Powertour only at two circuits???

[jvilleneuve2000]

i have just read at autosport that Donington Park, Brands Hatch, Snetterton, Oulton Park and thruxton will not be hosting a round of the powertour next year!!!!!!!!
This leaves only silvestone and croft form the current calender. They are apparently annoyed at the amount of people coming to the meetings and the pathetic number of races. i think that they have done this so they change the package for next year. It would be a shame if the worlds top f3 series was forced to race on inadequate circuits.

[jvilleneuve2000]

Isnt anybody botherd about this????, british motorsport is in a bit of a mess anyway, so this makes it alot worse.

[Peter Mallett]

So.

They'll go to Pembrey, Knockhill, Spa Francorchamps, Castle Combe, Silverstone, Croft, Oulton park, Mallory Park(?), Rockingham(?) plus others which may include Croix en Ternois and Cadwell Park. Where else do you want them to go?

[Craig]

Sounds like a crock of shyte to me - just last week, there was a story in Autosport claiming that 12 tracks wanted the series to visit. Donington apparently claim that only 600 paying spectators turned up for their first meeting of the year. Yeah, whatever! I was there, and there was a lot more than that, unless they were handing out free tickets to everyone!

Apparently Donington will join Brands in running a reduced program next year due to major rebuilds, and BHL's other cirtcuits are a disgrace anyway, and don't deserve rounds. Having said that, I think they're simply being political, and we'll see events at these circuits after all.

With regard to the series itself, the fans are justified in criticising the content of the new package - five races a day is simply not enough. Why would people want to go to a half days racing for a full days price ? Fill out the card and include 7 or 8 races per day and more people will be likely to come along.

[Andy H]

sounds **** to me also.

If it did happen perhaps the NSC could nip over to the BTCC. Come to think of it they can be the main attraction supported by the Vauxhall 6 Astra Challenge (erm I mean BTCC-2001).

[Peter Mallett]

I thought I read recently that the BRDC had promised not to EXPAND the Powertour (tm).

[Dan Friel]

All very interesting.. and going to end in tears no doubt!!

Peter, are you sure about Gt's and F3 at Cadwell??? I'll be there! (its owned by BHL anyway)

This just sounds like threats.. they can't be serious, can they??

[Peter Mallett]

Originally posted by Dan Friel
Peter, are you sure about Gt's and F3 at Cadwell??? I'll be there! (its owned by BHL anyway)

Pure speculation but I doubt that they'd go there, or indeed Mallory. I was just listing possibilities.

[TimD]

I've seen Aurora AFX National Formula 1 being run at Mallory.

So stranger things have happened!

(For those aged under 30, that's the championship we had in the seventies which was roughly equivalent to BOSS Formula!)

[SNH]

Official comments from the PowerTour offices in response to BHL, (seen on http://www.thegrid.co.uk/power.tour.0004.htm first) is below.
Are BHL, who are in with the new BTCC owners worried about NSC & BTCC being the same thing?

The British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) has expressed satisfaction with the performance of the PowerTour British
motorsport series and reaffirmed its commitment to develop the family-orientated show based around top quality racing.

Speaking in response to a statement by the Brands Hatch Leisure Group, PowerTour series director Roger Etcell said:
"PowerTour will continue working towards the objectives we announced when this new concept was launched in London last
November. We look forward to continuing to support those who have supported us in the first year of our three-year plan for
PowerTour."

The BRDC, and everyone involved in PowerTour, remains committed to developing a motorsport show that is a success for all
parties. By combining three major championships into one audience-friendly show and building in a host of attractions for the
whole family, PowerTour has established itself as a revolutionary initiative in British motorsport and is starting to attract new
fans.

Attracting new fans to the sport and the promotion of new British motorsport talent are key features of PowerTour. An
example of this is the fact that rising Formula 3 star Gary Paffett has just secured a £125,000 prize for clinching the
Scholarship class of the British F3 Championship.

The hero championships of Green Flag British F3, Privilege Insurance British GT and Silverstone Insurance National Saloons
will remain at the core of PowerTour, backed up by a quality programme of supporting races with exciting new plans for 2001
soon to be revealed.

[Andy H]

I was thinking about this again - it's just no plausible.

Formula 3 is surely going to have it's credibility destroyed if they don't go to Brands Hatch or Donington all season - or do they really not matter?

[Dan Friel]

Does it really matter...

I don't think so.

So the circuits they will go to are:

Silverstone x 2
Pembrey
Rockingham x 2??
Spa
Mondello Park
Castle Combe
Croft??
Knockhill??
And also a round at somewhere like Zolder or Zandvoort..

Is that a strong enough calendar??

[Andy H]

I still think it does, howevere this debate seems to have mutated into a whole new thread of it's own