F1: 2019 Australian GP Dates Announced; To Start A Week Earlier

The 2019 Formula 1 season is still eight months away but the organisers of the premier motorsport event want to give fans a head start in planning their travels for next year. F1 has announced that the 2019 Australian Grand Prix will be held between March 14-17, for the season opener. The Australian GP organisers have shifted the event earlier by a week, as opposed to the second-last week of March that has been hosting the Grand Prix for the past two years. The new dates are subject to ratification by the FIA World Motor Sport Council.

One of the main reasons for shifting the 2019 F1 Australian GP a week earlier has been the number of events that happen in Melbourne that month. The Australian GP sits between the Moomba Festival held a weekend prior and the Australian Football League (AFL) season that starts a week later. Given the popularity of AFL, the date change is expected to give breathing room to both the sporting events, which have clashed on the same weekend over the past two years.

That said, the opening round of the 2019 F1 season will be competing with the FIA World Endurance Championship's 1000 Miles of Sebring that is scheduled to take place between March 13-16, 2018. This should come as a concern for Fernando Alonso, if he chooses to participate in the Endurance racing, should the former world champion continue to remain in F1 next season.

Speaking about the date change, Australian Grand Prix Corporation CEO Andrew Westacott, "To announce the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix 2019 date more than eight months out from the event is fantastic news and we hope this will encourage overseas and interstate visitors to plan for a lengthy visit to Melbourne and Victoria. We are immensely proud of the four-day spectacle Melbourne puts on and honoured to raise the curtain on one of the world's most prestigious annual championships.

Announcing the date this early should help more fans overseas to plan their trip to Melbourne for the 2019 F1 season opener. The Australian GP organisers reported a four-day crowd of over 2.95 lakh at this year's event, and the footfall is only expected to be higher with an earlier date, since fans can organise flight tickets and stay at cheaper prices.