The Premier Padel show starts again: Coello and Tapia the pair to beat, the first Paula vs. Ari clash

The wait for padel fans around the world is over. From Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, just as in the past two years, the Premier Padel show starts again, with the first stop of a journey that will travel across the globe all the way to the Finals in Barcelona. Months to be fully experienced, with confirmed pairs, great comebacks and major novelties, both among the players and with the introduction of the new Star Point, the scoring system that comes into force on the circuit from 2026.

MEN In the men’s draw, featuring 48 pairs with the top 16 entering directly in the second round, the season resumes with Arturo Coello and Agustin Tapia (13 titles last year, including Riyadh) confirmed as the number 1 seeds, and Fede Chingotto and Ale Galan (eight titles, including the FIP World Cup Pairs) as their main challengers. The number 3 seeded pair marks a comeback, that of Franco Stupaczuk and Mike Yanguas, followed in the entry list by Leo Augsburger and Juan Lebron, who won in Riyadh in 2024 alongside Galan. Paquito Navarro will play with Fran Guerrero, while Javi Leal and Jon Sanz will team up awaiting the return of Coki Nieto and Pablo Cardona. Juan Cruz Belluati and Facundo Dominguez, or a pair coming from the qualifiers, will be the first opponents for Coello and Tapia, who in the quarterfinals could meet Momo Gonzalez and Martin Di Nenno (6). The other potential quarterfinals: Leal/Sanz (7) vs Lebron/Augsburger (4), Yanguas/Stupaczuk (3) vs Navarro/Guerrero (5), Garrido/Bergamini (8) vs Chingotto/Galan (2).

 

WOMEN The Riyadh Season P1 will be the first tournament in which Ari Sanchez and Paula Josemaria could face each other as opponents: behind Delfi Brea and Gemma Triay, the number 1 seeds, a true revolution has taken place, with Bea Gonzalez and Paula Josemaria as the number 2 seeds, Andrea Ustero and Ari Sanchez as number 3, and Claudia Fernandez and Sofia Araujo as number 4. It was precisely Ari and Paula who won the two editions of the P1 held so far in Saudi Arabia, but this time they could meet one another in the semifinal of the bottom half of the draw. Among the new pairs, keep an eye also on Marta Ortega and Martina Calvo, with the very young Spaniard expected to enjoy a breakthrough season. It will be an unmissable week; the journey starts again.