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Last year’s grand prix had to be cancelled following the unrest after initially being postponed and reinstated and Sunday’s event faced down many calls for it to suffer the same fate.
But, if anything, the ties with the kingdom have only been bound tighter with Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone saying he was committed to Bahrain ‘for as long as they want us’ and asserting thatall publicity was good publicity. He told GulfWeekly reporter Mai Al Khatib: “Absolutely! We will be coming back next year.”
Staff of two teams witnessed petrolbomb-throwing incidents and some members of the Sahara Force India team left Bahrain. But most of the travelling Formula One entourage had no interaction with the protests taking place mainly in and around villages.
Bahrain was the first country in the Middle East to host a grand prix, back in 2004, and owns 50 per cent of the McLaren Group, one of the leading Formula One championship contenders in both the drivers’ and constructors’ categories.
His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander, said it was important that last weekend’s race went ahead. “For those of us trying to navigate a way out of this political problem, having the race allows us to build bridges across communities, to get people working together. It allows us to celebrate our nation. It is an idea that is positive, not one that is divisive.”
His words were backed by fact. An independent survey released this week, conducted by Nielsen, showed that 77 per cent of Bahrainis supported the race.
In addition to this, there are very few countries that can claim that almost 10 per cent of its population attends its grand prix. Given these facts, and the incredible atmosphere at the track, there can be no doubt in my mind of what Bahrain thinks about F1,” said BIC chairman Zayed Alzayani, after congratulating German Sebastian Vettel and the rest of the Red Bull team on an ‘outstanding victory’ in Sunday’s grand prix
He added. “Hosting such a big event would not be possible without the enormous hard work of all involved, including the marshals, other volunteers and my team at BIC and I would like to thank all ofthem for their efforts.
I am pleased to say that we have had a great level of support. On Sunday we attracted 28,000 paying spectators to BIC, who enjoyed a great day of racing and entertainment.”
His Majesty King Hamad was among those who attended the climax of the three-day event and he thanked the teams for showing faith in the country by coming here. “We also look forward to welcoming youagain next year,” he said.
I also want to make clear my personal commitment to reform and reconciliation in our great country. The door is always open for sincere dialogue amongst all our people.
'Last month I received the report on progress made on the recommendations of the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry. It confirmed that broad and substantial progress on reform has alreadybeen made by the Government. We must of course continue the pace of reform.”p>
