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With revenues and attendance declining, Merlbourne's Albert Park circuit is in danger of losing the Australian Grand Prix to another venue Down Under, but the organizers aren't giving up without a fight. With cash from title sponsor ING, which has been pouring big bucks into its F1 sponsorship program, the 2008 Australian Grand Prix is gearing up to be a huge spectacle that will include a V8 Supercars race and even a two-hour KISS concert in addition to the headline Formula One contest. Now the organizers have added another supporting event that will mark the first time the Fiat 500 will be raced.
The race-prepped retro-minis will be the car of choice for the Celebrity Challenge, which pits local Australian celebrities against each other on the race track. Although no information has been provided on what sort of race preparation the Fiats will undergo for the event, we wouldn't expect the modifications to go far beyond basic safety equipment, like a roll cage and racing buckets with competition harnesses visible in the photos.
In addition to being the 500's racing debut, the event will also mark the car's unveiling for Australia and New Zealand, as well as the debut of the right-hand-drive version of the tiny Fiat.
Scheduling conflicts between the Grand Prix and the V8 Supercars series were reconciled to allow the two races to take place together, while race officials denied rumors that they were intent on following Singapore's lead in changing the Australian Grand Prix to a flood-lit night race.
Check out the images in the high-resolution gallery below, and the full press release after the jump.
[Source: ING Australian Grand Prix via World Car Fans]
