Record crowd for Bahrain Grand Prix

Manama : Following the conclusion of the 2017 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix, Arif Rahimi, Chairman of the Bahrain International Circuit issued a statement saying, “I offer our congratulations to Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari on a superb victory under the lights here at the BIC. 

With another record crowd of 33,000 today and 93,000 over the weekend, all our main stands were completely sold out, as well as Paddock Club and corporate boxes for the first time ever. We have now broken our race day attendance records every year since we began racing under lights and expect that to continue for many years to come, as we continue to benefit from the ever-growing interest in Formula One in the region.

“As the sport enters a new era under the ownership of Liberty, we look forward to working closely with them as we share new ideas of how to make the race weekend even more spectacular for fans. It is clear to us that they share a similar vision for the future of the sport and we will work hard alongside them in making that happen.

“I offer my sincerest thanks to those who have contributed to the success of the weekend, from the team here at the BIC, to the race teams, our colleagues at the FIA and Formula One Management, and of course the fans.”

This year the record exceeded the 2016 attendance with 32.500 on race day and 92,000 over the three days.

Shaikh Salman bin Isa Al-Khalifa, Chief Executive of the Bahrain International Circuit, added: “The crowds here have yet again been treated to an incredible weekend of motorsport. The spectacle of racing under lights in the desert has without doubt been made even better with the new faster cars, combined with a hugely competitive field.

“Putting on a race weekend of this nature is a major undertaking and I thank all those involved for making it such as success. I particularly thank the huge support from the Government ministries, my team here at the BIC, as well as our partners and sponsors.”