Abu Dhabi 'in F1 for the long term'

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The man in charge of staging the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has insisted that Formula One is here to stay in Abu Dhabi for the long term.

Al Tareq Al Ameri, Chief Executive Officer of Yas Marina Circuit, said that he hoped the race - which was first staged in 2009 - would continue to be run in the country for many years to come.

"Absolutely, we’re here for the long term," he told Gulf News. "We’ll continue our hard work to deliver a fantastic event for our customers and work with Formula One so that all of the Abu Dhabi stakeholders continue to get as much out of it as we grow and move towards the future.

"[Ticket] sales started back in March and we have been selling well all year. The international market has again shown great interest in our event and we look forward to seeing them here this November. Equally, the local fans took advantage of our early-bird discounts to purchase early."

Al Ameri explained that the Formula One race was the circuit's tentpole event for the entire year.

"It’s the biggest event of the year; the buzz, the excitement really are electric. It’s important that we present ourselves successfully to the world stage and that’s what we try to do with the Grand Prix.

"Every year we look to improve and build on the previous year’s success. Obviously what happens on track is key for us. This year, it’s looking good as Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton fight it out for the championship. There are no guarantees, of course, but it looks like that battle could go to the last race.

"It’s all about the weekend. For the motorsport fans, you have the on-track action with GP2 and GP3 as well as the Formula One racing itself. But it’s also much more than that. It’s about a weekend of fantastic entertainment off-track as well as on-track.

"It’s a great opportunity for people to come together, have fun, relax and enjoy the atmosphere.

"It’s an honour for us to deliver an event on this scale and be responsible for that delivery at Yas Marina Circuit. The way we work across all the stakeholders is a testament to Abu Dhabi also. It is a truly collective effort and it is something we should all be very proud of."

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.