A former speedway promoter has voiced concerns that the history attached to Western Springs Stadium could be lost as Auckland Council considers the future of the venue.
After 96 years of racing at the site, speedway is set to be moved to Onehunga’s Waikaraka Park after Auckland City councillors lastOctober voted 11-8 in favour of spending $11 million to upgrade the home of stock and saloon car racing for speedway from next summer.
The Herald reported in April that Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown was among those to vote in favour of the move, and turned down a request from speedway supporters to address the governing body.
“We were never consulted on the money going to Waikaraka Park. We weren’t allowed to talk at the meeting,” Buckley said.
The council is currently mulling over three options for the venue, one of which does factor in a potential future for speedway at Western Springs.
The Ponsonby Rugby Club, which currently occupies the land but has a lease due to expire in 2027, has joined forces with CRS Records and Eccles Entertainment to propose a community-focused sport and concert venue. It would require a mix of a $30m of private investment and a request for ratepayer funding of $18m-$20m.
A second plan, backed by several high-profile Kiwis including Auckland FC co-investors Anna Mowbray and ex-All Black Ali Williams, proposes replacing the iconic venue with a 12,500-seat sports stadium. This would be privately funded to the tune of $200m-$300m.
A render of the proposed Auckland Arena. Photo / Auckland Arena
Buckley, who ran speedway at Western Springs from 2002-2020 but was unsuccessful in his attempt to renew his contract beyond that, believed it wouldn’t take long for them to change the name of the venue if the sports stadium plan was successful, with Auckland Arena the proposed title for the facility.
He felt it would be wrong to put a business such as the football club into the venue and worried about how that would impact community use of Western Springs, but he was hopeful there was an avenue that could be explored that would see speedway retain its home.
The third proposal would see the council do nothing or explore other ideas. That would mean Tātaki Auckland Unlimited manages and operates the venue for concerts and festivals, the Ponsonby Rugby Club lease could be extended, and there could be scope for speedway to stay in some capacity, although that would not be guaranteed as the most recent venue hire agreement for speedway expired on March 31, 2025.
A public consultation process on the future of Western Springs ended on June 15 and a final decision is expected at the end of July.
The latter option was suggested by the barrister for the Western Springs Speedway Association (WSSA), Bronwyn Carruthers, KC, until judicial proceedings have been determined, after the WSSA lodged a review in the High Court at Auckland over the lawfulness of the council’s decision to move the motorsport from Western Springs to Waikaraka Park in Onehunga.
That judicial review is ongoing.
Western Springs has been the home of speedway for almost 100 years. Photo / Jason Dorday
Council director of group strategy Max Hardy said at a governing body meeting on May 1 that the third option being considered was deliberately open-ended, but no proposals to continue speedway at Western Springs were received during the expressions of interest period. Agenda notes from the meeting indicate a “non-complying” one was received after the deadline.
Buckley added his concern for the future of speedway if it does move to Waikaraka Park as planned, and said the venue was not suited for it.
“They’re saying that our drivers have driven at Waikaraka Park on three or four occasions last year because there was nowhere else to drive. The guys have got to make sure their cars are going so they used it as a practice track to make sure their car was going good enough to go to Western Springs.
“Nobody’s raced there for forever. All the open-wheel guys just go there to test the cars and try that. They don’t try and win there because it’s too dangerous.
“There’s a subtle difference between stock cars and open-wheel cars. One goes slow and just bangs into everybody, and the other one is a class act. It takes you five years to learn to drive a midget. It’s probably the toughest motorsport of any motorsport, midget racing, and the average person doesn’t understand that. But once you master a midget, they’re a fantastic machine to race.
“They’re always challenging, and you won’t get them going around Waikaraka Park. It’s a cold hole, too. It’s got that cold breeze going in. Western Springs is two or three degrees warmer every night.
“So it’s got the history, the atmosphere is good ... they take families along there. They’ve got kids and prams; you can’t do any of that at Waikaraka Park.”
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
