Supercars may return to Symmons Plains in the Olympic Games time-slot

Tasmania’s biggest sporting event might come weeks ahead of Bathurst 1000.

Lowndes Racing Craig Lowndes on his way to victory in race 2 at the Tasmania Supersprint at Symmons Plains. Picture Chris Kidd

SUPERCARS boss Sean Seamer says the Tasmanian round of the championship may fit into the slot on the sporting calendar vacated by the Tokyo Olympic Games.

The supercars series was to pause during the Games, scheduled for July 24 to August 9, but that “hole” is now being viewed as a golden opportunity to run one or two rounds of the championship.

“We’re obviously fortunate in that our calendar was quite spaced out when we started the year,” Seamer said.

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“We had a break for over the Olympics, which aren’t happening, so we’ve got some flexibility around July-August-September in the lead-up to Bathurst that we wouldn’t necessarily have.

“We’ve got experience from last year around doing back-to-back rounds. We did Tassie in to Philip Island, so look for us to go back-to-back.

“Look for us to do whatever we can to get this championship away and that includes going into early next year.”

The State Government’s four-year $7.35 million deal with Supercars Australia is to bring Australia’s biggest motor racing road show to Tasmania.

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As the state’s biggest sporting event, the supercars at Symmons Plains attracts about 55,000 each year and generates almost $10 million for the state’s economy.

As such, it will not be run until the Federal Government’s coronavirus restriction on public gatherings is over and Tasmanian can once again flock to the track.

“The teams are working really hard to get their number of race-day personnel down so that even if we’ ae still dealing with the situation where only 500 people are allowed in one place at one time for an outdoor gathering, but we are able to cross borders, we can then get going again with a TV-only product.”