Amna Al Qubaisi spent eight months holding onto a huge secret: she and her sister Hamda had signed a deal with the newly formed Red Bull Academy Programme that would see Amna drive for Visa Cash App RB (formerly AlphaTauri) and Hamda drive for Red Bull Racing in the 2024 season of F1 Academy.
The Emirati sisters put pen to paper with Red Bull last June but the announcement was only officially made four weeks ago.
As was the case last season, the duo will compete for MP Motorsport in F1 Academy but Amna will run the Visa Cash App RB livery, while Hamda will run Red Bull Racings, on their respective cars.
“I’m very happy and super proud of where I came from. I never expected this,” Amna told The National on the sidelines of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, where she enjoyed a quick hit with French player Gael Monfils.
“We signed with Red Bull in June [2023] and keeping that secret in, I felt like I had some kind of pressure because I needed to prove something to them, that I was valuable, that I did deserve to sign with them.
“But then as a few races went on, I started to take a step back and just relax and be like, ‘Listen, nobody knows it yet, just relax and just enjoy every race and every lap’.”
The first Arab woman to win a single-seater race, Amna claimed P6 in the F1 Academy championship last season, with two first-place finishes in Spielberg and Barcelona.
“I’m really happy I created this pathway for other women in the Middle East who would think that this is just a dream. But seeing this come true they will have a dream to look up to as well,” said the 23 year old.
Amna attended the Visa Cash App RB official launch in Las Vegas last month alongside the team’s Formula One drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda.
It was a lavish affair during which the Italian team unveiled their new car, and where attendees were treated to a special performance by Grammy-winning rapper Kendrick Lamar.
“Being in Las Vegas was an amazing experience. It was really nice because I got to meet everyone; the CEO of Hugo [the team’s apparel partner], I got to meet the team principals of Visa Cash App RB, I met the team, I met Yuki, who is really nice, we’re similar at age and height as well. And meeting Daniel as well, he was very sweet, very kind,” said Amna.
“Being a part of the launch, being part of something like that was a huge boost for me, especially in terms of exposure. I had the opportunity to get a few companies interested to sponsor me and it was really helpful for me to take it to the next level next year.”
Being part of the launch event didn’t just provide exposure for Amna, it also gave her the chance to mingle with two experienced F1 drivers in Ricciardo and Tsunoda, who shared some valuable advice.
“I remember they were telling me, ‘Don’t be stressed when there’s a Red Bull logo on the car, don’t overdrive it, don’t feel like you have to prove something to them, just enjoy your race and pretend your car is a white livery, there’s nothing on it, and just drive’,” Amna said.
“And they’re right actually. Because when I would think, ‘Oh I have a Red Bull logo livery, I need to prove myself and I need to show them that I’m at the top, at the front of the grid’, it actually gave me the opposite reaction. So when I just thought that way, it was way better.”
The second season of F1 Academy kicks off in Jeddah the weekend of March 7. The female-only racing championship will include seven stops in total, with races also staged in Miami, Barcelona, Zandvoort, Singapore, and Qatar, before closing out the campaign in Abu Dhabi, alongside the Formula One Grand Prix at Yas Marina Circuit in December.
Amna is hoping to take a step forward in season two, armed with knowledge and experience from her 2023 exploits and P6 finish. She is open about where she feels she fell short, holding herself accountable as she looks ahead.
“What I learnt from season one was to fix everything when I had the time to do it. Last year I used to just take my time, I would be like, I’ll do it next race, next race. And I wouldn’t really fix those mistakes, I would just redo them over and over again,” she said.
“So this season I’ve kind of overcome that habit, I made sure I fixed my issues and stuck to those good habits; eating well, sleeping early, training as well, training harder than last year.
“Last year I was just procrastinating the entire time, I wasn’t taking my training very seriously and it did affect me as a driver when it came to long race weekends. So I definitely took that in for this year and it actually helped me become a much better racing driver.”
Despite her packed schedule as she prepares for the new season, Amna found time to stop by the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, and spent some time on court with Monfils.
