Spectacular long queues for up close and personal experience

Manama : From the elderly to the youngest race-car fanatics, many lined up in large numbers for the ‘meet and greet’ with their favourite Formula 1 drivers in an autograph session that took place from 12.30pm to 1.30pm yesterday. The second day of the 2017 Bahrain Grand Prix saw a larger crowd gathering from the earlier hours of the day itself, mainly due to the autograph session that had many eager fans waiting in long queues for hours to catch a  close glimpse of their favourite race car drivers.

Undoubtedly the longest waiting lines were for the race teams ‘Mercedes’, ‘Ferrari’ and ‘Red Bull Racing’. Speaking to DT News, John Burton and Gayle who were waiting in line for more than an hour, stated how they wanted to get an autograph of Lewis Hamilton and in order to not miss the chance, they positioned themselves in the queue even before the scheduled time. 

“It’s Lewis, the greatest sports star, which is why the heat doesn’t matter at all when it comes to waiting for hours,” John said.  

The lucky ones who were able to get a closer look of their favourite drivers also managed to click a picture, get their autographs and even share a laugh or two. Considering it to be the major highlight of their attendance of the F1 in Bahrain this year, DT News spoke to a couple who had come all the way from Western Australia to support and meet fellow Western Australian ‘Daniel Ricciardo.’ 

81-year-old Ed Williamson stated: “Despite the very long flight of 12 hours, we wanted to come to Bahrain to support Daniel and we love the energy and ambience of this country.” 

His wife, Floril stated how they were extremely excited to get his autograph on a picture of their granddaughter and great-grand daughter. “We love the sports and we are glad we were able to come to Bahrain, second year in a row,” she said.