Grapevine: Late rush for British GP tickets

Race organisers have faced a battle to make the public realise the race date has moved forward in the calendar, which has resulted in lower than normal ticket sales for this year's race.

However, circuit boss Richard Phillips is confident that the event can still be close to a sell-out, with ticket sales likely to increase in the few days before the event.

"The demand for tickets in recent weeks has soared - so much so that we have now sold out of Bronze and Bronze Plus tickets," said Phillips, referring to the general admission tickets.

"A number of other grandstands are also sold out, but there are still tickets available for fans wanting to book last minute."

Two grandstands on the pit straight, plus those at Copse A, Abbey and Club A have sold out, but other seats are still available.

Phillips added: "We're expecting a raceday crowd of approximately 82 - 83,000, which will be just two or three thousand short of a sell out.

"For 2006 we have reduced capacity for the British Grand Prix to 85,000 in order to improve the overall viewing experience for fans. During the year we have also updated all of our grandstands so fans coming to Silverstone will enjoy a fantastic weekend in a more comfortable environment."