SEPTEMBER 30, 2001

Merchandise sales booming at Indianapolis

THE official merchandising operations at Indianapolis reported on Sunday that F1 merchandise was selling faster on Saturday than its has done for the annual Brickyard 400 NASCAR race, the biggest marketing event at the Speedway in recent years. There was impressive demand for Juan Pablo Montoya and BMW Williams gear although Ferrari clothing and accessories remain a big seller for the US fans. Despite fears that the crowd numbers would be seriously down on previous years the organizers are expecting a crowd of 175,000 people. This is down on last year's 225,000 but it is encouraging given the political uncertainty of recent weeks.