The race is on to complete the Hampton Downs Motorsport Park after New Zealand A1GP organisers gave it the tick for future A1 events.

After three years at the Taupo Motorsport Park, A1GP New Zealand chief executive Gary Dawson cited commercial reasons for the move to the Hampton Downs circuit, between Hamilton and Auckland.

“It was a tough decision to make,” Dawson said today.

“But with the large populations of both Auckland and Hamilton in close vicinity it made more commercial sense.”

The only question hanging over the Hampton Downs circuit is timing. The track is not sealed and looks a long way from completion, but those involved are certain they will be ready, as is Dawson.

“If we didn’t think it could be, we wouldn’t have chosen to go there,” he said.

After last winter’s flooding throughout the Waikato, building of the new circuit was severely interrupted, but Hampton Downs chief executive Jamie Kett this morning guaranteed the event would go ahead at the circuit.

“In a perfect world we would have been finished already,” Kett said.

He said the 2.8-kilometre national track the shorter of the two tracks on site would “absolutely” be completed by June and the international one, 3.8km, would be finished by September.

“Worst case scenario, we can use the national track,” Kett said.

He said the seal for the national track was due to be laid later this month.

New Zealand is yet to be officially confirmed as a hosting country for future events, but the Times understands racers will be back in early November as part of an Australasian double-header.

Surfers’ Paradise has been confirmed as an event host from October 22-25 and Hampton Downs is likely to host one of the following two weekends.

[source: stuff.co.nz]