Taupo Motorsport Park is not fazed by Colin Giltrap's Whenuapai motorsport plans. Photo / Paul Estcourt
Taupo Motorsport Park operators say they are not sweating on the fact that Auckland businessman Colin Giltrap is working on a long-term plan to take the A1 Grand Prix north to Whenuapai.
Giltrap said yesterday he was lining up a bid for Whenuapai Air Base with Frank
Radisich and Peter Sinton, both directors of Auckland Motorsport Park and V8 Supercars Whenuapai.
The multi-millionaire car salesman has bankrolled New Zealand's entry in the international A1GP and said he wanted to use the air base to stage the New Zealand leg of the A1 series.
Taupo Motorsport Park held its inaugural stage of the A1 event last year and has secured the rights to do so again in January.
The Royal New Zealand Air Force is not scheduled to quit Whenuapai until 2015.
Taupo Motorsport Park chief executive Kevin Prendergast said today the Whenuapai initiative was too far down the track to pose an immediate concern for the venue.
He said the new Taupo track and facilities were used for a broad range of events and the team were working to expand on that.
"The name of the game is to be busy seven days a week - which is what we are working on," he told NZPA.
He admitted the international A1 event was the Taupo venue's "flagship". "But it's one weekend of the year and we operate 365 days of the year.
"From an overall operation it's part of the mix of the venue. So it doesn't have any great effect at this point in time," Prendergast said.
He said if Taupo needed to compete with other venues for events such as the A1GP further down the track then so be it.
"We need to deliver the best possible product for A1GP and the venue, then have discussions when the time comes."
Taupo Motorsport Park this week proposed making a public offering for 30 per cent of the company and has applied to list on the New Zealand Stock Exchange.
Up to 2.75 million shares will be offered at $1.10 per share.
Mr Prendergast said the Whenuapai bid didn't have any great effect on that move considering the time-frame.
Giltrap said he would also like to take the V8 Supercar races, now held in Hamilton, to Whenuapai.
- NZPA
