ABU DHABI // The capital was confirmed as the host of next year's grand prix finale when the sport's ruling body finalised its official calendar today.
At a meeting in Paris the World Motor Sport Council agreed that Abu Dhabi's first Formula One race, to be held on Nov 15, would provide the showpiece ending to the next season.
The date was first announced in June, with Abu Dhabi replacing the previous finale, the Brazilian Grand Prix in Sao Paolo at Interlagos.
Traditionally the final race is the most anticipated of the entire calendar, and a potential title decider, which means the racing world will be focusing on the Yas Marina Circuit.
Philippe Gurdjian, the chief executive of Abu Dhabi Motor Sport Management (ADMM), who previously helped manage the Bahrain and Malaysia grands prix, was not present at the World Motor Sport Council meeting and was unavailable for comment last night.
A spokeswoman for the International Automobile Federation confirmed that the 2009 calendar was "a final, final calendar". Dates can only be changed in extraordinary circumstances.
In June, Khaldoon al Mubarak, the chairman of race organisers for ADMM and the Executive Affairs Authority, said: "We are delighted with [the date] as this is the last race of the season and potentially the championship decider.
"This timing also ensures that visitors to the emirate will be able to enjoy some of the best weather that Abu Dhabi has to offer."
Abu Dhabi's race, which will follow two days of practice and qualifying sessions, will be preceded by the Brazilian Grand Prix on Nov 1.
Other alterations to the calendar, which begins on March 29 in Melbourne, Australia, include the addition of a month-long summer break between the Hungarian Grand Prix on July 26 and the European Grand Prix on Aug 23.
Most surprising was the announcement that the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal had been dropped from the calendar, meaning there will be no F1 race in North America next year. No reason was given for the move, which means the season will still have 18 races.
Once the race finally takes place, Abu Dhabi is almost guaranteed a tourism and financial boost at a time of year that is already popular with visitors.
According to research conducted by Godo Research and Marketing Consultancy, of Dubai, the 2007 Bahrain Grand Prix brought in more than 207 million Bahraini dinar (Dh2bn).
And during Singapore's inaugural grand prix, held on a city circuit 10 days ago, the Singapore Tourism Board said it expected more than US$100 million (Dh367m) to be spent in hotels and restaurants. The value of tourism receipts from returning visitors, or visitors attracted by widespread television coverage, was incalculable, it said.
The exact number of visitors expected to attend the Abu Dhabi race has not yet been made public, although it is thought to be less than the 100,000 who went to the Singapore race. Of those 100,000, just 40,000 were from outside Singapore.
Work on the Yas Marina Circuit continues around the clock as Mr Gurdjian revises the track designed by Hermann Tilke, the renowned German architect behind some of the most exciting F1 circuits.
ADMM has been closely guarding the exact specifications of the altered track, which was initially supposed to be 5.8km and cost Dh1.46 billion (US$400m). Those details are expected to be made public soon.
It is not yet known when tickets for the Abu Dhabi race will go on sale. Tickets for some races in the 2009 calendar, such as Monaco, Belgium and - before today's decision - Canada, were already made available online.
The ruling, which the FIA confirmed was final, sees Abu Dhabi host the prestigious final race of the season, with expected television audiences of around 500 million.
Among the biggest surprises of the revised calendar was the absence of the Canadian Grand Prix, one of the most popular circuits on the calendar. The decision means there will be no Grand Prix in North America at all next year.
rhughes@thenational.ae
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This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
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How will Gen Alpha invest?
Mark Chahwan, co-founder and chief executive of robo-advisory firm Sarwa, forecasts that Generation Alpha (born between 2010 and 2024) will start investing in their teenage years and therefore benefit from compound interest.
“Technology and education should be the main drivers to make this happen, whether it’s investing in a few clicks or their schools/parents stepping up their personal finance education skills,” he adds.
Mr Chahwan says younger generations have a higher capacity to take on risk, but for some their appetite can be more cautious because they are investing for the first time. “Schools still do not teach personal finance and stock market investing, so a lot of the learning journey can feel daunting and intimidating,” he says.
He advises millennials to not always start with an aggressive portfolio even if they can afford to take risks. “We always advise to work your way up to your risk capacity, that way you experience volatility and get used to it. Given the higher risk capacity for the younger generations, stocks are a favourite,” says Mr Chahwan.
Highlighting the role technology has played in encouraging millennials and Gen Z to invest, he says: “They were often excluded, but with lower account minimums ... a customer with $1,000 [Dh3,672] in their account has their money working for them just as hard as the portfolio of a high get-worth individual.”
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
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