Supercars officials assessing possible new NZ venue

Supercars management are assessing Taupo International Motorsport Park as the category looks to return to New Zealand.

Officials have traveled to New Zealand to visit the Taupo venue as an alternative to replace Pukekohe.

Pukekohe Park Raceway wound up motorsport operations last month.

The historic circuit hosted Supercars last September, with local hero Shane van Gisbergen winning two races in front of a record crowd.

Supercars has stated its desire to race again in New Zealand, with no round scheduled for 2023.

Hampton Downs was set to host a round in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic intervened, before Pukekohe returned in 2022.

Taupo and Hampton Downs are both owned by Tony Quinn, who also owns Highlands.

Toyota Formula Regional Oceania at Taupo this year Pic: Toyota GAZOO Racing NZ

The Taupo and Hampton Downs venues are both located in Waikato.

Taupo is an FIA Grade 3-rated, 3.5km circuit, and has hosted international racing before in the likes of A1GP.

"Currently, our focus is on finding a new racing location in New Zealand as we have progressed quite far into the process," Supercars CEO Shane Howard said.

"Taupo and Hampton Downs are two potential circuits that could meet our requirements, and we are currently assessing Taupo with a team on-site this week.

"Given that there is no circuit in the Auckland area, we have proposed the opportunity to Major Events New Zealand, and they are currently in the process of evaluating our submission.

"Given its location in a regional area that can host major events, Taupo has been identified as a potential option, and we are exploring this avenue.

"We have a huge fan base in New Zealand and want to get back there as soon as we can to show off our Gen3 product and the best touring car category in the world."

The 2023 Repco Supercars Championship will resume at the NED Whisky Tasmania SuperSprint on May 19-21.

Tickets for the event are on sale on Supercars.com and Ticketek.com.