{"id":31775555,"date":"2026-11-08T11:08:37","date_gmt":"2026-11-08T10:08:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/red-bull-air-race-history-pylon-racing-2003-2019-air-race-x\/"},"modified":"2026-11-08T11:16:20","modified_gmt":"2026-11-08T10:16:20","slug":"red-bull-air-race-history-pylon-racing-2003-2019-air-race-x","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/fr\/red-bull-air-race-history-pylon-racing-2003-2019-air-race-x\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Bull Air Race: The Pylon Series That Flew From 2003 to 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>.et_pb_title_container h1.entry-title { padding-top: 40px !important; }<\/style>\r\n<!-- mfsh:top -->\r\n\r\n<style>\r\n.mfsh-trigger{display:inline-flex;align-items:center;gap:10px;height:44px;padding:0 18px;margin:0 0 26px;border:2px solid 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Its corners are inflatable cones 25 metres tall, anchored to barges on a river in the middle of a city. A single-seat aerobatic aircraft dives into the course at close to 200 knots, slices between two pylons in level flight, then pulls a turn hard enough to approach ten g. The clock runs to the thousandth of a second.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>For sixteen years that was the Red Bull Air Race, the closest thing aviation ever had to Formula One. It drew enormous crowds to the Danube, the Douro and Tokyo Bay, made stars of a handful of aerobatic pilots and then, in 2019, it simply stopped. Here is how the pylon-racing series was born, how it worked, and what has happened to air racing since.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f4f6f9;border:1px solid #e2e7ee;padding:18px 22px;margin:22px 0 26px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:700;color:#0d1117\">Quick Facts<\/p><ul style=\"margin:0;padding-left:18px\"><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>What:<\/strong> Red Bull Air Race (later Red Bull Air Race World Championship), pylon air racing series<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Created:<\/strong> Conceived 2001 by Red Bull; first race at Zeltweg, Austria, in 2003<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Format:<\/strong> Solo timed runs through inflatable air gates about 25 m tall<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Aircraft:<\/strong> Mainly Zivko Edge 540, MXS-R and Corvus Racer 540, Lycoming-powered<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Pause:<\/strong> No races 2011-2013; returned in Abu Dhabi on 28 February 2014<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Most titles:<\/strong> Paul Bonhomme (UK): 2009, 2010, 2015<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Last champion:<\/strong> Matt Hall (Australia), Chiba, 8 September 2019<\/li><li style=\"margin:4px 0\"><strong>Status (Nov 2026):<\/strong> Ended after 2019; successor AIR RACE X runs a remote, data-linked format<\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">An idea from an energy-drink think tank<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The Red Bull Air Race was conceived in 2001 inside Red Bull&rsquo;s sports think tank. The goal was a race that rewarded precision and skill rather than raw speed. The Hungarian aerobatic champion P\u00e9ter Besenyei, often described as the series&rsquo; brainchild, flew the first test runs through prototype air gates.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The first official race took off at Zeltweg in Austria in 2003, with a second near Budapest the same year. Besenyei won that two-race inaugural series. By 2005 it had grown into a proper world series, and by 2007 it ran ten races across the globe, including the first in South America, in Rio de Janeiro.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/11\/red-bull-air-race-interlaken-2007-torn-pylon.jpg\" alt=\"A green race aircraft trailing smoke past a torn white pylon at the 2007 Red Bull Air Race in Interlaken Switzerland\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">A race aircraft trails smoke past the course at Interlaken, Switzerland, in 2007, as fabric from a pylon flies loose at left. The gates were designed to tear apart rather than damage an aircraft. Photo: Roy Egloff \/ CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">Gates that tear on purpose<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The key invention was the air gate. According to Wikipedia, engineers at Austrian firm Bellutti Protection Systems settled on spinnaker ripstop nylon, the material of racing-yacht sails, so a pylon would rip apart the instant a wing touched it. Early cylindrical gates proved too unstable in wind, and in 2004 the familiar cone shape arrived, kept rigid by blowers.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>A hit cost a penalty, not an aircraft. Crews nicknamed &ldquo;air gators&rdquo; could replace a shredded pylon in minutes. The rules were strict: double-cone gates had to be crossed in level flight, single cones at a 90-degree bank, and pulling more than 10 g for more than 0.6 seconds meant a did-not-finish.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NQo_J-kPpLY\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">The Red Bull Air Race&rsquo;s own history of the series, from the first test flights through the air gates.