KUALA LUMPUR — Sepang International Circuit (SIC) has introduced ‘Tiket Rahmah’ for the Malaysian MotoGP race which will happen from November 10 to 12.
The tickets will retail for RM49.90 including taxes for the K2 hillstand and will start selling from today through SIC’s website and its ticketing counters.
“The ‘Tiket Rahmah’ initiative is on top of our current ticket sales target.
“This initiative started after we heard the voices of fans who said it is hard for them to get tickets because it is expensive.
“We are opening this to all Malaysian citizens no matter their income bracket,” said SIC chief executive officer Azhan Shafriman Hanif at a launch event for the race.
He added the capacity for the K2 Hillstand is 7,000 which is about 10% of the overall target ticket sales.
This year will be the 24th edition of the Malaysian MotoGP and Azhan is targeting the attendance for the race to return to pre-pandemic numbers.
“In 2019 we had about 170,000 in attendance, and last year was the first year that we held the MotoGP since cancelling it in 2020 and 2021 because of the (Covid-19) pandemic.
“We had 164,000 in attendance last year and we are hoping to return to pre-pandemic numbers this year.
“We are on track to achieve our target this year, where 70% of tickets have been sold,” he added.
One of the reasons for the pricey nature of the Malaysian MotoGP tickets is because of the 25% entertainment tax which is added to the ticket price.
Azhan said that he would be meeting with the Selangor government to discuss the matter.
“At the moment if you buy a RM200 ticket it becomes RM250 when you add the 25% entertainment tax, it’s quite steep.
“We will be meeting with the Selangor government to discuss further how to move forward (on this issue).”
Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh, who also attended the launch, said the introduction of the ‘Tiket Rahmah’ initiative will give leverage to negotiate with the Selangor government.
“The introduction of ‘Tiket Rahmah’ opens the door for us to talk to the state government to say that we are giving this platform to the rakyat, therefore the state government must support.
“The second thing about entertainment tax… it is also affecting a lot of youths not just in sports but also in the entertainment sector.
“So that is something that we believe we have strong grounds to ask the state government to reconsider,” she said. — September 13, 2023