Round 2 Report｜Title Defender Muroya Claims First Win of the Season, Outpaces Rising Star Deliu to Take Championship Lead

The 2025 AIR RACE X season began with Patrick Davidson (South Africa) leading the standings, with Japan’s Yoshihide Muroya—defending champion—trailing by just 10 points. Round 2 featured a three-part track layout that demanded a high level of technical skill and tactical awareness from the pilots.

The first section, Slalom, required smooth, lateral transitions with precise control, directly impacting lap times. In the High & Low Turns, pilots had to manage consecutive altitude changes while enduring over 10G of force, making precision entry angles and physical strength critical. The final section, Final Sprint, tested a pilot’s acceleration control and line discipline to the limit.

Qualifying saw four pilots break the 60-second barrier: 2024 champion Muroya, points leader Davidson, second-year Australian pilot Emma McDonald, and new generation pilot Aarron Deliu, also from Australia.

It was Deliu who stunned the field, clocking a blistering 57.335—the only sub-58-second time of the session—an extraordinary performance in his second AIR RACE X race.

Patrick Davidson, piloted a legendary aircraft once flown by the late Hannes Arch (Austria), the 2008 champion.

Aarron Deliu meanwhile flew the same race plane that German pilot Matthias Dolderer used to win the 2016 world championship, Aarron’s ability to extract top performance from such a storied machine hinted at a new era in the sport.

Emma McDonald, in her second season, flew the former aircraft of her mentor, 2019 world champion Matt Hall (Australia). Despite it being her first race in this aircraft, she quickly adapted and posted competitive times.

This clash of new-generation pilots flying historic championship-winning machines embodied the AIR RACE X spirit of bridging past and future.

The top four qualifiers—Davidson, Deliu, McDonald and Muroya advanced to the semifinals. Muroya delivered a masterclass in precision, setting a new track record of 57.005. His newly fitted winglets, designed for enhanced aerodynamic efficiency, added both stability and sharpness to his performance.

In Semifinal Heat A, Muroya faced Davidson in a tense showdown. In the High & Low Turn section, Muroya’s smooth entries and minimal energy loss helped him pull ahead and secure victory.

In Heat B, Deliu defeated McDonald in an all-Australian duel. He built an early lead in the Slalom section and held his line through to the finish with consistent flying.

The final pitted defending champion Muroya against rising star Deliu. Before the race, Deliu offered a humble comparison:

“Muroya is like Lewis Hamilton—an experienced and dominant force. I’m more like Kimi Antonelli, still early in my journey.”

The opening stages were evenly matched, but Muroya gained ground in the High Turn section. Deliu fought hard to close the gap but made a costly mistake in the second Low Turn, losing his line into the next gate.

That error proved decisive; Muroya finished with a time of 57.930, while Deliu crossed in 60.568. It was a convincing win that highlighted Muroya’s control, composure, and championship pedigree.

In the 3rd third-place match, Davidson defeated McDonald to secure a spot on the podium. Final placements for 5th through 8th were determined by quarterfinal times.

With the win and qualifying points, Muroya now leads the championship with 30 points, just two ahead of Davidson. Deliu, with 26 points, remains in close contention, setting the stage for a three-way battle for the title.

The final round of the 2025 season, AIR RACE X 2025 SEKISUI HOUSE OSAKA UMEKITA DIGITAL RACE, will be held on Saturday, September 6. It marks AIR RACE X’s long-awaited debut in the Kansai region, and the championship will be decided in one epic showdown.

Don’t miss the most thrilling race of the season—where legacy, momentum, and glory collide.

Text by Tamaki Sakimura