The dates for the opening two rounds of the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships at Sydney Motorsport Park and Bathurst have been amended.

 

Motorsport Australia, together with the Australian Racing Drivers’ Club (ARDC) operators of Sydney Motorsport Park and Australian Racing Group (ARG), will postpone the opening round due to the ongoing COVID-19 (Coronavirus) situation.

 

A new date will be announced in due course, with Motorsport Australia and ARDC to work closely together to find a suitable option for all categories scheduled to be part of the opening round of the season.

 

For the HiTec Oils Bathurst 6 Hour, the decision was made to restructure the event, the second round of the Shannons, which will now be part of this year’s new Bathurst International event in November, 2020.

 

Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships Director Michael Smith said the decision on future rounds would be announced as soon as possible.

 

“We are working with all circuits and our categories to determine how we can move forward together and ensure we have a strong finish to 2020,” Smith said.

 

“We hope to be able to share a revised calendar very soon, as we work through what is a very challenging and unique situation. We are looking forward to being able to go racing once it is appropriate to do so.”

 

Sydney Motorsport Park CEO Glenn Matthews said the circuit was keen to host the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships when possible.

 

“The Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships has had a great history at Sydney Motorsport Park and we are obviously disappointed it cannot go ahead in March as planned, however we are hopeful of a return in the coming months,” Matthews said.

 

“We will work closely with Motorsport Australia to ensure we can find a suitable date here at our world class facility, which we know is one of the most popular events of the year amongst fans and competitors.”

 

ARG, who manage a number of categories that feature on the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships, were also eager to return to on track action as soon as practical.

 

“ARG has been in constant communication with Motorsport Australia and both parties have extensively explored many varying options to deliver a high quality event in the current environment,” ARG CEO Matt Braid said. 

 

“The ability to operate in a safe and  operationally feasible manner underpinned this analysis.

 

“When balancing all options with the health and safety of all teams and partners at the forefront of our mind, we have decided the only option is to postpone the opening round for our categories.”

 

With Porsche Michelin Sprint Challenge competing at each round of the Championships, Porsche Cars Australia’s Head of Motorsport Troy Bundy said the category supported the change of dates for the upcoming events.

 

“We support Motorsport Australia’s decision to postpone Round 1 and 2 of the 2020 Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships,” Bundy said.

 

“Porsche Cars Australia will continue to work with our competitors, customers, Motorsport Australia and other stakeholders to reschedule these rounds to a later date.”

 

Anyone who has purchased tickets to the opening round will be contacted shortly and provided with a full refund.