Abu Dhabi GP?

According to ITV it's a done deal:

http://www.itv-f1.com/News_Article.aspx?PO_ID=38311

For those not familiar with the region, Abu Dhabi is an hour's drive down the coast from Dubai. It is also a forsaken hole of a place. Dubai Built a track a coupl eof years ago, but sheikh Mohammed reportedly balked at the sie of the bribe, er, race fee, that Bernie wanted. The track is quietly rotting in the sun. Even A1GP, founded by a Dubai sheikh, didn't return after a dismal turn-out for the inaugural race at the 'home" track of the series. According to the A1 guys I talked to, the track is "very tight," so it's probably just as well that F1 doesn't stage another procession there.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi has apparently ponied up enough to make Bernie smile, and the 8 lane expressway from here to Abu Dhabi will be busier than ever for a few days in 2009. People already stay in Dubai and fly to Bahrain because it's the only city around with enough hotel rooms. Abu Dhabi is worse, plus the night life there is rubbish.

So that's my hot tip: if you really want to come for the GP, book rooms in Dubai, and bring your crash helmet. We do, ater all, have the third most dangerous roads in the world...the other two are also in this region, and we're catching up fast!

 

It's no Cyclone, but Gauloises at the Meridien Hotel in Abu Dhabi has its own peculiar charm...