Supercars 2025 calendar still in progress
By Andrew Clarke
Date posted: 8 August 2024
Supercars is locked in a battle with its teams as its grapples with the commercial metrics to expand the series to 14 events next year and to provide more racing at each event, with a return to Phillip Island a possibility.
The Teams Racing Charter has provisions for extra payments for each event more than 12 and also a maximum kilometre limit for racing over the season, which has been the factor affecting the SuperSprint formats this year.
After Perth and Darwin produced lacklustre racing in the SuperSprint format, Supercars has been negotiating with the teams to get an increase in racing by 30-40% on the current 12-event format.
Before it can do that, it needs to increase the racing kilometres limit for the season, and is proposing less practice at the races as a way of reducing the overall kilometres travelled in a weekend.
The kilometre count is relatively simple – oddly, it may allow the teams extra test days as compensation compared with the extra payments for extra rounds
A provisional calendar seen by Auto Action has the series starting under lights at Sydney Motorsport Park in March and running through to the final weekend of November in Adelaide, with a return to Queensland Raceway almost certain and Phillip Island on the wish-list for November.
The teams are believed to be standing firm on the extra payment required for the extra rounds, with one team owner at Sydney Motorsport asking “who is going to pay”.
The payment is currently set at $60,000 for each car for each event, which means Supercars is up for $2.88m to add Queensland Raceway and Phillip Island, with no guarantee of extra income but also no injection from Fox Sports for the extra weekends.
Early proposals from Supercars included paying teams for only one of the two extra rounds, but that fell on deaf ears with the teams who appear to have rejected that proposal.
In further news on the calendar, Supercars also appears to have again missed the opportunity to run at Sandown on the weekend of the pre-season AFL bye, which would give it better reach in the AFL obsessed city.
It is also not clear yet if the Sandown race will remain as a 500km two-driver endurance race or switch to the SuperSprint format, with the former the more favoured option but under threat thanks to the maximum racing kilometres clause in the TRC.
Plans are also under way for two-night race meetings.
The calendar should be locked away this month for a launch at the Sandown 500 in September.
Possible 2025 Supercars calendar
March 1-2 Sydney Motorsport Park
March 15-16 Australian Grand Prix
April 12-13 Taupo, NZ
May 3-4 Tasmania
May 31-June 1 Wanneroo Raceway, Perth
June 14-15 Hidden Valley, Darwin
July 5-6 Townsville 500
July 19-20 Queensland Raceway *
August 15-17 Sandown 500
September 12-14 The Bend 500
October 9-12 Bathurst 1000
October 24-26 Gold Coast 500
November 15-16 Phillip Island +
November 28-30 Adelaide 500
* Queensland Raceway will almost certainly
be added as the 13th round
+ Phillip Island will be added as the 14th round if a suitable agreement can be reached
READ THE LATEST ISSUE OF AUTO ACTION DIGITAL HERE
Don’t forget the print edition of Auto Action available via subscription here. For more of the latest motorsport news, subscribe to AUTO ACTION magazine.
Recent Stories
array (
0 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 11,
'name' => 'Latest News',
'slug' => 'latest-news',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 11,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 16547,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 11,
'category_count' => 16547,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'Latest News',
'category_nicename' => 'latest-news',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
1 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 38,
'name' => 'Supercars',
'slug' => 'supercars',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 38,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => 'The Supercars Championship, currently known as the Repco Supercars Championship, is the premier motorsport category in Australasia and one of Australia\'s biggest sports. It originated from the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC), which held its first race in 1960 at Gnoo-Blas in Orange, New South Wales. The ATCC evolved over the years, and in 1997, it was rebranded as the V8 Supercars Championship, eventually becoming the Supercars Championship we know today.
Some of the leading drivers in the history of the Supercars Championship include Peter Brock, who is often referred to as the "King of the Mountain" for his nine victories at the Bathurst 1000, a race that is considered one of the biggest in the series. Other notable drivers include Dick Johnson, Marcos Ambrose, Craig Lowndes, Shane van Gisbergen, Jamie Whincup, who holds the record for the most championship titles, and Mark Skaife, who has also been a dominant force in the series.
The Bathurst 1000, held at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, is arguably the most famous race in the Supercars calendar. Other significant races include the Sandown 500 and the Adelaide 500, which are known for their challenging circuits and thrilling competitions.
The Supercars Championship has grown to become a globally recognized series, known for its competitive racing and passionate fan base. It continues to be a major part of Australia\'s motorsport culture, attracting top drivers and teams from around the world.',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 5530,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 38,
'category_count' => 5530,
'category_description' => 'The Supercars Championship, currently known as the Repco Supercars Championship, is the premier motorsport category in Australasia and one of Australia\'s biggest sports. It originated from the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC), which held its first race in 1960 at Gnoo-Blas in Orange, New South Wales. The ATCC evolved over the years, and in 1997, it was rebranded as the V8 Supercars Championship, eventually becoming the Supercars Championship we know today.
Some of the leading drivers in the history of the Supercars Championship include Peter Brock, who is often referred to as the "King of the Mountain" for his nine victories at the Bathurst 1000, a race that is considered one of the biggest in the series. Other notable drivers include Dick Johnson, Marcos Ambrose, Craig Lowndes, Shane van Gisbergen, Jamie Whincup, who holds the record for the most championship titles, and Mark Skaife, who has also been a dominant force in the series.
The Bathurst 1000, held at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, is arguably the most famous race in the Supercars calendar. Other significant races include the Sandown 500 and the Adelaide 500, which are known for their challenging circuits and thrilling competitions.
The Supercars Championship has grown to become a globally recognized series, known for its competitive racing and passionate fan base. It continues to be a major part of Australia\'s motorsport culture, attracting top drivers and teams from around the world.',
'cat_name' => 'Supercars',
'category_nicename' => 'supercars',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
2 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 2029,
'name' => 'ZZZ-Email',
'slug' => 'email',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 2029,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 2031,
'count' => 7105,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 2029,
'category_count' => 7105,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'ZZZ-Email',
'category_nicename' => 'email',
'category_parent' => 2031,
)),
3 =>
WP_Term::__set_state(array(
'term_id' => 2031,
'name' => 'ZZZ-RSSFeeds',
'slug' => 'zzz-rssfeeds',
'term_group' => 0,
'term_taxonomy_id' => 2031,
'taxonomy' => 'category',
'description' => '',
'parent' => 0,
'count' => 6460,
'filter' => 'raw',
'cat_ID' => 2031,
'category_count' => 6460,
'category_description' => '',
'cat_name' => 'ZZZ-RSSFeeds',
'category_nicename' => 'zzz-rssfeeds',
'category_parent' => 0,
)),
)
