Despite huge losses, Aussie GP to continue
The F1 supremo, in Melbourne after talks with Singapore officials about a possible future race in the Asian island state, called reports that said the Albert Park venue was empty on the first days of the 2007 event "crazy".
More than 45,000 paying spectators attended the circuit on Thursday, when F1 cars are missing from the program, and on Friday organizers reported a crowd of 75,000.
"There's no other circuit in the world on a Thursday that gets 45,000 people," Ecclestone told Southern Cross Broadcasting. [Editor's Note: Wrong Bernie, the Aussie Champ Car race gets those numbers on Thursday too.]
"I mean it's completely crazy that people are talking about this."
Melbourne has a contract to host formula one until 2010, and 76-year-old Ecclestone played down concerns that the city is likely to lose its race.
He is a close ally of race promoter Ron Walker, who Bernie said puts in a "monumental effort" to stage the event.
"So obviously that will be taken into consideration," Bernie suggested.
Ron Walker commented: "It took us years to get (the grand prix) and we are certainly not going to let it go."
03/16/07 No F1 race promoter turns a profit under Bernie Ecclestone's system. In fact most lose huge amounts of money and only government subsidies keep them afloat.
The Australian Grand Prix Corporation is facing the prospect of heavier losses this year after failing to keep the popular V8 Supercars on the support bill. The financial loss for the Aussie race is expected to be around $5million through lost sponsorship, hospitality and ticket sales, but chairman Ron Walker is adamant that the touring car series will return in future – especially if the grand prix can negotiate a date change. The government is usually willing to cover the losses because of the economic benefit to their city.
Flying in from meetings in Singapore likely to confirm the country as the latest addition to an already over-crowded calendar, and possibly to even announce an extension for the Aussie event, Ecclestone dismissed rumors of low crowd numbers being a danger to the race, pointing out that Melbourne's Albert Park surpasses attendance figures for most circuit, particularly on the day before F1 track action begins.
I saw something in the papers today saying there was nobody here yesterday," Ecclestone told Southern Cross Broadcasting, "There's no other circuit in the world on a Thursday that gets more than 45,000 people, so it's completely crazy that people are talking about this."
Although the crowd, which was reported to be around 47,500, was down on the high point of Thursday attendances in the twelve-year history of the Melbourne round, Ecclestone admitted that Australia's place on the calendar would be debated on the quality of the event when its contract expires in 2010.
"It's part of the entertainment mix and if there is a chance [the V8s] would come back to Melbourne, I would talk to Mr. Ecclestone about it," Walker told Melbourne's The Age newspaper, "The discussions are completed. They've been going on for some time and, hopefully, sometime before the F1 race happens, there'll be some good news.
I think Melbourne is privileged to have this race – it took us years to get it and we are certainly not going to let it go."