Sydney 500
Encyclopedia
The Sydney Telstra 500 is a V8 Supercar
motor racing event held annually at Homebush Street Circuit
. The event is the last on the V8 Supercar calendar. The event is sponsored by Telstra and is officially known as the Sydney Telstra 500.
The event is staged over a three-day weekend (Friday-Sunday). Practice is held on Friday with a 35-minute session followed by two 50-minute sessions. Qualifying is held on Saturday, with two 20-minute sessions, the first session determining places 21-29 and session two 11-20. The top ten cars proceeded to the top ten shootout. On Sunday a 20-minute all in session determines the grid. This is to change in 2010 as a 20-minute all in session on each day will determine each days race grid.
Each race is 250 km long, at 74 laps.
Then NSW premier Nathan Rees
expected that the 2009 Sydney Telstra 500
would attract over 15,000 visitors from interstate and overseas. It has an identical format to the Clipsal 500, with two 250 km races, one on Saturday, and one on Sunday. The Sydney Telstra 500 was launched on 16 May 2009, at Martin Place in Sydney
. The launch began with six V8 Supercars driving across the Sydney Harbour Bridge
in the morning.
The first Sydney 500 was widely considered a success, and it's been suggested that continued races will serve to further enhance the standing of V8 Supercars in the Sydney market.
of Premier Nathan Rees
was criticised for spending $30 million of taxpayers' money to subsidise the V8 Supercar races.
Critics said the V8 car races would cost the NSW government far more than the amount originally stated. The Olympic Park Authority said "it is clear that in all scenarios the current V8 Supercars Australia budget estimates are too low and/or incomplete." Government involvement in the races was opposed by the Premier's adviser on events, John O'Neill, as well as the government's infrastructure chief, David Richmond
Federal Labor
MP
, Laurie Ferguson
, said that it's all about "News Limited and Channel Seven - they're trying to please them." News Limited
, publisher of The Daily Telegraph
, and the Seven Network
had lobbied the New South Wales Government for public funding of the V8 cars. The Seven Network is a sponsor of the V8 Supercars, and The Daily Telegraph said that V8 car racing was a good fit with its readers.
Despite initial reports of success from event organisers, the event has drawn criticism from the media and motorsport fans across NSW after an Auditor General's report was leaked to the public via the Sydney Morning Herald. The report concluded that economic benefits predicted by V8 Supercar Australia were not met and expenditure was over budget.
and the Homebush Bay
precinct into a V8 street-car race circuit was widely criticised.
The Total Environment Centre
said that the New South Wales Government overrode the threatened species law, as well as the Homebush Bay Authority's planning principals, and would cause social, environmental and economic disruption at Sydney Olympic Park. Tony McCormick, who led the team that designed Sydney Olympic Park, said "I find it truly a travesty… The site was supposed to be a legacy for generations and we can’t even make it last a decade."
Liberal Party
threatened to discontinue the event once they gained government and move the V8 Supercars back to Eastern Creek
. This suggested move was met with criticism from the New South Wales' Tourism Minister and V8 Supercars themselves. Later in 2011, it was announced that the Liberal Party would honour the contract with V8 Supercars and continue to hold the event until 2013. The future of the event beyond 2013 is yet to be announced.
V8 Supercar
V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile regulations...
motor racing event held annually at Homebush Street Circuit
Homebush Street Circuit
The Homebush Street Circuit is a temporary street circuit around the former Olympic precinct at Sydney Olympic Park, Sydney, New South Wales. The track was used for the first time at the final round of the 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series, the inaugural Sydney 500.-The circuit:The circuit was...
. The event is the last on the V8 Supercar calendar. The event is sponsored by Telstra and is officially known as the Sydney Telstra 500.
