Thousands flock to Lygon Street for 2007 GP Festival
Tens of thousands converged on Melbourne’s Lygon Street today to join in the festivities of the 2007 Grand Prix Festival – Celebrating Ferrari’s 60th Anniversary. The joint initiative between the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Ferrari and the City of Melbourne, saw Lygon Street bathe in a sea of red in a spectacular curtain-raiser to the 2007 FORMULA 1™ ING Australian Grand Prix.
The crowd was treated to a day of Grand Prix themed activities, the highlight of which was a demonstration drive of a Ferrari Formula One car, driven by Scuderia Ferrari test driver, Marc Gené.
Tim Bamford, CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, was thrilled with the turn-out of the well behaved crowd.
“Today was a unique opportunity for Melburnians to get up close and personal with a magnificent Ferrari Formula One car right in the heart of the city’s iconic Little Italy precinct,” said Mr Bamford.
“It was brilliant to see so many families enjoying an entire day of free entertainment with the main attraction of course being the low-speed demonstration drive of the very same car driven by the sport’s most prolific driver, Michael Schumacher, in last year’s Formula One World Championship season.”
Additionally, a cavalcade of both modern and historic Ferrari road cars made a series of low-speed processions down Lygon Street to the delight of the crowd.
The event has now sent Melbourne into Grand Prix fever, with the opening race of the season now just two weeks away.
This year is shaping up to be a bumper one for race goers with an unprecedented line-up of off-track entertainment complementing the four days of on-track high octane action.
