Second NZ Supercars round on the cards
Several team owners have expressed a desire to explore an annual second round of the Supercars Championship in New Zealand after a sell-out weekend in Taupo.
With the cars already freighted across the Tasman Sea, they almost universally agreed that a second weekend should be in the frame.
Supercars Chairman Barclay Nettlefold “100 per cent concurs” with the need for a second Supercars round in New Zealand but says it first has to be locked down this weekend and made a success for all the stakeholders.
Most of the owners AUTO ACTION spoke with felt that a second round within a week or two of the Taupo event on the North Island wouldn’t work too well given the need for corporate support from the same market, but that heading south could work.
Taupo is approximately the same distance from Auckland and Wellington and is in the middle of the North Island, while an event at Hampton Downs or Manfield would likely draw from a similar base.
The Supercars field takes on Taupo for the first time. Image: Peter Norton EPIC Sports Photography
Four of New Zealand’s seven motorsport facilities are located on the South Island, which offers several options, ranging from Teretonga Raceway in the very south to Mike Pero Motorsport Park just outside Christchurch.
PremiAir Nulon Racing’s Peter Xiberas was the most circumspect of the owners we spoke with.
He cited concerns about servicing the cars between events with only limited spares and capacity and felt it could only work if the transporters with a full set of spares were brought over, given the high load on the teams in race-prepping the Gen3 racers.
Other than the commercial concerns around having two partly full weekends rather than one sell-out of both corporate and general admittance, the owners said the Kiwi fan base of the sport demands further attention.
Nettlefold says he isn’t concerned about Hampton Downs’ proximity to Taupo and wasn’t ruling out back-to-back North Island Supercars rounds.
The New Zealand Grand Prix at Hampton Downs.
However, he said there were issues to overcome if that was to happen, mostly around the infrastructure required, such as temporary grandstands and other items required for corporate entertainment.
“I think you can see here we don’t have a lot of capacity, so I am not worried about whether we can get the support to make both successful, but as I said earlier, we still have work to do here this weekend to ensure we deliver,” Nettlefold said.
“We would need to explore rolling the trucks on and off ships and the appetite for the New Zealand governments and Quinny (Tony Quinn, the owner of the Taupo, Hampton Downs and Highlands tracks) to put on a second round.
“It would be great to do a ‘mini New Zealand championship’, but we are fully focused on delivering this weekend.”
Nathan Herne leads the angry pack of TA2s at Christchurch.
In terms of South Island tracks, Nettlefold indicated Highlands would be his first preference given its proximity to a major tourism destination with plenty of accommodation… and a cool track.
The timing of the year for hosting a Supercars race could become an issue, too, with the potentially cool weather in April proving a challenge for the teams and fans alike. Invercargill (Teretonga Park) was estimated to reach 10°C today, while both Christchurch (Mike Pero Motorsport Park) and Queenstown (Highlands Motorsport Park) were expecting a high temperature of 18°C, the same as Taupo.
Supercars has previously acknowledged the size of the sport’s Kiwi fanbase, which it says represents around 20% of its rusted-on supporters.
New Zealand Tracks – North Island
- Hampton Downs Motorsport Park: Opened in 2008, mimics famous global corners. Built in two stages. Features 2.8km track, drift section, and versatile layout. Was lined up to host Supercars in 2020 only to be cancelled due to COVID.
- Manfeild Circuit: Versatile track with 1.5km to 4.5km layouts. Hosts international events, offers banked corners, long straights, and renowned drifting section.
- Bruce McLaren Motorsport Park: Located in Taupo, offers 1.3km to 3.5km layouts. Upgraded since 1959, includes dual-track capability, and unique clockwise drifting section.
New Zealand Tracks – South Island
- Mike Pero Motorsport Park: Opened in 1963, versatile with 7 configurations from 1.1km to 3.38km. Known for speed, long straights, and longest NZ drift section.
- Teretonga Park: Second oldest NZ track, opened in 1957. Features 2.62km length, sweeping corners, and southernmost FIA-graded status. Notable for speed.
- Timaru International Raceway: Built in 1967, extended to 2.4km in 1988. Features challenging layout, unpredictable weather, and notorious Turn 5 in wet conditions.
- Highlands Motorsport Park: NZ’s longest track at 4.5km, with multiple configurations. Privately funded, features unique elements like a carousel and forest loop. It would need an upgrade of its pit and corporate entertainment facilities to make it possible.
Taupo Super400 schedule (all times AEDT)
Friday, April 19
Practice: 1: C. Mostert 1:26.4937 2: M. Payne +0.0318 3: W. Davison +0.0508
Saturday, April 20
Qualifying Race 7: 08.20
Top 10 Shootout: 10.00
Race 7 (60 laps): 13.05
Sunday, April 21
Qualifying Race 8: 08.45
Top 10 Shootout: 10.25
Race 7 (60 laps): 13.05
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Podcast: We’re going to Taupo… Tow Paw… Whatever. Supercars is back!
After a break that feels like months, the Supercars Championship is back and headed across the ditch to Taupo in the middle of the North Island. And yes, Brodie Kostecki will be there! As will the rain.
Somehow, the rain will also be in China for F1’s return to 中国. Philip Island was stunning on the weekend, just gone, if a little cold, but we chatted about whether Supercars should return to the land of penguins.
Plus, there’s more… all the news in the way only the Auto Action RevLimiter can deliver.
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