In a joint initiative between the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Ferrari and the City of Melbourne, Lygon Street will play host to the 2007 Grand Prix Ferrari Festival on Saturday, 3 March, two weeks before the start of the 2007 Australian Grand Prix.

The family festival is a combined celebration of the 60th anniversary of the legendary car and Melbourne's love affair with the annual Australian Grand Prix. The day will feature a range of Grand Prix and Ferrari themed activities for everyone to enjoy. The showpiece of the day will be the unique sight and sounds of a Ferrari Formula One car driven down Lygon Street.

Acting Lord Mayor Gary Singer said that the 2007 Grand Prix Ferrari Festival will be a fantastic event for Melbourne. "It is events with massive global appeal, such as the 2007 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, which have earned us the reputation as the sporting capital of Australia. The 2007 Grand Prix Ferrari Festival will make this year’s Grand Prix even bigger. The Festival will provide a great opportunity to get close to the amazing F1 machines and experience a unique taste of the Grand Prix. "The event will also showcase Melbourne and the Lygon Street Precinct nationally and internationally,” he said.

Tim Bamford, the CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, is urging all Melbournians to turn out in force during the carnival, which will run from 10am to 8pm. "Everyone who has ever heard a Formula One car will be familiar with the adrenalin rush it induces," said Mr Bamford. “For those that have not witnessed the majesty of these machines, I invite you to come to Lygon Street on 3 March to get an up close and personal taste of Formula One – the world’s most exhilarating sport. To experience the excitement of a Ferrari Formula One car, surrounded by its passionate, vocal supporters, will make this an event not to be missed."

Ferrari is the most successful team ever in Formula One, with more wins and titles than any other team. This year it is celebrating the 60th anniversary of both its first car, the Ferrari 125S, and its first Grand Prix win, which came in Rome just weeks after that first car rolled out of the hallowed factory in Maranello. "This is our opportunity to bring Ferrari to Melbourne in every sense and thank the hundreds of thousands of people who have supported Ferrari during its illustrious history," said Kevin Wall, the General Manager for Ferrari in Australia.

"This event is the centrepiece of the Australian celebrations for the 60th Anniversary of Ferrari. Not only will we have a Ferrari Formula One car on the streets of Melbourne, there will also be a unique display of more than 60 of the best Ferrari road cars from across Australia. This is a once in a life time opportunity to see all things Ferrari in one place at one time. For car fans of all types, the only place to be on 3 March will be Lygon Street.”

The Formula One Ferrari will conduct a controlled demonstration drive on a closed section of Lygon Street, between Pelham and Faraday Streets. More than one kilometre of steel barriers will be installed along the perimeter of the street to ensure there is no safety risk to the public, with additional barriers to be erected at either end of the course. An exclusion zone around the perimeter of the course will also be created, with marshals and security personnel ensuring that the viewing public is kept well clear of the course.
 

The Australian Grand Prix Corporation takes road safety extremely seriously and is keen to use this initiative as a means of highlighting the importance of exercising caution at all times when on our roads. "This is not about speed,” said Mr Bamford. “This is an opportunity to promote Melbourne, Australia and our iconic Lygon Street precinct to the world. We remind all drivers that the Victorian legal speed limit in built-up areas, including Lygon Street, is 50 kilometres per hour, unless signed otherwise. We would like to stress that this is a promotional exercise and we will be implementing stringent safety conditions and protocols. We remind all drivers that, under normal conditions, there is no such thing as safe speeding.”

With the 2007 Australian Grand Prix taking place from 15 – 18 March, it is expected that the City of Melbourne will be in full Grand Prix fever for the Lygon Street celebration. People of all ages will find plenty to keep themselves entertained with a range of Grand Prix themed activities taking place throughout the day. Celebrity spotters will also be in for a treat with some of the Celebrity Challenge drivers set to make an appearance. F1 simulators will be set up in Argyle Square to enable budding racing drivers to experience first-hand the thrill of being behind the wheel of the world’s fastest cars.

The F1 festivities will be in full swing throughout the day, with a range of Grand Prix related cars and exhibitions, merchandise, Sony Playstation and dodgem cars on show in Argyle Square. Face-painting and tattoos for the kids, will combine with live bands, grid girls, roving entertainment and ticket give-aways to ensure this is a day that is not to be missed.

Meanwhile Ferrari kicked off its 60th Anniversary relay in Abu Dhabi on 28 February. The relay will  involve more than 10,000 Ferrari owners, who will act as symbolic ‘bearers’ of a specially commissioned baton adorned with 60 badges symbolising the most extraordinary events in the marque's 60-year history. The baton will be on display in Lygon Street during the Grand Prix Ferrari Festival, celebrating Ferrari’s 60th anniversary.