Organized by ASPIRE, the grand challenges arm of Abu Dhabi’s Advanced Technology Research Council, A2RL has quickly evolved from a bold public testbed for AI under extreme race conditions into a competitive racing series. The upcoming Imola race marks a major step in its global expansion, following two breakthrough seasons at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi and opening the championship’s first international chapter before it returns to the UAE capital for the 2026 season finale.
Reigning A2RL champion TUM (Germany) will compete alongside Unimore Racing (Italy) and PoliMOVE (Italy) in Imola, having qualified through their performances during the 2025 season. Two additional teams, Kinetiz (UAE) and Constructor Racing (Germany), will compete in qualification events ahead of race weekend for the remaining spots on the grid.
Faisal Al Bannai, Secretary General of the Advanced Technology Research Council, said: “A2RL began in Abu Dhabi with a clear conviction: the future of mobility must be tested openly, rigorously and at the limits of performance. Its international debut at Imola demonstrates how the UAE is translating bold R&D ambition into globally relevant technology platforms that can accelerate progress in autonomous mobility.”
Stephane Timpano, CEO of ASPIRE, said: “Taking A2RL to Imola is a major milestone in our ambition to build the world’s first international championship for fully autonomous racecars. Few circuits carry the heritage and global standing of Imola, making it a powerful stage for our first international race. This is an important step for autonomous motorsport as both a technology platform and an emerging global sporting format.”
Building on two breakthrough seasons in Abu Dhabi, A2RL has evolved from a world-first four-car autonomous race into a six-car Grand Final featuring wheel-to-wheel racing at more than 250 km/h. The league has also become a defining platform for Human vs AI competition, with the performance gap between autonomous systems and professional drivers shrinking dramatically from 10 seconds in 2024 to just 1.58 seconds in 2025. Alongside the on-track progress, A2RL has built a growing global audience and strengthened Abu Dhabi’s position as a leading hub for autonomous mobility and AI innovation.
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