The COVID-19 pandemic may have seen the 2020 Australian Motor Racing Series (AMRS) placed into a lengthy hibernation period, but thanks to the tireless efforts of the organisers, the AASA-sanctioned national series will finally resume at Sydney Motorsport Park this weekend.
This weekend’s race meeting will be the first AMRS event since the season opener at Winton in March and while border closures and travel restrictions have precluded the attendance of several core categories, the round has been able to proceed thanks to overwhelming support from the NSW competitor base.
Categories on the program will be Mazda RX8 Cup, NSW Production Touring Cars, TA2 Muscle Cars, Stock Cars, NSW Production Sports Cars/Super GT, HQ Holdens and Group S Classic Sports Cars.
AMRS Series Manager Matt Baragwanath said the AASA has been instrumental in facilitating the restart of motorsport in NSW.
“The AASA has been very helpful in providing a pathway towards the resumption of motorsport at this level in NSW, within the confines of the current COVID-19 environment,” Mr Baragwanath said.
“The organisation of this race meeting has been a joint effort between AMRS, AASA and Sydney Motorsport Park in clearly understanding what is allowed and what is appropriate under the NSW Health regulations.
“As stakeholders, we have worked together to devise suitable COVID-safe protocols, minimising health risks to all persons on site.”
Some categories on the program, including Production Touring, Production Sports, Group S and HQ Holdens, will be participating in an AMRS meeting for the first time. Mr Baragwanath said the objective is to ensure maximum enjoyment for the competitors in those categories.
“We welcome first-time categories and their associated competitors to their first AMRS event and are confident they will have an enjoyable weekend,” Mr Baragwanath said.
“Competitors can expect a friendly environment, in which the main aim is not only to be safe but to have fun.
“The response from categories has exceeded our expectations, it is apparent there is a thirst for motorsport in NSW and we are fortunate enough to be able to provide it for them this weekend.
“Category managers and competitors have provided feedback about how appreciative they are that we are delivering this race meeting.
“We will do everything within our power to deliver a safe, efficient race meeting and ensure the competitors leave on Sunday night, wishing to come back to AMRS in the future. We believe we are delivering value-for-money motor racing to all categories considering the track time they are receiving.”
AASA Business Manager Stephen Whyte said the AMRS race meeting has been able to proceed thanks to efforts of Mr Baragwanath in forming relationships with key NSW categories.
“AMRS has done a great job of communicating with several NSW classes, some of which have never run at a AASA-sanctioned event,” Mr Whyte said.
“It’s been a team effort working with SMSP Management and AMRS to work through the processes of creating an opportunity for competitors to race at one of the country’s great tracks”.
“We’re confident they will thoroughly enjoy their experience this weekend and will be open to competing at more AASA-sanctioned race meetings in the future.