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The aircraft and the champions<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The racers flew modified aerobatic monoplanes, mainly the Zivko Edge 540, the MXS-R and the Corvus Racer 540, all with Lycoming engines and wingspans under 7.6 metres. Their top speeds were in the region of 400 km\/h.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>Americans dominated the early years: Kirby Chambliss took the title in 2004 and 2006, and Mike Mangold in 2005 and 2007. Austria&rsquo;s Hannes Arch won in 2008. Britain&rsquo;s Paul Bonhomme became the most successful pilot in the series&rsquo; history, champion in 2009, 2010 and 2015.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/11\/red-bull-air-race-porto-2017-douro-air-gates.jpg\" alt=\"Race aircraft climbing vertically with smoke above a pair of air gate pylons on barges on the Douro river in Porto in 2017\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">Air gates anchored in the Douro at Porto during the 2017 Red Bull Air Race, with a racer pulling up after its run. Photo: Harpagornis \/ CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">A three-year pause and a comeback<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>The 2010 season brought safety scares. During training in Perth, Brazilian pilot Adilson Kindelmann crashed into the Swan River and was quickly rescued without serious injury, and at Windsor, Canada, Matt Halland in Windsor, Canada, Matt Hall touched the water during a run and recovered.rsquo;s aircraft hit the water during a run. Red Bull decided it was time for a rethink.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>In July 2010, Red Bull cancelled the 2011 season to restructure and introduce new safety measures. The 2012 and 2013 seasons were cancelled too. When the series returned in Abu Dhabi on 28 February 2014, it was sanctioned by the FAI, the World Air Sports Federation, standardised engines had been introduced, and a Challenger Class had been added to bring through younger pilots.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The comeback years produced new champions. Britain&rsquo;s Nigel Lamb won in 2014, Bonhomme again in 2015, Germany&rsquo;s Matthias Dolderer in 2016, Japan&rsquo;s Yoshihide Muroya in 2017 and the Czech pilot Martin \u0160onka in 2018. But crowds, as AOPA later put it, never fully recovered after the pause.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #1565c0;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><div><em>&ldquo;The Red Bull Air Race provided sports entertainment of highest quality but did not attract the level of outside interest as many other Red Bull events across the world.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Red Bull<\/strong> &mdash; Statement announcing the end of the series, May 2019 (via Australian Flying)<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">The end, announced in May 2019<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>At the end of May 2019, Red Bull announced that the World Championship would not continue beyond the 2019 season. The calendar was cut to four races and the planned Indianapolis round in October was cancelled. AOPA counted 90 races since 2003.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #d32f2f;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><div><em>&ldquo;It means that the only air sport that has captured attention and has a trackable format is over.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Martin \u0160onka<\/strong> &mdash; 2018 world champion, to iDnes, as reported by AOPA (May 2019)<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The pilots were stunned. Defending champion \u0160onka told the Czech site iDnes, as reported by AOPA, that the audience was clearly there.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"background:#f8f9fa;border-left:4px solid #1565c0;padding:20px 22px;margin:18px 0 24px;font-size:16px;line-height:1.7\"><div><em>&ldquo;I was trying to play it cool in front of the cameras, but deep down I was \u2026 I was working really hard, mentally, to keep it on the rails.&rdquo;<\/em><div style=\"margin-top:10px;font-size:14px;color:#555\"><strong>Matt Hall<\/strong> &mdash; 2019 world champion, after the final race at Chiba (via AOPA)<\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The final race was held at Chiba, Japan, on 8 September 2019. Australia&rsquo;s Matt Hall, who had finished second in three of the previous four seasons, needed only a clean final run to clinch the title in front of Muroya&rsquo;s home crowd. He did it, becoming the last Red Bull Air Race world champion.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Gg4zAyGkV5I\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">Official footage of Matt Hall clinching the 2019 title at Chiba, the last Red Bull Air Race world championship.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<h2 style=\"padding-top:22px\">After Red Bull: revival attempts and AIR RACE X<\/h2>\r\n\r\n<p>Air racing did not give up. In February 2021, the FAI announced a new promoter and a new World Championship Air Race, planned to start in 2022 with an eye on sustainable fuels and electric aircraft. The 2022 season was cancelled before a single race was flown.