The sport of motorsport in Kuwait is growing at an impressive rate. This week saw the inaugural 2022 Toyota Grand Prix of Yaris event, part of a very busy winter/spring calendar covering a wide range of extremely exciting races using the same vehicle, to highlight the talent of drivers participating and support the development of compact, lightweight, high-performance rally vehicles for use on the road. Racing began in mid-December at the Kuwait Motor Town and ends in March, with the ultimate victor qualifying for the Lusail International Circuit in Qatar in the spring of 2022.
Fans of this event appreciate all the great experiences that come with the race, but they also like the simple format of it, as all of the cars competing in the Cup are the same year and model of FIA-approved vehicles and were developed specifically for racing. Vehicles in the Cup have been prepared and maintained by Al Sayer’s Ahmadi Performance Team, taking all uncertainty out of vehicle performance and allowing drivers to directly showcase their abilities on the racetrack. There are a total of 12 vehicles in this championship fleet; each of them will have adjustable shock absorbers, dedicated racing exhaust systems, performance brakes with braided brake lines, 18″ alloy wheels with Yokohama A050 tyres, and data-logging capabilities for driver post-lap analysis. These vehicles will also contain FIA-approved roll cages, Recaro Pole Position racing seats, six-point harness seatbelts, and fire-retardant body protection systems.
When viewed through a specific perspective, the GR Yaris appears quite unusual: It has the GR Yaris nameplate on it but also a compact-sized engine (an inline-three-cylinder engine called G16E-GTS), making approximately 272 PS and mated to a 6-speed manual transmission and four-wheel drive, all of this from the rally preparation of Toyota Gazoo Racing, with power levels higher than many other engines of similar size. Additionally, the GR Yaris Cup Series uses the specifications of the GR Yaris to teach younger regional racers how to better control their throttle inputs, how to brake later, and how to carry as much speed through corners as possible instead of focusing on how much horsepower they can produce.
The action is shaping up to be quite busy with two rounds running on January 8-10, February 12-13, and March 5-6, culminating in a final round on March 26-27, with a specific regional GR Yaris face-off at Lusail on April 17-18, 2026, where the best racers from Kuwait will meet those from the rest of the Gulf region. In addition, the opening weekend featured a VIP event to preview the GR Yaris, a showcase of the series’ promotional capabilities and its long-term plans for the region.
The GR Yaris Cup is made up of a large number of sponsored teams and a wide variety of drivers from famous brands looking to become better race drivers. It is not only a way to provide entertainment for spectators but also a fantastic way to develop and find new, talented racers quickly. It also demonstrates that money alone will not make you successful; rather, you need the best engineering combined with continued improvement of a driver’s talent to be successful in the world of motorsports today.
If you prefer the excitement and energy of short-term, intense competition with fast racing laps, then you will enjoy what is likely to be the action-packed racing of Season 3 of the GR Yaris Cup, adding to the exciting racing that you would normally see during the year.
