a thrilling new racing sport
04:29that's both fast and friendly to the planet.
04:33Roddy, you worked on your thesis at NASA
04:38and then went on to spend decades
04:40at the pinnacle of motorsport, the Formula One.
04:43And now your new venture is the E1.
04:45Can you tell us, how did that idea
04:48of an electric powerboat racing championship come about?
04:51I worked two decades into the combination
04:54of high technology applied to sport.
04:58And I passionately believe in this combination
05:01because through the sport you can test new technologies,
05:04new solutions, which in few years
05:06can be applied on commercial products.
05:10And I have the strong feeling and the certainties
05:13that this can impact billions of people in the future.
05:18And I'm sure E1 with this exclusive license
05:21for 25 years for World Electric Powerboat Championship
05:25given by the UIM, the worldwide federation
05:29of powerboating has a great opportunity
05:32to accomplish this task.
05:34The races, the E1 races take place
05:36all around the world in iconic cities
05:39like Venice, Monaco, Miami.
05:42So how important are scenic backdrops
05:45like the Pearl here in Doha
05:47to the championship success?
05:49We don't want to be perceived like the one
05:52going only in nice places like for a touristic reason.
05:55So we are in Monaco and Monaco is the capital of yachting,
06:00very interested in the future.
06:02We come in Doha where the yachting
06:05I know that is coming very strongly
06:07and there is a strategic vision
06:10to make Qatar the place to be
06:13and the port to be.
06:15We need to be where there is interest in the future
06:17of water mobility, connection to the water.
06:20All the E1 teams are owned by celebrities
06:23in the sporting or entertainment world.
06:25So what does it mean this backing
06:27from these famous people or celebrities?
06:30What does it mean for the sport in terms of popularity and growth?
06:33They are people that jumped on board
06:36to the project because they love the purpose,
06:41the impact that they can provide through it.
06:43And you know that we have launched this year
06:45the Blue Impact Championship.
06:46So they need to contribute to the ESG awareness
06:49and solution through their teams
06:51and they will be put in competition
06:53and they also are on board
06:55because they reckon this is a great business.
06:58And today I can tell you that
07:00the team license is the value
07:03is five times the initial value
07:06in the beginning of last year.
07:08From making waves in the water
07:14to revving up gears on the track,
07:16the FIA World Endurance Championship
07:18is back in Qatar for the second year in a row,
07:20opening its 13th season,
07:22a fitting start for what looks to be
07:24the most competitive year to date.
07:26While most people are more familiar
07:28with the Formula One format,
07:30the Endurance Series is a different beast altogether.
07:33And I'm here at the Lusail International Circuit
07:36to find out more.
07:40If Formula One is the 100 metre dash in athletics,
07:43the World Endurance Championship
07:45is a full marathon.
07:47Two classes of race cars,
07:4936 entries on the grid,
07:51108 drivers,
07:53and races that vary in duration
07:55from six hours to a whopping 24 hours.
07:59Drivers compete in either the LMGT3 class,
08:03which works more or less like a road car,
08:06or the hyper car,
08:07known for its sleek aerodynamic build.
08:10The Qatar Curtain Racer is 335 laps
08:13and 10 hours of non-stop racing action.
08:17The teams have seven other races to compete in
08:20with the climax undoubtedly being 24 hours
08:23at Le Mans in France,
08:24the longest race in the calendar.
08:26And that's why the World Endurance Championship
08:28is not only a test of innovation and engineering brilliance,
08:31it's also the embodiment of team spirit,
08:34determination and strategy in motorsport.
08:37Someone who has won four times at Lusail Circuit,
08:41but in a different vehicle,
08:43is nine-time MotoGP World Champion Valentino Rossi.
08:47He switched from two wheels to four in 2022 with Team WRT
08:51and has quickly adjusted to an entirely new format of racing.
08:56The braking and the line are similar,
08:59but with the motorcycle,
09:01the limit is more physical
09:02because you have to move more on the bike.
09:05And with the car, you are on the seat.
09:09With the car, you have a lot more grip
09:11because you have four wheels.
09:12So in the corner, you can go faster.
09:15You can go, you can have a better speed.
09:18One of Rossi's teammates is Ahmad Alharti.
09:21Hailing from Oman,
09:22Ahmad is the only Arab driver
09:24in the endurance line-up this season,
09:26which he hopes will help build
09:28the region's interest in the sport.
09:30It means a lot.
09:31It's been a lot of hard work over the last 18-plus years,
09:34doing so much in terms of trying to build myself,
09:37in terms of being a quick driver,
09:38hopefully, and a fast one.
09:40But more importantly,
09:41I really hope that this gives an opportunity
09:43for the younger drivers
09:45to really learn the right and correct path in motorsports.
09:49Ahmad gave me a tour around the team garage,
09:52and I had to ask him about the intensity
09:54of racing on the track for hours.
09:56It's never comfortable being in a race car,
09:58but it's as comfortable as possible.
10:00We're not in the car for more than,
10:03depending on the championship regulations,
10:05sometimes not exceeding two or three hours.
10:08So at least it's a safety brake where you have to come out,
10:11freshen up, do what you need to do,
10:14and come back in the car.
10:16On top of an already crowded grid,
10:18this year also sees the most number of major auto manufacturers
10:22looking to steal the crown from defending champs,
10:25Toyota Gazoo Racing.
10:27We won the manufacturer's title last year,
10:29which was a great achievement with all these manufacturers here.
10:31So, yeah, I mean, the aim is to at least keep that,
10:34which is not easy.
10:35We've seen many, many different challenges along the way,
10:38different technologies with the hybrid systems.
10:40It's made many manufacturers come back into the sport,
10:42and, yeah, we welcome it.
10:44It's very good for the work.
10:46Another initiative that's been good for the sport
10:48is the addition of the Iron Dames,
10:51the all-female team in the series.
10:54It's a very unique project
10:55that is supporting females in sports in general.
10:58And the idea from Deborah,
11:00who is the founder of the project,
11:02was that she wanted to show that females can compete
11:05on the same level as men,
11:07on the highest level of motorsport, endurance, sprint racing,
11:10single-seater, whatever.
11:11And I really believe that we have achieved that with the project,
11:15that we can compete on the highest level.
11:18With so much competition, innovation, and big names in the sport,
11:22it's clear that there's a lot more gas in the tank
11:25than there's ever been in the World and Orange Championship,
11:28giving motorsport fans excitement through every checkered flag.
11:36From racing on the water in electric power boats
11:39to witnessing the sheer determination of endurance drivers
11:42and their hypercars,
11:44we hope you've enjoyed this thrilling episode.
11:46But that's all the time we have for now.
11:48For more, check out Euronews.com
11:50and connect with us through our hashtag.
11:52Thanks for watching,
11:53and we'll see you next time on Qatar 365.
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