Amna was first introduced to the sport last year when she met two-time Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka and drove her around Dubai, showing her some of the landmarks.
She has been hooked to tennis since.
“I started watching the tournaments because of her and seeing her become No 1 in the world, I was so proud of her and I was like super excited, so that’s what I started watching,” said Amna.
“There are a lot of similarities between both sports, like the reaction in tennis, as well as in racing, it’s really important to be very reactive. I can see also they have reference when it comes to angles, the way they hold their racquets, and it’s the same in racing, we have reference points when it comes to turning in a certain corner, the angle you need to put it in.
“The endurance as well, they also have to go into different weather conditions, whether it’s hot, rainy, they have to play within that certain condition, it’s the same in racing. So it’s very interesting to see the similarities in both sports.”
Following her brief visit to the tennis, Amna flew straight to Jeddah, where she joined fellow F1 Academy drivers to test out the city’s street circuit ahead of the season opener next weekend.
“My goal for this year is just to be as close as I can to the top drivers. We have really good drivers who have beaten the guys in mixed categories. So for sure the goal is to be as close as I can to the pace. And for sure we’d love to win a lot of races; so that’s 100 per cent the goal,” she added.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Healthcare spending to double to $2.2 trillion rupees
Launched a 641billion-rupee federal health scheme
Allotted 200 billion rupees for the recapitalisation of state-run banks
Around 1.75 trillion rupees allotted for privatisation and stake sales in state-owned assets
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Fly Etihad or Emirates from the UAE to Moscow from 2,763 return per person return including taxes.
Where to stay
Trips on the Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian cost from US$16,995 (Dh62,414) per person, based on two sharing.
SUZUME
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MATCH INFO
Manchester United v Brighton, Sunday, 6pm UAE
Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Abu Dhabi racecard
5pm: Maiden (Purebred Arabians); Dh80,000; 1,400m.
5.30pm: Maiden (PA); Dh80,00; 1,400m.
6pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (PA); Group 3; Dh500,000; 1,600m.
6.30pm: Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan National Day Cup (Thoroughbred); Listed; Dh380,000; 1,600m
7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup for Private Owners Handicap (PA); Dh70,000; 1,400m.
7.30pm: Handicap (PA); Dh80,000; 1,600m
Schedule:
Pakistan v Sri Lanka:
28 Sep-2 Oct, 1st Test, Abu Dhabi
6-10 Oct, 2nd Test (day-night), Dubai
13 Oct, 1st ODI, Dubai
16 Oct, 2nd ODI, Abu Dhabi
18 Oct, 3rd ODI, Abu Dhabi
20 Oct, 4th ODI, Sharjah
23 Oct, 5th ODI, Sharjah
26 Oct, 1st T20I, Abu Dhabi
27 Oct, 2nd T20I, Abu Dhabi
29 Oct, 3rd T20I, Lahore
The biog
Name: Samar Frost
Born: Abu Dhabi
Hobbies: Singing, music and socialising with friends
Favourite singer: Adele
THE BIO
Favourite car: Koenigsegg Agera RS or Renault Trezor concept car.
Favourite book: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes or Red Notice by Bill Browder.
Biggest inspiration: My husband Nik. He really got me through a lot with his positivity.
Favourite holiday destination: Being at home in Australia, as I travel all over the world for work. It’s great to just hang out with my husband and family.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
How does ToTok work?
The calling app is available to download on Google Play and Apple App Store
To successfully install ToTok, users are asked to enter their phone number and then create a nickname.
The app then gives users the option add their existing phone contacts, allowing them to immediately contact people also using the application by video or voice call or via message.
Users can also invite other contacts to download ToTok to allow them to make contact through the app.
