18/10/2006
NEWS STORY
Tickets for the historic A1GP World Cup of Motorsport meeting in Taupo between January 18-21, 2007 will go on sale through www.a1gp.com and Ticketek next Wednesday.
Organisers have been able to finalise ticketing numbers after sourcing grandstand seating out of Asia.
A1 Team.NZL corporate affairs director Bob McMurray said event directors undertook a massive search for seating to cope with expected crowd numbers.
"We couldn't get sufficient seats in Australia or New Zealand, so we're having them specially made in China," McMurray said. "We tried to get a few more seats made, but we're comfortable with a capacity of thirty-five thousand in this first year."
The stands will accommodate 25,000 spectators with room for up to 5,000 on grass embankments. Corporate hospitality will account for a further 5,000, bringing the crowd total to 35,000.
Thursday will be a free day for spectators and ticket prices encompassing the remaining three days range from $295 for quality grandstand seats to $90 for General Admission.
David Steele, managing director of track managers MIT, said it is a major relief to have the tickets available to the public. "I had a call from the Taupo Information Centre on Monday asking when tickets would be available because they had had twenty calls that morning alone," Steele said.
McMurray said it was difficult to gauge how many overseas visitors would be attending, but he expected Europeans, in particular, to wrap a holiday around the Taupo event and the Australian meeting in Sydney just a fortnight later.
"We've fielded enquiries from all over the globe and it seems that the two meetings in Australasia are being ear-marked as priorities to attend," he said.
"There's no doubt the motorsport world will have its eyes locked on Taupo that weekend, but we're confident the majority of spectators will be Kiwis supporting the New Zealand car."
McMurray says the event will be action-packed given the quality of support races, with New Zealand V8s, Porshe GT3s and Toyota open-wheelers all gunning for New Zealand Championship points. The BMW Mini Challenge and races for Formula Fords and NZ Production Cars complete an extensive programme.
"But it won't just be petrol heads in heaven," McMurray said. "We know that a lot of spectators who haven't followed motorsport are keen to attend because it's a world-class event and Taupo will be going off!"
Commercial accommodation in Taupo is at a premium already, but Glenda Reid, who is coordinating accommodation for Destination Lake Taupo, says Rotorua is proving to be a popular backstop and Taupo residents are offering their homes for short-term rentals.
Accommodation can be sourced via email at a1gp@laketauponz.com.