Counting down the top 10 stories that defined 2022
Published on Dec 31, 2022 at 3:00 PM (UTC+4)
by Alessandro Renesis
Last updated on Jan 16, 2023 at 10:41 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
From Charles Leclerc’s stolen Richard Mille to the $1.3 million McLaren P1 that was destroyed in Hurricane Ian, these are the stories that defined 2022.
Counting down from 10 to one, let’s dive in.
10. Saudi Arabia world cup players are given Rolls-Royce Phantoms
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The 2022 Qatar World Cup was controversial and got people talking.
Some amazing stories came out of the World Cup, including Salt Bae’s undue presence on the pitch and the ultra-expensive watches that players wore.
But Saudi Arabia beating Argentina in their opening game was by far and away the most talked about moment.
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Why? It’s because the Saudi prince was rumored to give each player a $450,000 Rolls-Royce Phantom as a reward.
But unfortunately it turned out to be just that, a rumor.
Obviously, the fact that Argentina ended up winning the World Cup made Saudi Arabia’s win even more iconic.
9. The world’s biggest Hummer
This is the world’s largest Hummer.
It’s the same size as a humpback whale and it’s as wide as three Tesla Model 3s side-by-side.
Officially called the ‘Rainbow Sheikh’, the Hummer is somehow road legal.
In fact, if you happen to live in the UAE, you may be able to spot it in Sharjah, about 18 miles from Dubai.
And it’s not like you can miss it.
It’s actually (a lot) larger than a bus.
8. Watches that cost more than a Bugatti
It’s crazy enough that there are watches that cost more than a Bugatti hypercar.
It’s even crazier there are so many that we could actually make a list.
Most names will ring a bell but the most important one probably won’t.
This is because the most expensive watch in the world is made by Graff, which is actually a Monaco-based interior design studio.
The timepiece in question is called the Graff Diamonds Hallucination and it costs, wait for it, $55 million.
You can buy about 18 Bugatti Chirons for that price.
7. The world’s longest car
This car is mental.
It’s based on a 1976 Cadillac Eldorado but it has 26 wheels and it’s 100 feet long – or 30 meters.
It is longer than some trains and it can fit up to 75 people inside.
The car is at the Dezerland Park Car Museum in Florida because unlike the Hummer, it’s not street-legal.
Unsurprisingly, it also holds a Guinness World Record.
6. A giant flying hotel for 5,000 people
This massive plane is actually a flying hotel, and it can accommodate up to 5,000 guests.
It has restaurants, bars, gyms, swimming pools and even a shopping mall.
What’s more, this concept is designed to run on nuclear-powered engines.
And this means that, in theory at least, it is clean.
The bad news is this is just a concept aircraft, and we probably won’t see a real-world version anytime soon.
5. Paul Walker’s Skyline
Paul Walker’s Skyline is by far and away the most popular Fast & Furious car.
First introduced in 2Fast 2Furious, the Skyline GT-R R34 makes several appearances in the franchise.
The blue model you see here was driven by Paul Walker’s character Brian O’Conner in Fast & Furious 4.
It is actually a one-of-a-kind model, for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, it was customized specifically for the film.
Secondly, it is the only bona fide Skyline from the movie because the other cars were just incomplete stunt cars.
4. Motorcycle with a Dodge Viper engine
Who wouldn’t want to own a motorcycle powered by an 8-liter V10 engine sourced from a Dodge Viper.
Well, a motorcycle enthusiast from the UK decided to build one.
Mind you, when we say ‘enthusiast’, we actually mean ‘fanatic’.
The bike now produces 500 hp and weighs more than most city cars.
And the best part? It has a top speed of 270 mph.
3. Charles Leclerc’s stolen Richard Mille
Back in April, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc had his Richard Mille watch stolen in Italy.
It was a one-off timepiece created for Leclerc himself and decorated with the driver’s initials.
The watch was worth about $400,000 when it was stolen and it later sold in the black market for ‘just’ $200,000.
According to the Italian police, the ‘job’ may have been commissioned and it may have been linked to a notorious gang from Italy’s Campania region.
2. The Tesla Bot
When he’s not busy making space rockets or buying Twitter, Elon Musk spends his time coming up with some seriously crazy ideas.
His latest crazy idea takes the shape of a 5-foot-8 humanoid robot designed to ‘eliminate boring tasks’.
Musk said the Tesla Bot can carry up to 20 kg and deadlift 68 kg.
It also has cameras to navigate and ‘see’ its environment.
Back in the spring, Musk said he was planning to launch the Tesla Bot in September.
We’re all familiar with Musk’s ‘optimistic’ deadlines, so it came as no surprise when this didn’t happen.
1. McLaren P1 destroyed by Hurricane Ian
This was the supercar story of the year.
In October, Hurricane Ian destroyed a $1.3 million McLaren P1 in Florida.
At first, we felt sorry for the owner because he’d just bought it the week prior.
However, it was later revealed that he quickly consoled himself with an even more expensive McLaren Speedtail.
The water-damaged McLaren P1 was put on sale and it ended up fetching $400,000.
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