Skip to content
David Ng was an official of Formula 3 and the famous Macau Grand Prix for many years.
David Ng has volunteered as an official at the Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix for more than 20 years and has always enjoyed the spectacle.
When Ng and his wife immigrated to Australia from China in the early 2000s, it wasn’t long before they found a way to support their favorite sport and volunteer at Australia’s premier racing event.
From Canberra, Ng and his wife often made their way south to the Grand Prix, starting as track marshal before rising to flag marshal – the position he currently holds.
Before coming to Australia, however, Ng had been an official in his home country since the 1980s, volunteering at many events in China as well as Pattaya and the prestigious Macau Grand Prix.
It was at this famous event that he met some of the stars of the future as Formula 3 drivers and experienced one of his most memorable moments as an official.
“I’ve known Formula 1 since the early 1970s and started becoming an official when I could,” said Ng.
“But the reason I became a huge fan was because, as a pit marshal in Macau, I encountered so many drivers in Formula 3 who went on to become Formula 1 drivers – Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso, to name just one to name little.
“But the special moment for me that I will always remember was the 1990 Macau Grand Prix when Michael Schumacher collided with Mika Hakkinen and the two had a big fight.
“I remember they argued in the pits after their crash, but I stopped them and took them to race control. It was an unforgettable moment that became one of my highlights because they later became so famous.
Remarkably, Ng may have been involved with some of the biggest stars to ever grace a Formula 1 car, but it wasn’t until he emigrated to Australia that he finally became an official at a Formula 1 event.
Ng, who has now done it every year for two decades, as has the famous Repco Bathurst 1000, was aware that retirement was near but he will continue to volunteer at the two events for as long as he can.
“I’ve been a fan of motorsport since I got my driver’s license and even raced for a few years before becoming an official, so I’ve been doing this for a long time,” Ng said.
“For more than 40 years I have loved being a civil servant because there is a lot of support no matter what country you are from. Although I think I’m getting a bit old now, it’s time to start thinking about retirement.
“But I’m pretty good and I can afford to move on and come back to Melbourne.
“I just think Australia has the best officials in the world. You can see from what we’re doing here and from the fact that a lot of teams are sent to other countries like Malaysia and Korea to help run their events – which is fantastic.”
Click here for more information on becoming a civil servant.