Kia honors Rafael Nadal with clay-sculpted EV4 GT

Kia has created a life-sized clay model of its EV4 GT to honor tennis legend Rafael Nadal. The sculpture, titled ‘King of Clay’, was crafted using a mixture of traditional automotive modeling clay and red clay soil sourced directly from the tennis courts where Nadal earned 63 career singles titles.

Presented at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, the unique piece celebrates the long-standing partnership between the Korean automaker and the Spanish athlete, which began in 2004. The model features orange-red coloring and white adhesive lines designed to evoke the appearance of a tennis court.

Specific details engraved on the sculpture commemorate Nadal’s career milestones, including his 50 consecutive sets won on clay and his five seasons ranked as world number one. Kia noted that these commemorative design elements are exclusive to this artwork and will not be included in the production version of the EV4 GT.