New Zealand could host second Supercars event in Central Otago

Thursday, 19 December 2024

Taupō Motorsport Park owner Tony Quinn gave the middle finger salute to doubters of the New Zealand Supercars event.

New Zealand could stage a second Supercars event and the first to take place in the South Island.

The Central Otago District Council met on Wednesday to discuss hosting an event in 2026 at Cromwell’s Highlands Motorsport Park.

New Zealand’s leg of the motorsport series shifted from Pukekohe to Taupō for the first time this year and attracted a sellout crowd in April at the resort town’s International Motorsport Park, with Kiwi driver Andre Heimgartner winning the title.

Taupō hosts its next weekend of Supercars racing on April 11-13 and is contracted to stage an event through to at least 2026.

The proposed event for Central Otago could be held in the same season to give New Zealand two in one year, both in picturesque towns near the mountains.

Cromwell’s Highlands Motorsport Park could host a second Supercars event in New Zealand.

Supercars said in a statement they were always looking to expand the series in Australia and abroad and another New Zealand event was on the radar.

“New Zealand is home to an avid motorsport fan base, as evidenced by the sell-out success of the inaugural ITM Taupō Super400 this past April, and no less than five Kiwi drivers on the current Supercars grid,” the statement said.

Andre Heimgartner won the first Supercars race in Taupō in April.

“There has been great interest among our stakeholders and supporters in a second Supercars event in the land of the long white cloud, which we will continue to explore alongside our ongoing efforts to sustain and grow the success of our event in Taupō.”

Cromwell could be a popular destination with Queenstown only 60km down the road.

The Kiwi drivers in the series are Heimgartner, Jaxon Evans, Matt Payne, Richie Stanaway and Ryan Wood.

The next Supercars season starts with Sydney 500 on February 21-23.