Adelaide in talks to host NASCAR ‘match racing’

As recently revealed by Speedcafe, Supercars wants to bring a selection of stock cars Down Under for exhibition races on Australian soil.

Supercars chiefs travelled to the US in May hoping to secure a six-car demo for the Gold Coast 500, featuring retired stars.

While complications resulting from the timing of NASCAR’s Chase are believed to have scuppered the plan, Supercars hasn’t given up on the concept entirely.

The Adelaide Grand Final is now seen as the only option for such a showcase, as it is the sole Supercars event that sits outside the gruelling 36-race NASCAR season.

Adelaide Grand Final boss Mark Warren confirmed an approach from Supercars about the concept.

“We have talked with Supercars about what they are looking to do in terms of having some sort of NASCAR match racing,” Warren told Speedcafe.

“That is of interest. We’ve just got to figure out, will it fit into the overall program? Is it something fans really want to see?

“I think that if we can get the top drivers out of NASCAR to come over here and actually do some proper match racing, I think that would be really cool.

“Having Shane van Gisbergen, for example, come back and go head-to-head with some others. How good would that be?

“Obviously the BP Adelaide Grand Final would be the best option to try and achieve that.”

Supercars chasing NASCAR demo race on Australian soil

The ‘match racing’ concept is based around hosting an even split of cars from Ford, Chevrolet and Toyota, which each compete in both series.

“Match racing is very much that head-to-head, where you’ve got pairs of cars,” added Warren. “It is actually racing, it’s not just an exhibition.”

Warren noted the funding model would also need to stack up to make a NASCAR showcase viable for the event, but is keen to explore the concept further.

“I know there’s a lot more closeness now between Supercars and NASCAR,” he added.

“They are collaborating more on a technical level, so I think they want to see more collaboration on the sporting level.

“If we can be part of that, we’ll be very open to it.”

Adelaide last year hosted NASCAR Cup Series driver Austin Cindric as a wildcard entrant with Tickford Racing.

Chevrolet drivers had also been linked to possible wildcards in each of the last two years, with the manufacturer again flagging interest for this November.