$7,500 for a F1 ticket

Lobster to whet the appetite, milk-fed veal for dinner and free flow of Mumm champagne – sprayed by drivers on the podium after Formula 1 Grands Prix – to quench the thirst. For the main course, the choicest view of the history-making SingTel Singapore Grand Prix – the sport's first night race.

All for $7,500 a person. That is how much a three-day admission to the exclusive Paddock Club will cost, according to Singapore GP, which yesterday put on sale corporate hospitality packages for the Sept 28 race.

It hopes to sell some 15,000 tickets for the hospitality suites. The event will allow for 80,000 spectators, and general ticket sales will begin late next month. While the prices for the other hospitality packages range from $3,500 to $6,500 a person, the Paddock Club – located above the teams' garages – is the best on offer. It is the only one that allows guests to visit the pit area on scheduled tours to get a close-up experience of F1 racing.

However, only 4,000 people will get to enjoy this luxury and maybe a chance to mix with drivers, and even celebrities from around the world. With teams and sponsors getting first bite, Singapore GP media and communications director Jonathan Hallett warned that tickets were very limited.

'There is very strong worldwide interest, given that this will be the first night race,' he stressed. Paddock Club prices for last season's races hovered around the $6,200 mark. More at StraitTimes.com