By BOB PEARCE
Pukekohe may have to wait more than 12 months before staging another New Zealand Grand Prix.
The South Auckland circuit regained New Zealand's premier single-seater race this month after a break of several years when it was staged at Manfeild, near Feilding, and Ruapuna (Christchurch).
But the scheduling of other high-profile events, and questions over the popularity of the Formula Holdens which compete in the grand prix, have left its next staging up in the air.
The principal new element is the staging of a round of the Australian V8 Supercar championship on the Pukekohe track on the weekend of November 9 to 11.
The date is firm in the Australian calendar, and this week a senior executive from the V8 organising body, Avesco, was inspecting the facilities.
The Pukekohe Park management, Avesco and promoters IMG will be completing legal negotiations later this week.
If the V8s go ahead as scheduled, the grand prix would probably be shifted to January. It seems unlikely that the expense of bringing the Formula Holdens across the Tasman could be justified for a shared date with the V8s and the market would not bear two high-profile meetings before Christmas.
An added complication has arisen through proposals for a round of the Australian Procar championship, including Ferraris, Porsches and Lamborghinis, probably at Ruapuna in November.
Motorsport administrators are also mulling the relative popularity of various categories of racing and the Formula Holdens do not rate that highly.
At Manfeild for the Denny Hulme Memorial the crowd was very sparse. Pukekohe at the weekend did better, but nobody would have been making much money.
Southerners would say the grand prix should have stayed at Ruapuna, where after two years interest was growing.
Certainly no-one is expecting the glory days of Stirling Moss and crowds of 50,000 crowds to return, but there certainly needs to be some more aggressive promotion to compete in a crowded entertainment market.
If New Zealand is to offer promising young drivers an outlet for their talent and a stepping-stone to the big-time, a single-seater category such as Formula Holden is essential, and the Tasman series tacked on to the Australian championship is probably the affordable option.
Scott Dixon progressed from Formula Holden to Indy Lights to Champ Cars along this path. Andy Booth and Matthew Halliday are trying to follow him.
The best-supported motorsport event at Pukekohe this summer is likely to be the truck racing on January 21. Maybe our aspiring Michael Schumachers will have to hitch a tow with the smoke-belching behemoths.
* * *
Simon Wills is a champion without a drive for next season.
After winning the Australian Formula Holden title for the second year in a row, the Aucklander hopes to switch to V8 Supercars in the new season.
But so far, despite a top-10 finish with Craig Baird in the Bathurst 1000, the Aucklander has been unable to confirm a drive.
Wills is talking to several teams and hopes for a possible third-car entry, some testing and a drive in the endurance rounds.
There would also be the possibility of a drive in the V8 Lites championship.
He does not expect to be back regularly in a Formula Holden, though he would be a starter for another shot at the New Zealand Grand Prix after engine failure robbed him of a chance of a hat-trick of wins at the weekend.
* * *
Three young racing drivers will be under the microscope for the next six weeks as they compete for the McLaren Scholarship, sponsored by the ProDrive Trust and MotorSport New Zealand.
The finalists are 16-year-old James Cressey, from Auckland, 17-year-old Ben Harford, of Wellington, and 19-year-old David Payne, from Matamata.
Cressey and Harford competed in Formula Fords at Pukekohe at the weekend and Payne won last year's Formula First title.
The 12-month scholarship provides the winner with an assistance package to help to develop the skills required of a top driver.
It is not a driver training programme, but it does include a week working with the McLaren Formula Three team and a limited amount of time with the Formula One team at the British Grand Prix.
The winner will be announced at Pukekohe on January 21.
* * *
Aussie Mark Webber, third in this year's Formula 3000 championship, has won the Bruce McLaren Trophy for the second time.
The trophy, for the outstanding Commonwealth driver in international motorsport, is awarded by the British Racing Drivers' Club.
The last New Zealander to win it was Mike Thackwell in 1987.
* * *
A 21-year-old American, Keith Johnson from Albuquerque, New Mexico, won the King of the Creek title in the supercross at Mystery Creek, Hamilton.
The Americans also won the teams' event from Australia, with New Zealand third.
Motorsport: Pukekohe may miss out on GP next year
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.