One of the clever marketing ploys of last year's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was how it brought motor sport to the Corniche. At the F1 Fan Zone you could drive a simulator Formula One car, take the pit-stop challenge or have your children's faces painted in racing colours. Now the direction is being reversed, with the Corniche going to the Yas Marina Circuit, as the track will soon be open to the public. Richard Cregan, the chief executive of Abu Dhabi Motorsport Management, says he wants to see the track used "300 days a year".
It will now be possible to take your own car and, after a little training, screech round the corners and race through the chicanes, following in the skid marks of Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton. Not only is this great news for petrolheads, but Yas will also be the perfect place for taxi drivers to let off steam. The sight of taxis racing on a circuit, rather than along Airport Road or Hamdan Street, will be a welcome one. Soon, when you ask your taxi driver if he thinks he's Michael Schumacher, he will be able to give you his lap times to prove it.