Hundreds of doctors, nurses and hospital staff headed to the Yas Marina Circuit on Friday to watch the practice sessions for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
A limited number of passes were allocated to the frontline workers as a gesture of thanks for their efforts during the pandemic.
With an unobstructed view at the season-ending annual event, the special guests watched on in awe as the multi-million dollar formula one cars whizzed by just metres away.
Guests even got to enjoy their first steps on the newly-named Frontline Heroes Hill, which was renamed in honour of their work over the past nine months.
A total of 600 passes were made available at this year’s three-day event, including 200 for Friday's practice sessions, 200 for Saturday's qualifying round and 200 for the final race on Sunday.
A decision was made earlier this year to close off the event to fans because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Usually, the event attracts huge crowds with last year's three-day weekend selling out to about 60,000 spectators. On-ground cabin crew from race sponsor, Etihad Airways, catered to guests on site this year and as an added bonus they were given access to the Yas Island Theme Parks too, including Ferrari World and Warner Bros World.
Formula One has been severely disrupted this year as a result of the Covid-19 crisis. The start of the season was delayed by nearly four months, causing many races to be either postponed or cancelled.