TO%20CATCH%20A%20KILLER
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The biog
Hometown: Birchgrove, Sydney Australia
Age: 59
Favourite TV series: Outlander Netflix series
Favourite place in the UAE: Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque / desert / Louvre Abu Dhabi
Favourite book: Father of our Nation: Collected Quotes of Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan
Thing you will miss most about the UAE: My friends and family, Formula 1, having Friday's off, desert adventures, and Arabic culture and people
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
Power: 400hp
Torque: 475Nm
Transmission: 9-speed automatic
Price: From Dh215,900
On sale: Now
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Read more from Aya Iskandarani
Biography
Her family: She has four sons, aged 29, 27, 25 and 24 and is a grandmother-of-nine
Favourite book: Flashes of Thought by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
Favourite drink: Water
Her hobbies: Reading and volunteer work
Favourite music: Classical music
Her motto: I don't wait, I initiate
The specs: 2019 Lincoln MKC
Price, base / as tested: Dh169,995 / Dh192,045
Engine: Turbocharged, 2.0-litre, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power: 253hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 389Nm @ 2,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.7L / 100km
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday Sassuolo v Benevento (Kick-off 11.45pm)
Saturday Crotone v Spezia (6pm), Torino v Udinese (9pm), Lazio v Verona (11.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Inter Milan (3.30pm), Atalanta v Fiorentina (6pm), Napoli v Sampdoria (6pm), Bologna v Roma (6pm), Genoa v Juventus (9pm), AC Milan v Parma (11.45pm)
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Why your domicile status is important
Your UK residence status is assessed using the statutory residence test. While your residence status – ie where you live - is assessed every year, your domicile status is assessed over your lifetime.
Your domicile of origin generally comes from your parents and if your parents were not married, then it is decided by your father. Your domicile is generally the country your father considered his permanent home when you were born.
UK residents who have their permanent home ("domicile") outside the UK may not have to pay UK tax on foreign income. For example, they do not pay tax on foreign income or gains if they are less than £2,000 in the tax year and do not transfer that gain to a UK bank account.
A UK-domiciled person, however, is liable for UK tax on their worldwide income and gains when they are resident in the UK.
What is 'Soft Power'?
Soft power was first mentioned in 1990 by former US Defence Secretary Joseph Nye.
He believed that there were alternative ways of cultivating support from other countries, instead of achieving goals using military strength.
Soft power is, at its root, the ability to convince other states to do what you want without force.
This is traditionally achieved by proving that you share morals and values.
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort:
How to invest in gold
Investors can tap into the gold price by purchasing physical jewellery, coins and even gold bars, but these need to be stored safely and possibly insured.
A cheaper and more straightforward way to benefit from gold price growth is to buy an exchange-traded fund (ETF).
Most advisers suggest sticking to “physical” ETFs. These hold actual gold bullion, bars and coins in a vault on investors’ behalf. Others do not hold gold but use derivatives to track the price instead, adding an extra layer of risk. The two biggest physical gold ETFs are SPDR Gold Trust and iShares Gold Trust.
Another way to invest in gold’s success is to buy gold mining stocks, but Mr Gravier says this brings added risks and can be more volatile. “They have a serious downside potential should the price consolidate.”
Mr Kyprianou says gold and gold miners are two different asset classes. “One is a commodity and the other is a company stock, which means they behave differently.”
Mining companies are a business, susceptible to other market forces, such as worker availability, health and safety, strikes, debt levels, and so on. “These have nothing to do with gold at all. It means that some companies will survive, others won’t.”
By contrast, when gold is mined, it just sits in a vault. “It doesn’t even rust, which means it retains its value,” Mr Kyprianou says.
You may already have exposure to gold miners in your portfolio, say, through an international ETF or actively managed mutual fund.
You could spread this risk with an actively managed fund that invests in a spread of gold miners, with the best known being BlackRock Gold & General. It is up an incredible 55 per cent over the past year, and 240 per cent over five years. As always, past performance is no guide to the future.
Veil (Object Lessons)
Rafia Zakaria
Bloomsbury Academic
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Western Region Asia Cup Qualifier
Results
UAE beat Saudi Arabia by 12 runs
Kuwait beat Iran by eight wickets
Oman beat Maldives by 10 wickets
Bahrain beat Qatar by six wickets
Semi-finals
UAE v Qatar
Bahrain v Kuwait
