BATOOL GHAITH (ABU DHABI)
Engines are not the only thing making Yas Island roar this weekend, music, lights, and electrifying atmosphere are turning the Formula 1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (ADGP) 2025 weekend into a city-wide celebration.
From the track to Etihad Park, the ADGP 2025 weekend fuses sport and spectacle, where racing legends share the spotlight with global music icons and thousands of fans from every corner of the world.
The Emirates NBD After-Race Concerts at Etihad Park offer four nights of live music, one for each day of the Grand Prix weekend. The 2025 lineup brings a genre-spanning roster of global stars, rising pop-rock voice Benson Boone, followed by Post Malone and rising Arab-pop talent Elyanna. On Saturday night rock legends Metallica take over, and the weekend closes on with pop superstar Katy Perry.
In 2024, the Yasalam concerts drew around 110,000 attendees over the four nights, a record number showing just how much the musical side of the event matters to fans. That figure came of a record-breaking Grand Prix weekend as 192,000 people visited the circuit in 2024, marking a 12.9% jump from the year before.
For Tom Collins, a visitor, the off-track activities are a highlight of the weekend, “I got to visit Ferrari World as part of my ticket and it was very exciting,” he told Aletihad.
Collins also took part in the “pit stop challenge” where he practised how to change the F1 car tyres. “It was phenomenal,” he said.
Emma Volkova, another visitor, on the other hand enjoyed the Post Malone concert. “He is one of my favourite artists and the energy in the stadium is amazing. And it was very organised to get to the concert which makes the experience better,” Volkova told Aletihad as she left the stadium.
For Malak Salim, a visitor, getting to see Elyanna performing live was the highlight of the race weekend.
“I am enjoying a weekend watching fast F1 cars on track and attending great concerts. It is nice to have an Arab artist in the lineup. The international fans get to experience and listen to Arabic music, everyone is enjoying and dancing,” Salim told Aletihad.
A ticket to the ADGP grants more than access to high-speed action, it unlocks a full weekend of entertainment and experiences. Fans can enjoy race sessions at Yas Marina Circuit, access to fan zones, pit-lane walks, and entry to the official Yasalam After‑Race Concerts.
Ticket holders also get complimentary access to one of Yas Island’s theme parks, free entry to top cultural venues like Louvre Abu Dhabi and Qasr Al Watan, blending motorsport, leisure and city-wide experiences into one package.