The event is staged over a three-day weekend (Friday-Sunday). Practice is held on Friday with a 35-minute session followed by two 50-minute sessions. Qualifying is held on Saturday, with two 20-minute sessions, the first session determining places 21-29 and session two 11-20. The top ten cars proceeded to the top ten shootout. On Sunday a 20-minute all in session determines the grid. This is to change in 2010 as a 20-minute all in session on each day will determine each days race grid.
Each race is 250 km long, at 74 laps.
Then NSW premier Nathan Rees
Nathan Rees
Nathan Rees MP, , an Australian politician, was the 41st Premier of New South Wales and parliamentary leader of the New South Wales division of the Australian Labor Party from September 2008 to December 2009...
expected that the 2009 Sydney Telstra 500
2009 Sydney Telstra 500
The Sydney Telstra 500 was the fourteenth and final event of the 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series and the inaugural running of the Sydney 500. It was held on the weekend of the December 4 to 6 on the roads running through the former Olympic precinct at Sydney Olympic Park, Sydney, New South...
would attract over 15,000 visitors from interstate and overseas. It has an identical format to the Clipsal 500, with two 250 km races, one on Saturday, and one on Sunday. The Sydney Telstra 500 was launched on 16 May 2009, at Martin Place in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. The launch began with six V8 Supercars driving across the Sydney Harbour Bridge
Sydney Harbour Bridge
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge across Sydney Harbour that carries rail, vehicular, bicycle and pedestrian traffic between the Sydney central business district and the North Shore. The dramatic view of the bridge, the harbour, and the nearby Sydney Opera House is an iconic...
in the morning.
The first Sydney 500 was widely considered a success, and it's been suggested that continued races will serve to further enhance the standing of V8 Supercars in the Sydney market.
Government subsidy
The New South Wales GovernmentGovernment of New South Wales
The form of the Government of New South Wales is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1856, although it has been amended many times since then...
of Premier Nathan Rees
Nathan Rees
Nathan Rees MP, , an Australian politician, was the 41st Premier of New South Wales and parliamentary leader of the New South Wales division of the Australian Labor Party from September 2008 to December 2009...
was criticised for spending $30 million of taxpayers' money to subsidise the V8 Supercar races.
Critics said the V8 car races would cost the NSW government far more than the amount originally stated. The Olympic Park Authority said "it is clear that in all scenarios the current V8 Supercars Australia budget estimates are too low and/or incomplete." Government involvement in the races was opposed by the Premier's adviser on events, John O'Neill, as well as the government's infrastructure chief, David Richmond
Federal Labor
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
, Laurie Ferguson
Laurie Ferguson
Laurie Donald Thomas Ferguson , Australian politician, has been an Australian Labor Party member of the Australian House of Representatives since March 1990, representing Reid until 2010 and Werriwa thereafter, both in New South Wales. He was born in Sydney, New South Wales, and grew up in the...
, said that it's all about "News Limited and Channel Seven - they're trying to please them." News Limited
News Limited
News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
, publisher of The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph (Australia)
The Daily Telegraph is an Australian tabloid newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, by Nationwide News, part of News Corporation.The Tele, as it is also known, was founded in 1879. From 1936 to 1972, it was owned by Frank Packer's Australian Consolidated Press. That year it was sold to...
, and the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
had lobbied the New South Wales Government for public funding of the V8 cars. The Seven Network is a sponsor of the V8 Supercars, and The Daily Telegraph said that V8 car racing was a good fit with its readers.
Despite initial reports of success from event organisers, the event has drawn criticism from the media and motorsport fans across NSW after an Auditor General's report was leaked to the public via the Sydney Morning Herald. The report concluded that economic benefits predicted by V8 Supercar Australia were not met and expenditure was over budget.
Environmental Concerns
The conversion of Sydney Olympic ParkSydney Olympic Park
Sydney Olympic Park is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Sydney Olympic Park is located 16 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Auburn Council....
and the Homebush Bay
Homebush Bay, New South Wales
Homebush Bay was the former name of a suburb of western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia that took in the suburbs of Sydney Olympic Park, Wentworth Point and part of the neighbouring suburb of Lidcombe. Homebush Bay is located 16 kilometres west of the Sydney central business...
precinct into a V8 street-car race circuit was widely criticised.
