a chat with the boss

Sheikh Salman bin Isa Al Khalifa is a long-standing figurehead at the Bahrain International Circuit. He has been closely involved with all aspects of the circuit’s activities since it began operations in 2004, both as an executive, and as a racing driver.

shEIkh sAlMAn began his career at the circuit as Head of Governmental Affairs, Public Relations and Marketing. In 2007, he was appointed COO directly under CEO Martin Whitaker, and upon Whitaker’s departure in 2010, assumed the role of acting Chief Executive, before being officially appointed by the circuits governing board shortly afterwards. Since then, Sheikh Salman has overseen all aspects of the circuit’s operations, including five successful F1 Grands Prix, and countless other events, races and community activities.

In what ways has being the CE of the Bahrain International Circuit differed from your previous role as Coo?

As CE you take overall responsibility to ensure that the BIC meets its targets and continues to grow as the Home of Motorsport in the Middle East. In this role, that means you are ultimately accountable whether that be success or failure. At the heart of it, that comes down to working with members of my team on a day-to-day basis instilling our values of “Pride, Passion and Performance” and through that, ensuring we continually improve everything we do.

You’ve been at the helm of the BIC since 2010, and have five successful Bahrain Grands Prix successfully completed. Which aspects of the role are becoming very comfortable now?

I have the comfort of knowing that I have a very dedicated, passionate and capable team behind me. The staff we have here at the BIC know what it takes to get the job done, especially for a mammoth task such as organising and running a major international event such as the Bahrain GP. I am pleased to say that everybody has, at the very least, met expectations in fulfilling their roles over the past few years, and our team continues to grow and get better each year. Having said that, I would not be doing my job properly if I were just aiming to stick within that comfort zone all of the time. Our aim is continually to improve on what we do.

and what aspects of hosting a gP still provide a fresh challenge each year?

Every year, we try to deliver something fresh for the fans; whether it’s in the racing programme or in the off-track package of entertainment. We always try our best to give the race-goer something new so that they keep on coming back each and every year, and I think we’ve done that.

What are some of the other challenges outside of f1 have you faced as CEo of the Bahrain International Circuit?

We’ve always sought to ensure that the BIC remains a self-sustaining business, and not simply to rely on F1 every year to make the business work. To help achieve that, we’ve worked on building a rich motorsport culture for the Kingdom, with our events here at BIC acting as a strong foundation.

We have established a major events schedule that runs throughout the year, whether that be local and regional racing series, corporate events and private hires. It is rare these days to find a weekend when the track is not completely booked out.

Our experience in managing major events in the Kingdom also means that our expertise can be transferred outside of motorsport. Our central involvement in the Bahrain Air Show every year is a great example of that and a further way we can maximise the skills of the team we have at the BIC.

aside from the Bahrain f1 gP, which other areas of activity within the circuit are maintaining the BIC as a centre of motorsports in the region?

We are the only circuit in the region to host the FIA World Endurance Championship with the Six Hours of Bahrain. This is quickly becoming one of the most popular and sought-after global racing series under the International Automobile Federation (FIA), and we are proud to be their home track in the Middle East.

Meanwhile, we have one of the longest-running circuit racing championships in the Middle East, the BIC 2,000cc Challenge, currently in its ninth season.

Also, we are the home base of the region’s most highly regarded one-make championship, the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Middle East, as well as the only Land Rover Experience Centre in the Gulf.

Furthermore, we have our world-class karting facility. Bahrain International Karting Circuit was the first-ever karting track to host a CIK world championship-level race at night, something we are very proud of.

Then there is the Bahrain Drag Racing Championship or the newly launched Bahrain Superbike Championship, as well our Open Track and Drag and Drift public events.