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ABU DHABI: The Yas Marina Circuit race control room has received a multi-million-dirham upgrade ahead of the 2025 Formula One Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.  

The room is the nerve center of the circuit and where officials start and end the Grand Prix, enforce rules and oversee every aspect of track operations to ensure safety for drivers, staff, and the thousands of fans in attendance.

For 2025, the race control room has undergone a major revamp, making it one of the most cutting-edge in global motorsport.

“As host of the F1 season finale, Yas Marina Circuit is the stage for historic moments, be it a title-deciding race or a driver’s farewell,” said Ali Al-Beshr, general manager of Yas Marina Circuit at Ethara. “That raises the stakes and motivates us to continuously innovate our infrastructure so the sport can be experienced at its absolute best. This upgraded control room gives officials the technology and environment to make split-second decisions with confidence, so the racing itself can shine.”

At the heart of the upgrade is a suite of smart systems designed to make the race control faster, more flexible and future-proofed. Operators can route any of 55 circuit camera feeds, timing systems, race logs, car trackers, or broadcast feeds to any of the workstation monitors instantly via tablet control.

The speed and adaptability extend to how different championships are able to integrate with the circuit. International fly-in championships, including F1, can make full use of the circuit’s infrastructure without shipping hardware, which cuts set-up time, costs and complexity. 

Beneath the surface as well, the infrastructure has been overhauled. New underfloor cabling, concealed access panels, and integrated sound systems have been designed to create a cleaner, more efficient environment that allows easy rigging and de-rigging between events.

During the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix weekend, 28 people will be working in the race control room, some for shifts lasting up to 12 hours. They see every angle of the track, communicate with everyone from team principals to track marshals, and analyze immense amounts of information in real time.

The theater-style tiered layout gives every workstation unobstructed views of the main display screens. A darker room palette and dimmable LED strip lighting were designed to reduce glare and eye strain.

“The Yas Marina Circuit control room has been years in the making, and we’re proud of the result. We didn’t just meet FIA standards; we exceeded them,” said Stuart Latham, Yas Marina Circuit safety and operations director. “Every detail creates a working environment built for the world’s greatest motorsport championships. Simply put, it’s one of the most technologically advanced race control facilities in world motorsport.”

The new control room made its operational debut during the first round of the Yas Racing Series on Oct. 31-Nov. 2. 

During the 2025-26 motorsports season, it will oversee a busy calendar of racing, including the Autonomous Racing Series, Lenovo Gulf 12 hours, Asian Le Mans Series, F4 Middle East, Formula Regional Middle East and more.

The 2025 F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix takes place at Yas Marina Circuit from Dec. 5-7.