The Boonta Eve Classic, Boonta Eve Podrace, Boonta Eve Classic Podrace or simply Boonta Eve was the largest annual podrace in the galaxy^[6] and cultural event^[7] on Tatooine. It took place in the Grand Arena in Mos Espa and the Mos Espa podrace circuit.^[5] The event was held by the Hutt Clan to commemorate the holiday Boonta Eve,^[8] and was recorded by numerous Hologlide J57 cam droids.^[3] The race had the highest mortality rate of all podrace competitions in the galaxy.^[9]

One such race, held in 32 BBY,^[2] was presided over by the grandmaster host of the Boonta Eve Classic Jabba the Hutt.^[1][9] This race was attacked by Orr'UrRuuR'R and his tribe, who fired at the racers with their slugthrowers, and the winner of that race was Anakin Skywalker,^[1] who finished in 15 minutes and 42 seconds. Only 6 racers finished, 33% of the initial 18 participants, and one competitor, Ratts Tyerell, was killed in a violent head-on accident at the Laguna Caves on the first lap.^[3] In the years that followed, Jabba had the number of laps reduced to two, and added Dune-Pipes to the Hutt Flats in order to make the race more profitable.^[10]

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Behind the scenes[]

The Boonta Eve Classic appeared in the 1999 film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace, the first installment of the Star Wars prequel trilogy.^[1]

According to concept artist Doug Chiang, director George Lucas wanted a recognizable but distinct terrain for the race, reason for which Chiang and the production crew mixed and condensed real locations and exaggerated the scale to add that 20% extra terrain that made it unique. Topo maps were made so Lucas could establish the route and configure canyons and plateaus which could constitute into recognizable landmarks. With such map, they timed the race to see how many laps could be completed in eight minutes at speeds of more than 900 kilometers per hour in order to determine the length of the course. Afterwards, they added obstacles in the quieter sections, while others were simplified in areas of greater visual clarity.^[5]

In the audio commentary on the Episode I DVD, visual effects supervisor John Knoll points out that in a shot of the scene of Sebulba riding just behind Anakin Skywalker, with Anakin's head nearly in the connecting current between the pod engines, it's possible to see that Sebulba isn't present in his pod.^[11]

Appearances[]

Non-canon appearances[]

• LEGO Star Wars: Droid Tales — "Exit from Endor" (In flashback(s))
• "The Racing Winner" — LEGO Star Wars 57 (In flashback(s))
• The LEGO Star Wars Holiday Special
• LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga

Sources[]

Notes and references[]