Supercars: The full 2018 championship schedule revealed

THE Virgin Australia Supercars Championship will run over an expanded 16-event calendar next year, with the schedule just released.

Jamie Whincup drives his Red Bull Holden Commodore at the Sandown 500.

THE Virgin Australia Supercars Championship will run over an expanded 16-event calendar next year.

The full 2018 schedule has been revealed on the eve of this year’s centrepiece Bathurst 1000, with every event set to count for championship points for the first time.

Despite the number of championship rounds increasing by two the schedule will once again take place over 37 weeks, staring in Adelaide in March before wrapping up at Newcastle in late November.

Brand new South Australian venue The Bend joins the calendar for the first time in late August, as announced on Tuesday.

The Sydney Motorsport Park date moves a fortnight earlier than this year and will be run on a Saturday night, the first Supercars event to be run under lights on Australian soil in over two decades.

Albert Park also joins the championship chase proper in 2018, with next year’s races on the support card of the Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix counting for points for the first time.

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Current Supercars championship leader Scott McLaughlin at the Sandown 500.

Dunlop Super2 Series racers will once again get four chances to race in the main championship, with The Bend joining the Winton, Darwin and Ipswich as event’s where wildcards will be eligible, while the Bathurst round will once again feature a points-paying Super2 race.

While the championship’s planned Asian expansion has been pushed back to 2019, Supercars has multiple agreements

“We are making strong progress with our Asian promoters and are committed to these being sustainable long term rather than short-term opportunities,” Supercars CEO James Warburton said.

The 2018 Virgin Australia Supercars Championship gets underway with the traditional season-opening Adelaide 500 on March 1-4.

Jamie Whincup drives during the Sandown 500.

THE 2018 SUPERCARS CHAMPIONSHIP CALENDAR

ROUND 1

Adelaide 500, Adelaide, SA - March 1-4

ROUND 2

Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, Albert Park, VIC - March 22-25

ROUND 3

Tasmania SuperSprint, Symmons Plains, TAS - April 6-8

ROUND 4

Phillip Island 500, Phillip Island, VIC - April 20-22

ROUND 5

Perth SuperSprint, Barbagallo, WA - May 4-6

ROUND 6

Winton SuperSprint, Winton, VIC - May 18-20

ROUND 7

Darwin Triple Crown, Hidden Valley, NT - June 15-17

ROUND 8

Townsville 400, Townsville, QLD - July 6-8

ROUND 9

Ipswich SuperSprint, Queensland Raceway, QLD - July 20-22

ROUND 10

Sydney SuperNight 300, Sydney Motorsport Park, NSW - August 4

ROUND 11

The Bend SuperSprint, The Bend, SA - August 24-26

ROUND 12

Sandown 500, Sandown, VIC - Sep 14-16

ROUND 13

Bathurst 1000, Bathurst, NSW - Oct 4-7

ROUND 14

Gold Coast 600, Surfers Paradise, QLD - Oct 19-21

ROUND 15

Auckland SuperSprint, Pukekohe, NZ - Nov 2-4

ROUND 16

Newcastle 500, Newcastle, NSW - Nov 23-25

Originally published as Supercars: The full 2018 championship schedule revealed