Riyadh Street Circuit, Diriyah

Riyadh Street Circuit, Diriyah at a glance

Location

Diriyah, Riyadh Province

Type

historic circuit (defunct)

Length

2.495 km (1.55 mi)

Turns

21

Direction

clockwise

Surface

asphalt

Opened

2018

Owner

formerly Saudi Motorsport Company / Diriyah Gate Development Authority (temporary street circuit)

Track map and layout

The Riyadh Street Circuit was a temporary 2.495 km, 21-turn street track laid out on public roads at the edge of the historic Diriyah district on the outskirts of Riyadh, using the desert-facing escarpment as a scenic backdrop for night racing under floodlights. It was revised and resurfaced ahead of the 2021 season, with several corners reprofiled to improve overtaking and flow. The lap combined tight, low-speed street corners typical of temporary circuits with a few longer straights, and, like most Formula E venues of its era, it hosted the series' electric single-seaters exclusively rather than a broad mix of championships.

Configurations

Events and race weekends

The circuit hosted the Formula E Diriyah ePrix in every season from 2018-19 through 2024, including a double-header season-opening weekend in most years, making Diriyah the series' regular curtain-raiser and its first-ever Middle East venue. No other major international series raced here. From the 2024-25 season Formula E moved its Saudi Arabian round to the new Jeddah Corniche Circuit, and Diriyah has not returned to the calendar since, with redevelopment work around the historic district also cited as a factor.

Getting there and parking

Diriyah sits on the north-western edge of Riyadh, a short drive from the Saudi capital's main airport, though the circuit itself is no longer an active event venue and has no ongoing spectator transport arrangements. During its Formula E years, race-goers typically flew into Riyadh and used taxis, ride-hailing or event shuttle buses for the final leg.

• King Khalid International Airport (RUH) · about 30 min drive

Hotels and camping near Riyadh Street Circuit, Diriyah

Visitors to Riyadh and Diriyah stay in the wider Riyadh metropolitan area, which has a full range of international hotel brands, with some properties opening in and around the restored At-Turaif and Bujairi Terrace precincts of Diriyah itself as the district has developed as a heritage and tourism destination.

Where to look

Central Riyadh (Olaya, King Abdullah Financial District) for the widest hotel choice; newer hotels in Diriyah's Bujairi Terrace area for proximity to the former circuit site.

Track days, driving experiences and lap records

There is no public track-day or driving-experience access; the Riyadh Street Circuit was a temporary street circuit assembled from public roads for Formula E race weekends and has not been reconstituted for racing since the series left after the 2024 event.

Lap records

Spectator guide

During its Formula E years the circuit was known for its dramatic night-race setting beneath floodlights with the Diriyah escarpment as a backdrop, but there is no active spectator event held here now that the series has relocated to Jeddah.

Weather

• December-January (former race dates): mild desert winter evenings, typically 15-25°C after sunset

History of Riyadh Street Circuit, Diriyah

Formula E's first Middle East home

The Riyadh Street Circuit was built on public roads at the edge of Diriyah, the historic mud-brick district on the north-western fringe of Riyadh and the ancestral home of the Saudi royal family, as part of Saudi Arabia's push to host major international sport under its Vision 2030 programme. It opened in December 2018 as the venue for the inaugural Ad Diriyah ePrix, Formula E's first race in the Middle East and the opening round of the 2018-19 season, run at night beneath floodlights with the district's sandstone escarpment as a backdrop.

A regular season-opener

Diriyah quickly became a fixture as Formula E's season-opening venue, hosting races in 2018-19, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024, with the 2021 event marking the series' return after a scheduling gap and arriving alongside a resurfaced, reprofiled 2.495 km, 21-turn layout intended to improve overtaking. Several rounds were run as double-headers, giving Diriyah an outsized share of early-season championship points and making it a regular staging post for title battles between Mercedes, Jaguar, DS, Porsche and other manufacturer teams during Formula E's Gen2 and Gen3 eras.

Replaced by Jeddah

Formula E dropped Diriyah from its calendar heading into the 2024-25 season, relocating its Saudi Arabian round to a new street circuit on Jeddah's Corniche. Reported reasons included the series' desire for a layout with more overtaking opportunities than Diriyah's tight street configuration allowed, alongside redevelopment and construction activity around the historic Diriyah district that made continued use of the site impractical. As of 2026 there is no confirmed plan for Formula E, or any other major series, to return to the Riyadh Street Circuit, leaving it a dormant but recently active venue rather than a long-abandoned one.

Frequently asked questions

Other tracks nearby

• Reem International Circuit · 73 km · road course
• Bahrain International Circuit · 420 km · road course
• Kuwait Motor Town · 491 km · road course
• Lusail International Circuit · 497 km · road course
• Yas Marina Circuit · 811 km · road course
• Jeddah Corniche Circuit · 839 km · street circuit