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>The series that did take off was AIR RACE X, launched by former champion Muroya. Its first event, in Tokyo&rsquo;s Shibuya district in 2023, was digital. Pilots fly identical courses from their own home airfields, flight data units record every metre, and the times are corrected for air density and combined into one race. A three-round championship followed in 2024, won by Muroya, and South Africa&rsquo;s Patrick Davidson took the 2025 title.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\" style=\"margin:0 0 24px;width:100%\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" width=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2026\/11\/yoshihide-muroya-red-bull-air-race-chiba-2015.jpg\" alt=\"Yoshihide Muroya race plane banking above two chequered Breitling air gate pylons at the 2015 Red Bull Air Race in Chiba Japan\" style=\"width:100%;height:auto;max-width:100%;display:block\"><figcaption style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;margin-top:6px;font-style:italic\">Yoshihide Muroya racing at Chiba in 2015. He became world champion in 2017 and later founded AIR RACE X, the remote successor series. Photo: Morio \/ CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons<\/figcaption><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The 2026 season ran over four rounds from June to September, with Australia&rsquo;s Aarron Deliu winning the opener and \u0160onka and Muroya both on the grid. South African media reported in September 2026 that Davidson had retained his title. The aircraft still fly at around 250 mph and pull up to 12 g, but the crowds now watch on screens rather than from a riverbank.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"position:relative;padding-bottom:56.25%;height:0;overflow:hidden;margin:24px 0 8px\"><iframe class=\"skip-lazy\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" loading=\"eager\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/GPEqXRRst5I\" style=\"position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:100%;height:100%;border:0\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\r\n\r\n<p style=\"font-size:13px;color:#777;text-align:center;font-style:italic;margin:0 0 24px\">AIR RACE X&rsquo;s recap of the first round of its 2026 season, flown remotely with pilots racing from their home airfields.<\/p>\r\n\r\n<p>As of November 2026, the Red Bull Air Race itself has not returned. Its pylons are packed away, its champions race each other by telemetry, and the image of an Edge 540 knifing between two chequered cones over the Danube belongs to aviation history. For sixteen years, though, it was the fastest show in town.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p><em>Sources: AOPA, Australian Flying, AVweb, FAI, Wikipedia (Red Bull Air Race World Championship; List of Red Bull Air Race World Championship winners)<\/em><\/p>\r\n<!-- mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n<button type=\"button\" class=\"mfsh-trigger mfsh-bottom\" data-mfsh-placement=\"bottom\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><svg><use href=\"#mfsh-i-share\"\/><\/svg>Share this story<\/button>\r\n\r\n<!-- \/mfsh:bottom -->\r\n\r\n\r\n<style>.mfq{margin:34px 0 8px}.mfq h2{font:26px\/1.3 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117;padding-top:22px;margin:0 0 6px}.mfq .qa details{border-top:1px solid #5C91FF;margin:0;padding:0}.mfq .qa details:last-of-type{border-bottom:1px solid #e2e7ee}.mfq .qa summary{cursor:pointer;list-style:none;display:flex;justify-content:space-between;align-items:center;gap:16px;padding:22px 26px;font:18px\/1.7 \"Gilroy semiBold\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#0d1117}.mfq .qa summary::-webkit-details-marker{display:none}.mfq .qa summary::after{content:\"+\";font:24px Helvetica,sans-serif;color:#3568e0;flex:0 0 auto}.mfq .qa details[open] summary::after{content:\"\\2013\"}.mfq .qa details:hover summary{color:#3568e0}.mfq .qa .a{font:16px\/1.7 \"Gilroy regular\",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;color:#454e5e;padding:0 26px 24px}.mfq .qa .a a{color:#3568e0}@media(max-width:680px){.mfq .qa summary{padding:18px 14px;font-size:17px}.mfq .qa .a{padding:0 14px 20px}}<\/style>\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"mfq\"><h2>Frequently Asked Questions<\/h2><div class=\"qa\"><details open><summary>What was the Red Bull Air Race?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">The Red Bull Air Race was a pylon air-racing series created by Red Bull, first flown in 2003. Pilots raced one at a time against the clock through a course of inflatable air gates about 25 metres tall, usually set up over water near city centres, in aerobatic aircraft such as the Zivko Edge 540.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>When did the Red Bull Air Race end?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Red Bull announced in May 2019 that the Red Bull Air Race World Championship would not continue after the 2019 season, which was cut to four races. The final race was flown at Chiba, Japan, on 8 September 2019. AOPA counted 90 races in the series since 2003.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Who won the last Red Bull Air Race?