Keep The Grand Prix In Melbourne!

[The STiG]

DAMN DAMN DAMN.... missed it.

Different POLL this morning.

Ada///M.

[Snowman]

Everyone in Australia could vote yes on that poll and it won't mean jack. It's going to come down to $$$ and in the end we are going to lose it unfotunately.

[Phatboy]

Isn't our GP going to Singapore for the night race in a few months?

[dezz]

THE Brumby Government has struck a deal for Melbourne to keep the Formula One Grand Prix until 2015.

Under the verbal agreement, expected to be signed off within days, the Government and the international Grand Prix bosses have consented to a five-year extension.

That would see the international race stay at Albert Park until at least 2015.

There had been doubts the race would go on in Melbourne after running at losses of up to $160 million in the past 12 years.

A senior government source last night confirmed the race would remain in Melbourne, saying an announcement was "imminent".

"We haven't signed the deal, but we're going to quite soon," the source said.

The deal is expected to include a move to later race start times -- probably about 5pm -- to attract a wider European television audience.

But it will not be a night race.

F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone had told the Sunday Herald Sun he would take Melbourne's race to "India, Russia or Korea" unless it was staged at night.

He wasn't available last night to discuss the deal or his reasons for his backflip on Melbourne retaining the race.

Tourism and Major Events Minister Tim Holding said the race would not start after dark.

"We have ruled out a night Grand Prix and that is not negotiable," he said.

"This is a good event for the state. It's one we want to keep and we'll be working hard to ensure that it does remain here in Melbourne in the years ahead."

The government source said Mr Brumby and Mr Ecclestone had reached a compromise.

"They've come to an agreement," the source said.

Melbourne race organisers this year offered an olive branch to Mr Ecclestone and the FIA by moving the race starting time from 2pm to 3.30pm.

Next year's race will start at 5pm and future events may start at a similar time or even slightly later.

Melbourne's retention of the Australian Grand Prix spoils the party for interstate raiders who wanted to lure it to NSW, Queensland and South Australia.

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...230-661,00.html

[Bec]

WOW

i bet you it was our voting in the poll that made all the difference - hehehe

anyways... its great news

[The STiG]

The information I have is the deal is CLOSE to being done but has not been finalised with Bernie.

Hopefully this will be done in the coming weeks. Australian F1 Officials are waiting to hear if moving the F1GP back to 5PM will appease Bernie.

Ada///M.

[khunjeng]

Lets get a credible news report source.

TAXPAYERS could face a big jump in the cost of hosting the Australian Grand Prix after 2010 if Victoria wins the right to keep the car race in Melbourne.

An analysis of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation's financial reports for the past seven years shows that in 2007, the first year of a four-year contract extension, event management and staging costs jumped 25%.

The average increase over the six previous years was 5.1%.

The costs are believed to include the secret licence fees paid to formula one supremo Bernie Ecclestone. The event management and staging fees jumped from $33 million in 2006 to $41.3 million last year.

The cost to taxpayers of staging the Grand Prix in Melbourne has increased from $10.6 million in 2003 to $34.6 million last year.

Mr Ecclestone is believed to have put an offer for Melbourne to retain the race beyond 2010 during a two-hour meeting with Australian Grand Prix chairman Ron Walker in London on Monday. Mr Walker is briefing State Government officials on the details, with Government insiders hopeful an agreement can be reached.

But Government and Grand Prix sources said negotiations were at a delicate stage and there was no "done deal".

Mr Walker told The Age last night the issue of night racing should not impede an agreement. "The impasse (on whether the race should be held at night) has been resolved in a very amicable way - but in the end it will be the Government's decision."

Acting Premier Rob Hulls said yesterday that the Government still insisted there would be no night race. It has indicated it would be willing to allow a twilight race, starting about 5pm.

Sources said the Government was prepared to pay more for the race in future, but not as much as Mr Ecclestone was hoping for.

"We want to keep the Grand Prix but we're not prepared to pay any price for it," Mr Hulls said yesterday. "We do not have an open cheque book."

Mr Walker said: "I'm pretty confident that if both parties come together in the art of co-operation that we'll get a deal done. But that's up to the Government, not me."

Greens MP Greg Barber said the costs of staging the Grand Prix should be fully disclosed. He said support for the event had waned.

But Victorian Events Industry Council chief executive Wayne Kayler-Thomson said it was a linchpin of the major events calendar. "It underpins thousands of jobs … and provides excellent exposure for Melbourne worldwide through a massive television audience," he said.

http://www.theage.com.au/national/grand-pr...80617-2s8p.html

[Phatboy]

Well sounds pretty good to me.

The cost to taxpayers would be like average $15-20 per Victorian taxpayer each year it runs. That's ok for having the GP. They also don't estimate how much tourism and local economical benefits it may generate.

One question, why not a night race? I reckon it would be awesome. Like night-time snowboarding on Bullar. Is it the St Kilda yuppy/guppy parade who need their sleep?

[dezz]

Do you have any idea what it would cost to light the track to the FIA's standards for a race?

Not to mention the logistical side of it...It's a mammoth task.

[Phatboy]

Do you have any idea what it would cost to light the track to the FIA's standards for a race?

Not to mention the logistical side of it...It's a mammoth task.

Surely that cost would be offset by everyone in Europe/US able to watch the GP live. Thats a far few million people. The advertising companies would not exactly get pennies and dimes from the ad slots.

[The STiG]

Yes it would be good but we would not see a cent of that Coin generated by the extra ppl watching the race in Europe.

Personally, I would be happy with a time shift to 5PM.

Ada///M.

[Phatboy]

Yes it would be good but we would not see a cent of that Coin generated by the extra ppl watching the race in Europe.

Personally, I would be happy with a time shift to 5PM.

Ada///M.

I thought that TV broadcasters overseas had to pay the GP organisers for the rights to broadcast live back in their countries. I'm sure otherwise overseas TV cameras won't be allowed in the media pits in the GP. Obviously the bigger the potential audience in an overseas country the more money the GP organisers will demand from broadcasters.

[The STiG]

I thought that TV broadcasters overseas had to pay the GP organisers for the rights to broadcast live back in their countries. I'm sure otherwise overseas TV cameras won't be allowed in the media pits in the GP. Obviously the bigger the potential audience in an overseas country the more money the GP organisers will demand from broadcasters.

I cant confirm, but I cant see each TV channel paying Ch 10 for their coverage, we would get a percentage of it but it would be minimal.

Ch 10 would then have to pay FIA aka Ferrari aka Bernie to show each set of qualifying sessions including the race. Certainly BIG BUCKS.

I believe if we were to get extra coin by putting the race later than 5PM, the AUS F1GP Comm would seriously think about it.

Still no public decision made on all this, but everything is crossed.

Great to see we have some passionate F1 Supporters here too.

Ada///M.

[Phatboy]

Hmm.. ok, just hope we get to keep it.

I for one don't mind at all a night GP.