The Red Sea of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia was supposed to set the stage for the clash of US sporting titans Saturday. Tom Brady versus LeBron James. NFL versus NBA. Seven Super Bowl titles versus four NBA Championships. Team Brady versus Team AlUla championed by LeBron James in the 2025 E1 season opener.
Yet, it was far from plain sailing. Instead, it was Team Aoki who changed the tune.
E1 – the world’s first and only all-electric race boat championship – kickstarted its second season with a thrilling Jeddah GP as Aoki Racing Team took home its first ever podium.
Along the edge of the glistening crystal water of Obhur Bay, Mashael Alobaidan, E1’s only Saudi pilot, gave the sold-out 4,500-strong home crowd reason to celebrate as she and Dani Clos topped the podium in front of international DJ Steve Aoki – the only team owner to watch on in the Gulf Kingdom.
‘Last year, we placed last or close to last,’ Aoki said. ‘It just goes to show the underdog has a chance when you have determination, passion, and love for the sport.
Team Aoki’s Dani Clos and Mashael Alobaidan (center, in blue) celebrate the win in Jeddah
Team Brady, who won the inaugural season of the series, fell short in the 2025 opener
‘We came together and we retooled everything we possibly could – look at the skin of our race parts, the dragon, everything we put our heart and determination in, and just to see this all happening right here, right now, winning this one, it’s just a dream come true.’
The superstar DJ explained that the dragon, Team Aoki’s emblem, represented their ‘commitment to really go for gold’ – something Team Brady, like its NFL legend owner, had enjoyed a taste of last season.
And during qualifying, Team Brady appeared to be back to business. The seven-time Super Bowl winner’s E1 team returned to Jeddah as reigning Champions of the Water, but this year, they faced new rivals: LeBron James’s Team AlUla.
And the new kids on the blog, piloted by debut racer Rusty Wyatt and former Team Brazil veteran Catie Munning, fired a warning shot to the existing opponents.
If Wyatt was still learning the ropes, it didn’t show. The duo managed the challenging conditions during Friday’s qualifying to set a blistering pace and take the fight to Team Brady.
The E1 newcomers secured P2 to snatch top seed in Group 2, while the defending champions raced to P1 and the top of Group 1, setting up a potential showdown.
Team Miami and Team Brady go nose-to-nose in the first race of the season in Jeddah
It was a surprise win for Clos, ex-F1 test driver, and Alobaidan, the only female Saudi pilot
But neither team managed to run a tight ship in the group stages. After poor group-stage races Team Brady snuck into the finals in a scrappy playoff dogfight, while Team AlUla was left completely high and dry.
James’ team failed to translate his success on the court to the waves. As the sun beat down on the Saudi coastline, Munning and Wyatt felt the heat. They crashed out of contention completely, failing to make it to the finals and having to settle for eighth – and second-to-last – place.
Munning later revealed that their RaceBird – the futuristic, all-electric, sleek race boats – had suffered damage to its foil earlier in the day.
‘It’s unfortunate when one impact relays over to the rest of the day,’ she admitted.
‘We played a blinder to get the team together so quickly, but we hope to bring LeBron’s success to the paddock sometime soon,’ the Brit vowed.
The result sank any hope of seeing Team AlUla going head-to-head with Brady’s champions this weekend.
Despite a last-gasp push spearheaded by British pilot Sam Coleman in the second leg, the Brady bunch couldn’t keep pace with Aoki, Rafa Nadal and Virat Kohli’s teams, slumping to fifth.
Kohli’s comeback kids, who had finished last in qualifying, hit their rivals for six, proving that title hopes are never dead in the water.
LeBron James’ team was in its first race but they missed out on the podium at Corniche Obhur
Team Blue Rising pilots John Peeters and Sara Misir race during the Jeddah season opener
John Peeters and Sara Misir clawed their way to a third-place finish, seeing both the inaugural season’s bottom two teams – Aoki Racing Team and Team Blue Rising – on the podium for the first time.
Meanwhile, 22-time tennis Grand Slam winner Nadal’s team burst into second thanks to an exhilarating final race by Frenchman Tom Chiappe.
While it may not have been the blockbuster action thriller between the biggest stars of the American sporting scene, Jeddah’s hometown hero provided an Arabian fairytale.
Now, it’s down to Doha – on February 22 – to hold the promise of the clash of the GOATs.