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Australian pilot Matt Hall won the final Red Bull Air Race World Championship, clinching the 2019 title at Chiba, Japan, on 8 September 2019. Hall had finished second in three of the previous four seasons before becoming the last champion of the series.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Who won the most Red Bull Air Race titles?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Britain&rsquo;s Paul Bonhomme is the most successful pilot in Red Bull Air Race history, with world titles in 2009, 2010 and 2015. Kirby Chambliss and Mike Mangold of the United States each won two titles, in 2004 and 2006 and in 2005 and 2007 respectively.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>Is the Red Bull Air Race coming back?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">As of November 2026, the Red Bull Air Race has not returned. An FAI-backed World Championship Air Race planned for 2022 was cancelled. The closest successor is AIR RACE X, launched by former champion Yoshihide Muroya, in which pilots race remotely from their home airfields and results are combined using flight data.<\/div><\/details><details><summary>What planes flew in the Red Bull Air Race?<\/summary><div class=\"a\">Red Bull Air Race pilots mainly flew the Zivko Edge 540, the MXS-R and the Corvus Racer 540, all powered by Lycoming engines. The aircraft had wingspans under 7.6 metres and top speeds of roughly 400 km\/h, and pilots could be disqualified or penalised for exceeding strict g-limits.<\/div><\/details><\/div><\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@type\":\"FAQPage\",\"mainEntity\":[{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"What was the Red Bull Air Race?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"The Red Bull Air Race was a pylon air-racing series created by Red Bull, first flown in 2003. Pilots raced one at a time against the clock through a course of inflatable air gates about 25 metres tall, usually set up over water near city centres, in aerobatic aircraft such as the Zivko Edge 540.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"When did the Red Bull Air Race end?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Red Bull announced in May 2019 that the Red Bull Air Race World Championship would not continue after the 2019 season, which was cut to four races. The final race was flown at Chiba, Japan, on 8 September 2019. AOPA counted 90 races in the series since 2003.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who won the last Red Bull Air Race?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Australian pilot Matt Hall won the final Red Bull Air Race World Championship, clinching the 2019 title at Chiba, Japan, on 8 September 2019. Hall had finished second in three of the previous four seasons before becoming the last champion of the series.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Who won the most Red Bull Air Race titles?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"Britain\u2019s Paul Bonhomme is the most successful pilot in Red Bull Air Race history, with world titles in 2009, 2010 and 2015. Kirby Chambliss and Mike Mangold of the United States each won two titles, in 2004 and 2006 and in 2005 and 2007 respectively.\"}},{\"@type\":\"Question\",\"name\":\"Is the Red Bull Air Race coming back?\",\"acceptedAnswer\":{\"@type\":\"Answer\",\"text\":\"As of November 2026, the Red Bull Air Race has not returned. An FAI-backed World Championship Air Race planned for 2022 was cancelled. 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The aircraft had wingspans under 7.6 metres and top speeds of roughly 400 km\/h, and pilots could be disqualified or penalised for exceeding strict g-limits.\"}}]}<\/script><div style=\"background:#f0f4ff;border-left:4px solid #5C91FF;padding:16px 20px;margin:32px 0 8px\"><p style=\"margin:0 0 8px;font-weight:600;color:#333\">Related Posts<\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/reno-air-races-unlimited-class-end-roswell\/\">Reno Air Races: The End of the Fastest Motorsport on Earth<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/national-championship-air-races-roswell-2026-unlimited-class-returns\/\">National Championship Air Races: The Unlimiteds Return at Roswell<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/schneider-trophy-supermarine-s6b-spitfire-merlin\/\">The Air Race That Built the Spitfire<\/a><\/p><p style=\"margin:4px 0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/migflug.com\/afterburner\/roscoe-turner-air-racer-gilmore-lion\/\">The Air Racer Who Flew With a Pet Lion<\/a><\/p><\/div>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Red Bull Air Race sent aerobatic planes through 25-metre inflatable pylons from 2003 to 2019. Here is how it worked, who won, and what came next.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":31775412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"editor_notices":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[665,666],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31775555","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-aviation-world","category-history-and-legends"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Red Bull Air Race: The Pylon Series of 2003-2019 | MiGFlug<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Red Bull Air Race sent aerobatic planes through inflatable pylons from 2003 to 2019. 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