One year later: YAS HEAT ESPORTS celebrates first anniversary following significant strides in just 12 months

Yas Marina Circuit-based esports squad looks back over a hugely impressive 12 months

YAS HEAT ESPORTS celebrates an important milestone this month, as August 2021 signals the first anniversary of the team’s conception, when a new era for esports in the Middle East began.

One year on, and the Yas Marina Circuit-based team continues to raise eyebrows and turn heads on the global esports stage across multiple platforms and gaming titles. In just 12 short months and a total of 1168 races, YAS HEAT has achieved 786 podiums (67%), 493 victories (42%) and nine championships.

In addition, YAS HEAT has participated in some of the esports calendar’s most prestigious events, including a seventh-place finish in the Virtual Olympics for Angel Inostroza and a Red Bull, Fordzilla and R8G-beating V10 R League campaign.

A number of high-profile partnerships have also emerged during this period. A collaboration with Microsoft resulted in the immensely popular Microsoft GP – featuring high-profile competitors such as Jamie Chadwick, MaximeMXM and Ramez Azzam – while Pirelli and Richard Mille also came on board with their own special edition eye-catching liveries.

The YAS HEAT Academy has also seen unprecedented success in its first year, discovering regional talent and offering aspiring virtual racers an opportunity to prove their worth at the highest level. The young hopefuls also received expert knowledge on what it takes to be a professional sports person from the academy’s specialist lecturer and ex-England Rugby player Tom May.

While these achievements certainly highlight YAS HEAT as one of the world’s most competitive esports teams and a force to be reckoned with, the squad shows no signs of slowing down with the Le Mans Virtual Series and many other championships on the horizon.

Saif Al-Noaimi, Team Principal, YAS HEAT said: “What YAS HEAT has achieved in just one year is nothing short of spectacular. We’re going up against established teams in the esports industry and we have won 493 races and nine championships – it’s just incredible.

“We’re not stopping here though. We have grand plans for the next 12 months of YAS HEAT and we’re going to be pushing to be better than ever, continuing our academy programme as well as entering into more and more championships – we can’t wait!

“Of course, we have to mention all of our hard-working drivers, dedicated sponsors and all those behind the scenes who keep our operation running smoothly. Without them, the success we’ve achieved and the reputation we have built would not be possible.”