Formula ONE in Valencia
On the 21st, 22nd, and the 23rd of August the 2009 edition of formula One was played out on the streets of Valencia for the second year. The weather could not have been more cooperative over all three days. There was still the shadow of Felipe Massa among the missing, and it’s clear that all the other drivers hold him in the highest regard. Fernando Alonso got to race after all as the stewards fined the team rather than banning them from appearing for their lapse in sending Alonso out onto the track with a wheel that was not properly secured in the last race. That definitely helped ticket sales, and as much as we all hoped for an Alonso win, the best he could do was sixth place.
Lewis Hamilton, a name we haven’t heard too often this year took pole position but was pipped at the post by Rubens Barrichello from Brasil. It was a stunning victory and in a sense it paid homage to Massa, who is also from Brasil. For Hamilton, he must be feeling cheated as it was a mechanical fault that held him back from what would have been only his second win of the season.
Remarkably, Jenson Button began the season so strong but finished this race back in seventh place, behind Fernando Alonso. Button leads the board with 72 points and the closest person to him only has 54, which seems to have him placed comfortably towards the championship, but it’s a long way to the end of the season.
This is only the second race season in Valencia and everybody seems to be getting comfortable with the hosting of the event, but there was a very subdued atmosphere this year. Mainly it was felt in ticket sales that started off being worryingly lacklustre. Organisers were forced to cut out one whole seating section that they feared they would not be able to sell. Last year the maximum seating capacity was 112,000, but this year that was cut back to 75,000, a shortfall of 37,000.
On the Friday practise session, paid attendance was down by only 283, On Saturday’s qualifying round ,paid admissions were down by almost 18,000, a staggering loss. It was simply the qualifying round, but on Sunday a total of 81,231 paid admissions were recorded as being sitting and standing, and that compared with 115,123 in 2008. In total, there were 52,137 fewer paid admissions and that must have organisers worried.
We can only hope that this is the effect of the economic crisis, and that the same thing is being seen all over the world. If it’s a Valencia effect the city may get another chance, but if it proves to be uneconomical to race here we may see another disaster like America’s Cup. That would not be a good thing! Let’s also hope that next year there will actually be a Formula One race season.
Copyright © 2009 Eugene Carmichael
On the 21st, 22nd, and the 23rd of August the 2009 edition of formula One was played out on the streets of Valencia for the second year. The weather could not have been more cooperative over all three days. There was still the shadow of Felipe Massa among the missing, and it’s clear that all the other drivers hold him in the highest regard. Fernando Alonso got to race after all as the stewards fined the team rather than banning them from appearing for their lapse in sending Alonso out onto the track with a wheel that was not properly secured in the last race. That definitely helped ticket sales, and as much as we all hoped for an Alonso win, the best he could do was sixth place.
Lewis Hamilton, a name we haven’t heard too often this year took pole position but was pipped at the post by Rubens Barrichello from Brasil. It was a stunning victory and in a sense it paid homage to Massa, who is also from Brasil. For Hamilton, he must be feeling cheated as it was a mechanical fault that held him back from what would have been only his second win of the season.
Remarkably, Jenson Button began the season so strong but finished this race back in seventh place, behind Fernando Alonso. Button leads the board with 72 points and the closest person to him only has 54, which seems to have him placed comfortably towards the championship, but it’s a long way to the end of the season.
This is only the second race season in Valencia and everybody seems to be getting comfortable with the hosting of the event, but there was a very subdued atmosphere this year. Mainly it was felt in ticket sales that started off being worryingly lacklustre. Organisers were forced to cut out one whole seating section that they feared they would not be able to sell. Last year the maximum seating capacity was 112,000, but this year that was cut back to 75,000, a shortfall of 37,000.
On the Friday practise session, paid attendance was down by only 283, On Saturday’s qualifying round ,paid admissions were down by almost 18,000, a staggering loss. It was simply the qualifying round, but on Sunday a total of 81,231 paid admissions were recorded as being sitting and standing, and that compared with 115,123 in 2008. In total, there were 52,137 fewer paid admissions and that must have organisers worried.
We can only hope that this is the effect of the economic crisis, and that the same thing is being seen all over the world. If it’s a Valencia effect the city may get another chance, but if it proves to be uneconomical to race here we may see another disaster like America’s Cup. That would not be a good thing! Let’s also hope that next year there will actually be a Formula One race season.
Copyright © 2009 Eugene Carmichael
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