QLD RACEWAY DROPPED FROM V8 SUPERCAR CALENDAR IN 2010

Topics:  Queensland Raceway, V8 Supercars Australia

Stone Brothers Racing
January 11, 2010

V8 Supercars Australia has been unable to reach satisfactory hire and commercial terms with the operator of Queensland Raceway for a proposed 2010 May date.This date on the 2010 Championship Series calendar had been listed until now as provisional, pending the outcome of talks between the two parties.

V8SA was totally prepared to become the promoter of the Ipswich event in May to keep the event alive, but unfortunately this is not possible due to a long list of unrealistic demands set by the Queensland Raceway operator.

QR demanded a near record hire fee for the hire of the venue despite its ageing facilities, and also insisted the venue would not be responsible for obtaining the very necessary CAMS licence that is required under the FIA’s sanctioning of V8 Supercars as an International Series, amongst many other things.

This, coupled with the fact that fans and corporates have dropped off from attending QR because of the lack of decent facilities, means that QR at Ipswich is no longer a viable venue for Australia’s premier motorsport Championship.

Shane Howard, acting CEO for V8SA, said: “This is extremely disappointing for all our fans but we had given QR a very reasonable offer and we have to be responsible to our teams when we hire venues and conduct events.

“The unrealistic hire fees and un-commercial terms demanded by QR, when compared with other permanent venues, are absurd given the standard of the QR infrastructure for fans and teams alike.

“QR’s reluctance to be a CAMS sanctioned venue further compounds a very difficult position for us as we are a fully fledged FIA Championship. Almost no money has been spent on fan facilities at QR in the last eight years despite our ongoing requests and it is now looking very tired from a fan and corporate point of view."

The positive news is that V8SA will still be conducting 15 events in season 2010 including offering two events to fans in Queensland with the Dunlop Townsville 400 in July and the Gold Coast event in October. The 2010 season opener kicks off in Abu Dhabi at the world class Yas Marina Circuit from February 18-20th.

“We do question how a venue which was built with significant State Government funds and is leased on Ipswich Council land can manipulate groups such as ours with ridiculous hire figures and non compliance with the Government recognised sanctioning body is surely got to be questioned?” V8 Supercars Australia Chairman Tony Cochrane said.

“Every year dealing with John Tetley turns into a greater nightmare for all of us in the Championship and I totally understand V8SA getting to this very frustrating point. With so many V8 Supercar teams headquartered in SE Queensland we now need to focus on what we can do for the future.

“Maybe the time has come for us to work with the Queensland Government and jointly build our own permanent facility to ensure the nearly 1,000 jobs in our great industry are keep here in SE Queensland.”