"You priced out your own fans": Fans react to British GP organiser blaming Red Bull and Max Verstappen dominance for lack of tickets demand

Fans have targeted British GP organizer Stuart Pringle after he blamed Max Verstappen and Red Bull's dominance for the lack of tickets sold at Silverstone. According to Pringle, Lewis Hamilton's dominance was a positive sign, since Hamilton's local hero status attracted large crowds to the event

Pringle, the Managing Director of the Silverstone Circuit, revealed that the British Grand Prix is failing to sell out its tickets. The race weekend is set for July 5–7, and usually, enthusiasts purchase their tickets months in advance. However, that is seemingly not the case this time around. Pringle explained that a major reason behind the low demand for tickets is Red Bull and Max Verstappen's dominance. Autosport quoted him as saying:

"I do recognise that we had several years of a British driver dominating, and we didn't mind that as a British promoter! It's certainly been a lot harder with Red Bull dominating."

Red Bull has been dominating the sport since the 2022 season, winning both the world championships, and they are leading the table in the current season as well. However, numerous fans on social media believe that this is not the reason for the sharp decline in ticket sales. Many of them have called out the organizers for the tickets' pricing.

"Don’t make me defend max 🙄you priced out your own fans," a fan wrote.

"Of course it has nothing to do with your outrageous prices!" Another fan wrote sarcastically.

Another fan was unreserved in his criticism of the outrageous ticket and meal costs.

Another user claimed that Pringle was contradicting the facts, as Lando Norris (who is a British driver) is doing quite well.

"This guy woke up and choose to be cooked," yet another fan wrote.

---

How is the British GP priced when compared to other F1 Grands Prix?

The Silverstone Circuit can accommodate 160,000 spectators and is one of the largest and most prestigious races on the calendar. The first-ever F1 race was held on this circuit back in 1950, which also makes it an important piece in the history of the sport.

However, fans do not seem to be too happy with the pricing of the tickets. To gain a better understanding of the situation, let's compare the ticket prices between the British GP and the Austrian GP, which takes place just before the race at Silverstone.

Austrian GP

The three-day tickets for the 2024 F1 Austrian GP are currently available for €275 (US$295.60), as the less expensive options have already sold out. The Start-Finish Grandstand is the most expensive grandstand, with tickets costing €500 (US$537.45).

British GP

Under the same conditions, the cheapest ticket available for the British GP is priced at €721.72 (US$775.78). As for the grandstand tickets, the most expensive ones are at Abbey, the track's first corner, and cost €1,005.67 (US$1,080.99).

The price difference between the tickets for the two races is massive. While this might not be a completely fair comparison given the fact that the races are held in two separate countries, it does depict a contrast between the ticket pricing of two F1 GPs.