Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton were the buzz of the Bahrain International Circuit (BIC) yesterday as red number 44 hats marking the seven-time world champion joining arguably the most legendary racing team in history were sold out across the vending area.
The GDN visited all the F1 merchandise stores in the vending area and found that the hats were overwhelmingly the most popular souvenir being snapped up, followed by Ferrari’s oversized shirts and Red Bull’s number 1 Max Verstappen t-shirts.
“All of our stores have sold out of the Hamilton Ferrari hats today!” F1 megastore manager Amy Taylor told the GDN.
“We are getting new stock tomorrow, but this has been, by far, the most popular item. Other Ferrari and McLaren merchandise has also been quite popular, followed by Red Bull and Mercedes.”
At the BIC souvenir stand, the commemorative 2025 number plate was the most popular item bought by fans to remember their experience at the track this year.
The F1 Lego store, which had a prominent booth this year, also sold out of its miniature buildable models of Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren and Mercedes models, in that order.
“We have also sold out of the buildable model of the F1 Pit Crew with the Ferrari car, and even amongst our more advanced Technics models, Ferrari is the most popular,” Fajer Aramsha, one of the associates at the store added.
“It has been amazing because people of all ages from six to 60 have been coming by, including many collectors. One collector snapped up 12 sets just for themselves!”
All this to say, F1 fever was at an all-time high during the second day of the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix race weekend, both on and off the track.
This year’s F1 weekend marks the fourth round of the 2025 FIA F1 World Championship. It is celebrating the 75th anniversary of both F1 and Bahrain’s national carrier and grand prix title sponsor Gulf Air.
It will be the first night race of the season, taking place under BIC’s bright, state-of-the-art floodlights and showcasing to the world that ‘The Desert Never Sleeps’.
F1’s biggest drivers and teams took to the main stage yesterday during the fan forum, giving their insights on the new season and the race in Bahrain.
Amongst those on stage were Haas drivers Esteban Ocon and Oliver Bearman, Ferrari superstars Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, Mercedes tandem George Russell and Kimi Antonelli, and then the duo of drivers’ world champion Max Verstappen and Yuki Tsunoda of Red Bull Racing, alongside Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan of Alpine.
In the evening, an F2 showcase highlighted some of the future F1 and emerging motorsport stars.
Gulf Air yesterday hosted an event at Gulf Air’s Paddock Club Suite to mark a historic milestone as two global icons – Gulf Air and Formula 1 – celebrated their 75th anniversaries.
Today, the highlights may be the Bahrain Grand Prix on track and Grammy-nominated artist, DJ and producer Axwell’s stellar post-race concert, but there’s plenty of action planned throughout the day, with racing kicking off at 11.45am.
The F2 and F3 feature races will take place throughout the afternoon, and the Grand Prix will start at 6pm after the national anthem and Gulf Air flypass, though fans are advised to arrive early to beat traffic.
All those attending will also be able to enjoy a wide array of off-track entertainment for the whole family. These include globally renowned act Circus Cortex, the fan-favourite Ferris Wheel, a Kids Race Fest featuring popular cartoon characters, an F1 Fanzone, roaming performers, and more.
naman@gdnmedia.bh
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