Daniel Ricciardo has expressed his concern over the expensive ticket prices for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
A base ticket to the event being held this weekend retail at $966 USD, which equates to around $1,493 AUD.
It’s the highest based ticket price in the history of the F1, and it doesn’t even provide a view of the actual circuit.
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Ricciardo explained that he is “aware” of the high prices, expressing his disappointment that some fans may not be able to afford the experience.
“I did hear some entry-level prices. I’m well aware that not everyone can afford those,” Ricciardo told RaceFans.
“I would love that everyone can have the option to attend.”
The 34-year-old admitted that while he doesn’t know a lot about what goes on behind the scenes, he remains disappointed that his fans may miss out on seeing him in action due to the sky-high prices.
“Obviously I’m not the business behind the sport. I don’t want to say it’s my ignorance, but I would still love that the general admission (ticket) is affordable for anyone, whatever job they have,” he said.
“Of course if there’s then some crazy packages and people want to spend that money, all good, so be it.
“But I guess I don’t like to hear ‘we would have loved to come, but we just simply couldn’t afford it’. That’s obviously a little bit tough.”
Ricciardo urged the F1 to find the sweet spot for all fans to access the race weekend, which is set top be staged on Friday night (practice), Saturday evening (qualifying) and Sunday afternoon (main race) AEDT.
“Again, I’m not saying I agree with it, but maybe this is that little outlier of a weekend where that’s the crowd that they kind of want to go after,” Ricciardo said.
“And if that’s what it is, then obviously that’s their kind of business plan. I’m not really sure where they are with it.
“Obviously everyone’s got different lifestyles and levels of income, so it would be nice that the sport remains accessible for everyone.”
Practice 1 began on Friday afternoon (AEDT), but was cancelled after 20 minutes, due to a pot hole that caused Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari to be forced to stop racing.
Practice 2 is set to start at midnight local time (Friday 7pm AEDT).
Practice 3 on Friday (local time) begins at 8.30pm (Saturday 3.30pm AEDT) before qualifying at midnight (Saturday 7pm AEDT) into the early hours of the next morning.
The main race will be held on Sunday, November 19 at 5pm (AEDT).