Inaugural Indian Grand Prix set to overcome minor hurdles before time – Formula 1 news
The organisers of the inaugural 2011 Indian Grand Prix are hoping to overcome minor hurdles before the main event that gets underway this weekend, Friday, October 28.
The Buddh International Circuit, the venue for the Indian GP, has a capacity of accommodating 120,000 people, however, only 80,000 tickets have been sold as of yet. In a bid to reach capacity, the organisers have slashed ticket prices ahead of the landmark
event.
“We have sold close to 80,000 tickets which is pretty encouraging considering that it’s the first F1 race ever in the country,” confirmed a spokesman for race promoter Jaypee. “Of course we would have been happier had we sold off 90 per cent tickets because
ticket sales are the only source of revenue for us. But there are still a few days to go and we are keeping our fingers crossed.”
Teams and drivers have had mixed reaction towards the reception and hospitality provided. Virgin driver Timo Glock told Germany’s T-Online, “I hope the fans take us closer to the heart than the local immigration authorities did.”
Nico Rosberg and Lotus driver Heikki Kovalainen faced some hurdles of their own. They were initially denied entry to India and had to fill out lots of paperwork, which did not go down too well with both the drivers.
The Indian Grand Prix, from the early stages has been marred with quite a few controversies. Initially, there was the scare of Formula 1 teams and drivers being taxed for the time they were going to stay in India. Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone sorted
those issues out and cleared every misconceptions about the problem.
Then there is the issue of the local farmers of the Greater Noida area staging a protest, because they feel the organisers have not given appropriate compensation for the land acquired to build the circuit.
However, the organisers have managed to overcome the hurdles and are destined to inaugurate the Buddh International Circuit in grand fashion and for the good of the sport. For all the fans around the globe, the historic event will turn out to be a huge success.
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