Lando Norris and George Russell’s recent exploits boost ticket sales, claims British GP director

George Russell (L) and Lando Norris (R) (Collage via Sportskeeda)

British GP director Stuart Pringle rejoiced that the ticket sales for the race have massively increased. He explained that this was partially due to McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes’ George Russell’s recent on-track performances.

As the 2024 F1 season progresses, the sport will soon land in Silverstone for the prestigious British GP. On 19th June, the Grand Prix’s director, Pringle, talked about how Max Verstappen and Red Bull’s dominance could be affecting ticket sales at Silverstone. Some in the F1 space lashed out at him, blaming the exorbitant prices for the race. Pringle himself replied and defended the ticket price tags.

After his statement, the Spanish GP and the Austrian GP took place, where Lando Norris looked extremely strong and was able to fight for the race win with Max Verstappen. While the Red Bull star won in Spain, he and Norris had a major tussle and contact in Austria, which resulted in George Russell winning his first race of the season.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the Austrian GP, Stuart Pringle was delighted that the ticket sales for the British GP have gone up. He added that it was because of the recent performances by the likes of Lando Norris and George Russell. Lastly, he claimed that the Grand Prix as Silverstone could be a sold-out event.

“I’m delighted to say that the performance by the Brits in the last few weeks has really made a huge difference. There are still a few tickets left but it’s in the hundreds rather than thousands. It will be a sell-out by the weekend, of that I’m completely certain,” Pringle said.

British GP chief assures that fans at Silverstone would also support Max Verstappen along with British drivers

British Grand Prix chief executive Stuart Pringle recently assured everyone that the British GP would not only have fans supporting British drivers but will also have Max Verstappen supporters.

Speaking to Sky Sports, he claimed that British GP fans were first the fans of the sport. He further claimed that their allegiance is spread out across the grid and said that there would be a lot of Red Bull fans as well.

“I’m absolutely sure of that. Our fans are first and foremost fans of sport. Of course, they have their favorite team, but they are spread across. There are a lot of Red Bull fans. Lando’s very popular, George [Russell] and Lewis are very popular,” Pringle said.

He later praised Max Verstappen for his drive in Austria and also claimed that British F1 fans would always acknowledge a commendable performance from any driver.

“But actually what British F1 fans recognize is a great performance, and let’s be honest, when Max has won in the last two or three races pre-Austria, the thing that’s made the difference has been his personal performance. That hasn’t been the quickest car, but when he’s had to do the business, he’s been spot on,” he added.

The British GP will be held between July 5 to July 7. Teams and drivers have already reached Silverstone and started preparing for the weekend.