Bangkok, 3 September 2018 – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) organised a ‘Buri Ram Night’ in Tokyo on 28 August in support of the ‘PTT Thailand Grand Prix 2018’ MotoGP, which will be held on 5-7 October, 2018, at the Chang International Circuit in Buri Ram.
Mr. Tanes Petsuwan, TAT Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications, said: “TAT is confident that the hosting of the world championship MotoGP in Thailand between 2018-2020 will enhance the positive image of Thailand via live coverage to more than 200 countries and a potential audience of over 600 million.
“The popularity of the MotoGP cannot be underestimated. The MotoGP and Formula 1 are the top motor sports brands in the world, and the ‘PTT Thailand Grand Prix 2018’ MotoGP at the Chang International Circuit in Buri Ram places Thailand on the international racing map.”
According to Mr. Tanes, it also corresponds with the government’s sports tourism policy to promote and position Thailand as a sports tourism destination and as the sports hub in ASEAN, focusing on hosting mega events, world and international games that hold massive international appeal.
“This is also in line with world tourism trends, which indicate sports tourism has a high growth potential, and that sports tourists have more spending power and stay longer than average tourists,” Mr. Tanes, added. “It shows Thailand’s capability as world-class host while also promoting Buri Ram and nearby provinces, all emerging secondary tourist destinations. This helps spread spending by over 150,000 moto racers and foreign and Thai visitors, as well as generates income on a local level.”
From a small provincial town, Buri Ram has risen to become an international sports power house.
The sporting hub in Thailand’s Northeast region includes perianal first division football champions Buri Ram United FC, home to the Chang International Circuit, Thailand’s first world-class standard motorsport race track.
Buri Ram Provincial Governor, Mr. Anusorn Kaewkangwan, estimated that Buri Ram has over 5,000 hotel rooms available, and there is also accommodation in the nearby provinces of Nakhon Ratchasima and Surin.
“As the host province for the PTT Thailand Grand Prix 2018, we expect to welcome 150,000 foreign and Thai visitors during the event and generate a minimum of four million Baht (US$ 120,000), Mr. Anusorn, concluded.
*Photo gallery of the event