The Total Environment Centre
Total Environment Centre
The Total Environment Centre is an environmental campaigning organisation in Sydney, Australia. TEC was founded in 1972. It quickly became a major environmental organisation in New South Wales....
said that the New South Wales Government overrode the threatened species law, as well as the Homebush Bay Authority's planning principals, and would cause social, environmental and economic disruption at Sydney Olympic Park. Tony McCormick, who led the team that designed Sydney Olympic Park, said "I find it truly a travesty… The site was supposed to be a legacy for generations and we can’t even make it last a decade."
Event future
In February, 2011, the New South WalesNew South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
Liberal Party
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
threatened to discontinue the event once they gained government and move the V8 Supercars back to Eastern Creek
Eastern Creek Raceway
Eastern Creek International Raceway is a motorsports circuit located on Brabham Drive, Eastern Creek , New South Wales, Australia, adjacent to the Western Sydney International Dragway. It was built and is owned by the New South Wales Government and is operated by the...
. This suggested move was met with criticism from the New South Wales' Tourism Minister and V8 Supercars themselves. Later in 2011, it was announced that the Liberal Party would honour the contract with V8 Supercars and continue to hold the event until 2013. The future of the event beyond 2013 is yet to be announced.
Past Winners
| Year | Driver | Car model | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 2009 Sydney Telstra 500 The Sydney Telstra 500 was the fourteenth and final event of the 2009 V8 Supercar Championship Series and the inaugural running of the Sydney 500. It was held on the weekend of the December 4 to 6 on the roads running through the former Olympic precinct at Sydney Olympic Park, Sydney, New South... |
 Garth TanderGarth Tander Garth Tander is a multiple-championship winning Australian motor racing driver. Since 1998 Tander has been a competitor in touring car racing series V8 Supercar Championship Series. Tander was the 2007 series champion for the HSV Dealer Team and is a three-time winner in Australia's most... |
Holden VE Commodore | Holden Racing Team Holden Racing Team The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times... |
| James Courtney James Courtney James Courtney is an Australian racing driver who competes in the V8 Supercar Championship. He is the current Australian Touring Car Champion after winning the 2010 title for Dick Johnson Racing.... |
Ford FG Falcon Ford FG Falcon The Ford FG Falcon is a full-size car produced by the Ford Motor Company of Australia since 2008. The FG series is the current model of the Ford Falcon and is the seventh generation of the car... |
Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000... |
|
| 2010 | Jonathon Webb Jonathon Webb Jonathon Webb is an Australian motor racing driver, currently competing in the V8 Supercar Championship Series.... |
Ford FG Falcon Ford FG Falcon The Ford FG Falcon is a full-size car produced by the Ford Motor Company of Australia since 2008. The FG series is the current model of the Ford Falcon and is the seventh generation of the car... |
Tekno Autosports Tekno Autosports Tekno Autosports is an Australian motor racing team, established in the early 2000s initially for the motor racing activities of Steve Webb, and later his son Jonathon Webb. The Gold Coast-based team runs a racing entitlement contract to compete in the International V8 Supercars Championship... |
| Lee Holdsworth Lee Holdsworth Lee Holdsworth was born in Melbourne, Victoria on 2 February 1983. Holdsworth is currently an Australian V8 Supercar racing driver. Holdsworth drives the #33 Garry Rogers Motorsport Holden VE Commodore.-History:... |
Holden VE Commodore | Garry Rogers Motorsport Garry Rogers Motorsport Garry Rogers Motorsport is an Australian motor racing team presently competing in V8 Supercar.-The early years:Garry Rogers Motorsport has its origins in Garry Rogers' own exploits in Sports Sedans during the late 1960s and the 1970s. In the mid-1970s Rogers got more serious, running a BDA Escort... |
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