Air Race World Championship
The Red Bull Air Race World Championship is an international series of races with the participation of at least eight pilots at each race. The objective is to navigate an aerial racetrack featuring air-filled pylons in the fastest possible time incurring as few penalties as possible.
Pilots can win World Championship points at each race and the pilot with the most points after the last race of the season becomes the Red Bull Air Race World Champion.
PILOTS
For 2014, 12 pilots will take part in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship. Master Class pilots will have obtained their Unrestricted Superlicence, as issued by the Red Bull Air Race Committee.
New pilots who wish to participate in the World Championship must first fulfil the minimum criteria set by the Red Bull Air Race Committee, which include top achievements in international flying competitions organised by the FAI. They must also be active aerobatic air display pilots. Eligible pilots that prove their skills at the Red Bull Air Race Qualification Camp can achieve the Red Bull Air Race Restricted Superlicence. Once they have the Restricted Superlicence, they then qualify to take part in the Red Bull Air Race World Championship in the Challenger Cup.
RACE FORMAT
The Red Bull Air Race consists of the following fl ying sessions: Training, Qualifying, Top 12, Super 8, Final 4. In all sessions, only one pilot races in the track at a time.
TRAINING: Takes place on the days preceding Qualifying Day. There are two Training Days for all Master Class pilots, each consisting of two mandatory training sessions. Time of the final training session (Training 4) determines the starting order for Qualifying.
QUALIFYING: Takes place on Qualifying Day, the day before Race Day. It includes two mandatory qualifying sessions. Best time counts. Results of the qualifying session determine the order of racing on Race Day.
TOP 12: Takes place on Race Day. This flying session is completed in heats; the six winners plus the two fastest losers move forward to the Super 8. The heats pairings are based on the qualifying session rankings.
SUPER 8: Six winners of the Top 12 heat, plus the two fastest losers race individually to determine their ranking. The fastest four pilots advance to the Final 4. Results in the Super 8 determine 5th to 8th place race positions.
FINAL 4: Four fastest from the Super 8 compete in the Final 4 for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th place race positions.
STARTING ORDER FOR FLYING SESSIONS
The starting order is the order in which the pilots will race in each flying session. The starting order for Training is defined by the results of the current Red Bull Air Race World Championship standing. The highest ranking pilot starts first, new pilots start at the end. If there is more than one new pilot, the starting order of these new pilots is determined by a draw.
The starting order for all sessions on Race Day is determined by the results in Qualifying. The order is reversed so that the slowest pilot from Qualifying starts first.
RACE WINNER
The winner is the pilot who is ranked number one in the final flying session.
RED BULL AIR RACE WORLD CHAMPION
The Red Bull Air Race World Champion is the pilot who achieves the highest aggregate score in the given Red Bull Air Race World Championship season. The winner is crowned Red Bull Air Race World Champion at the last stop in the World Championship.