Doubts linger over Supercars round

Supercars have announced that the New Zealand round of the series will take place on November 6-7, but financial backers Auckland Unlimited wouldn’t confirm that the race is locked in.

After lengthy delays, next year’s Supercars calendar has at last been revealed, with a press release saying the New Zealand round will take place a month after the Bathurst 1000.

Supercars CEO Sean Seamer told Stuff in September that they were looking to have the New Zealand round over the Anzac weekend, with next year Anzac Day falling on Sunday, April 25.

However, issues with the Auckland Council’s unitary plan would need to be resolved for that to happen, as this year’s race was initially moved from

Pukekohe Park to Hampton Downs. This was because motor racing is banned from taking place at Pukekohe Park on Anzac Day.

The move to the end of the 2021 calendar for a New Zealand round is sensible as the chances of a trans-Tasman bubble being in place are higher for November than they are for April.

However, there is still uncertainty over whether a round in New Zealand will actually take place at either Pukekohe Park or Hampton Downs.

Stuff approached Auckland Unlimited, which is an arm of Auckland Council and previously known as Ateed, for an interview about the race, but instead received a one-paragraph statement, which did little to confirm that a New Zealand round will actually happen.

‘‘We continue to engage with Supercars on a potential Auckland round in 2021 and details of the event, including a venue, are still to be worked through.

We don’t have anything further to add,’’ said Richard Clarke, head of major events at Auckland Unlimited.

The Auckland round of Supercars had become the most attended sporting event in New Zealand each year, with the attendance more than 114,000 when it was held in Pukekohe in 2019.

However, relations between Supercars and Auckland Unlimited (when it was known as Ateed) have been strained over the years, particularly when it came to who would pay for the much-needed upgrade to Pukekohe Park.

The council pays out $1.2 million to put on the New Zealand Supercars round each year, but given the financial strain it is under because of a $1 billion fall in revenue over the next four years, caused by the coronavirus pandemic, money for Supercars could be cut.

Supercars has been approached for comment.