Nigar Arpadarai: "Preparations for Baku Grand Prix well under way"

This year Baku will host the F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which is scheduled to take place on the weekend of 23rd -25th June, 2017. On the eve of the most prestigious competitions in the world of auto racing, Vestnik Kavkaza talked with the head of the marketing and communications department of Baku City Circuit, Nigar Arpadarai.

- At what stage is the preparation for F1 Grand Prix in Baku?

- Preparations are well under way. Ticket sales within the Early Bird discount campaign have been started on December 2 (discounts of up to 30%), today, by the way, is the last day. The trend is already clear: the majority of tickets is bought by foreigners from Russia, Great Britain, other European, as well as Arab countries. Azerbaijanis are also buying tickets, we are pleased with the sales results. Already in February we will begin construction of the pit building, and in May the installation of barriers and concrete blocks will take place to bring the city in the form required for the route.

- What is the difference between this Grand Prix and last year's one?

- The configuration of the route and the number of the stands do not change - just like last year, we expect about 30 thousand spectators. But the prices will be different: if in 2016 they were in US dollars, this year they will be in manats. And if last year there were three-day tickets and one-day tickets for Friday, now we also sell one-day tickets for both Saturday and Sunday. The are more ticket categories as a whole, for example, there are separate tickets for children - it was done to ensure that people could see the race how they want.

- If there is a growing interest in the Baku Grand Prix from the Russians?

- Russia is one of the major markets here, and we do see a considerable interest in the racing from the Russians. Official results of the sale of tickets will be released soon, but I can already tell that a lot of tickets were bought from Russia.

- What is Baku City Circuit relationship with Russian organizers of the F1 Grand Prix?

- Last year we visited all Grand Prix tournaments, studied the experience of the organizers, talked a lot. We have very good relations with the Grand Prix of Sochi, as well as with the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Singapore Grand Prix. This year, there were less contacts, since we have formed a team that is able to organize everything itself.

- Has the change of the Formula-1 CEO had any influence on the Grand Prix Baku?

- This event affected both the Formula 1 and 20 countries participating in it, because Bernie Ecclestone has been a powerful figure. He was very fond of Baku, loved the city. At the same time, no contract has been canceled, no relationship has changed between the companies because of his resignation. F1 remained the same structure as it was under Ecclestone. Let me remind you that we have a 10-year contract with the Formula 1 Group and, in spite of the new people in the leadership, which is necessary to establish relations, nothing changes for the Grand Prix Baku.