Motorsport plans restart event
Motorsport promoters and drivers are coming to terms with the reality some sponsors may not be able to return when cars form up on the starting grid for the new championship season.
Speedworks, the promoter of Motorsport NZ Championship, plans a special event at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park in the Waikato to get a feeling for how the sport might survive the economic fallout of Covid-19.
Speedworks Managing Director Geoff Short said securing sponsorship heading into the new season, normally October-March, would be a challenge.
‘‘It’s going to make a significant difference to a number of competitors. Drivers are pretty keen to carry on but there are sponsors who have had to lay off staff to survive themselves. They’re trying to be responsible and spending money on motorsport at this time, is not a great look.’’
But Short said he had heard other businesses had managed well through the lockdown.
‘‘So this (Hampton Downs event) will be a test of what the landscape will look like for the coming season.’’
Waikato driver Nick Ross, who competes in the BNT V8s class, said the lockdown cut short the end of his
2019-20 season.
‘‘We were looking at completing the season in August, but we pulled the pin because a lot of guys’ sponsors had pulled out. Now, we’re just focusing on the future and trying to push out the start of the next season to give the guys a chance to regroup and get some sponsorship money coming in.
‘‘We know motorsport is the last thing on everyone’s mind and so it’s hard to ask businesses for money, when they are trying to survive themselves.’’
Ross, who is based in Cambridge, is likely to be among the drivers to race at the Hampton Downs event in September.
Geoff Short said the event will feature 10 classes of cars and will aim to put motorsport back on track in a post
Covid-19 world. It will showcase crowd favourites such as GTs through to V8s,
V8 muscle cars and run the V8 Ute championship final and the Toyota 86 Championship final.