Supercars has cleared the last hurdle ahead of next year’s Newcastle 500 with the dates for the 2023 season-opener locked in.

A tentative date for the event of March 10-12 was announced in July this year, though that was subject to a number of approvals.

The return of the Newcastle East Street Circuit to the Supercars calendar became a step closer in August when it was endorsed by local councillors.

Supercars has now received approval from the relevant state government agencies, slotting the final piece of the puzzle into place.

It includes sign-off from Heritage Council of NSW, NSW Office of Sport and Destination NSW.

Tickets for the first event of the Gen3 era will go on sale today at 14:00 AEDT for Grandstand, General Admission and Corporate facilities.

Support categories and the entertainment line-up will be announced in the ‘coming weeks’.

“We’re thrilled that the dates are now locked in for our return to Newcastle and the debut of the Gen3 Camaro and Mustang,” said Supercars CEO, Shane Howard.

“The Newcastle 500 is a world-class motorsport event, and we look forward to attracting the attention of motorsport enthusiasts and, once again, stage an event which sees flow-on benefits for the city’s hotels, bars, restaurants and retailers.

“We’ve waited three years for our return, and we want to make sure Newcastle 2023 is an event to
remember for years to come.”

City of Newcastle Lord Mayor, Nuatali Nelmes, added: “Newcastle and the Hunter [region] enjoy a huge racing supporter base and I’m confident they will love to attend the season opener.

“Local tourism and accommodation providers that have been heavily impacted by COVID-19 will be looking forward to and benefit from the economic stimulus provided by the Newcastle 500’s return.”

Supercars has stated that tickets purchased for the 2022 Newcastle 500, which was called off due to pandemic-related restrictions, will be valid for the 2023 event.

However, if a refund was requested, those tickets will no longer be valid.

The current Supercars season continues with the Repco Bathurst 1000, for which opening practice begins at 11:00 AEDT today.