Australian F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo's "popularity is helping to drive" a A$2M ($1.5M) boost in ticket sales leading up to Sunday's Melbourne Grand Prix at Albert Park, according to Mark Fogarty of THE AGE. Race organizers are crediting Ricciardo's "rapid emergence as a potential future F1 world champion" for significant increases in pre-event bookings compared with last year. Australian Grand Prix CEO Andrew Westacott said, "There's definitely a Ricciardo factor in play. He resonates with the Australian public. Along with the initiatives that we've worked on for the past 12 months, he has led to ticket sales being up on the same time last year." The Australian Grand Prix has been focusing its advertising on Ricciardo since late last year, "banking on his breakout success" in '14 to attract a bigger crowd and more corporate hospitality sales. According to AGPC figures, the "Ricciardo factor" has "helped increase ticket pre-sales" by 5%, with a "final week rush for general admission tickets set to further boost the gain." Westacott estimates that Ricciardo's rise to become a front-runner "could add an extra 10,000 to the crowd" over the four days of the Australian GP. Westacott: "Everything's heading in the right direction. General admission sales are picking up each day." Lucrative grandstand ticket sales "are on course to rise" by up to 4%, while demand for corporate hospitality suites has "soared" by 8% (THE AGE, 3/9).
CALM AND COLLECTED: In Melbourne, Paul Gover reported the mystery surrounding Fernando Alonso's preseason crash and concussion is" unlikely to mean safety changes or a boycott" at the Australian Grand Prix. Head of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association and former F1 racer Alex Wurz "has called for calm and warned against knee-jerk safety changes." Wurz: "Firstly, we need to know if there are any immediate lessons we need to understand before Australia and the answer is 'no.' Understanding is one thing, drawing conclusions is another. I have asked the drivers to be patient" (HERALD SUN, 3/9).
