Breaking news
IndyCar
IndyCar heading to Australia for Surfers Paradise talks
IndyCar’s Mark Miles and Stephen Starks are en route to the Gold Coast of Australia to discuss a return to one of the series’ most popular former venues, Surfers Paradise, possibly as soon as 2020.
David Malsher-Lopez
Edited: Nov 14, 2018, 4:25 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
As reported by Motorsport.com last month, the talks have been triggered by 2014 IndyCar champion and 2018 Indy 500 winner Will Power visiting the area and meeting with Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk.
Now Miles, CEO of Hulman & Co. – owners of IndyCar and IMS – and Starks, IndyCar’s VP of promoter relations, are today departing for Australia to meet with the Queensland government and TV broadcasters.
“We arrive on Thursday morning, Australia east coast time, for TV meetings in Sydney, and then head up north on Friday for discussions with local government, and fly home Saturday morning,” Miles told Motorsport.com.
“We have tried to make some inroads and not gained a lot of traction over the past couple of years, but Will Power has just been down there for a holiday, family visit and also some media events.
"He met some government officials and he was invited to meet the premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, and during that meeting she asked Will, ‘What do we need to do to get IndyCar back here?’ He said, ‘Meet with Mark Miles.’
“So I received an email within 24 hours inviting me down here, and I accepted right away. There’s obviously a keen interest but as yet I can’t tell you we’ve discussed the precise substance of what it would take to make it happen.”
Two years ago, Miles told Motorsport.com that one of the hold-ups for IndyCar’s return to Surfers Paradise was the fact that his ideal was to have international races in February, before the start of the U.S. season. T
he Gold Coast 600 event for Supercars – which would almost certainly share the bill with IndyCar to help ensure the event’s success – is currently held in late October.
Today he said: “Honestly, all I know at this point is that we’ve said an IndyCar race would need to be in February, and they responded with a ‘Come on down, let’s talk.’ That will be one of the many items we’ll need to explore.”
The considerable track change that has seen the circuit reduced from its original 20-turn 2.77-mile configuration to a 15-turn 1.85-mile version, was originally regarded as another potential hurdle for IndyCar to overcome, but Miles said that he’s so far been reassured by Power’s reports of the shorter layout.
“We’ve had people look at [the new layout] in the past and we’re aware of the parts that have been changed,” said Miles, “but Will went and saw it and said it’s perfectly suitable for IndyCar.
"He said, yeah, it’s a bit more like St. Pete in terms of how quick each lap is and how many laps we would do, but it can still work. And our track guru, Tony Cotman [of NZR Consulting], has said the same.”
Asked if this swiftly-organized trip to Australia was indicative of a potential IndyCar return occurring as soon as 2020, Miles replied: “I feel like we clearly have the keen attention of the premier of Queensland, and I know that others in her government have been involved and they fondly remember IndyCar as a powerful event.
"Queensland is also being quite aggressively marketed as a holiday destination. I guess my feeling is that if we can’t figure this out now, it won’t happen any time soon.
“So in my mind, the discussion is about 2020, and it’s not just a fact-finding mission. It’s to really dig in and see if an agreement can be reached, and I hope we have an opportunity to get that done – not on this trip, but reasonably quickly.”
Miles said that any potential opposition from IndyCar team owners – due to U.S. sponsors not benefiting from advertising to non-domestic markets – can be dealt with.
“Generally I think there is an understanding among our teams as to why a very limited number of international events can make sense,” he said, “and there is support for that.
"I think we will have to address the economic situation presumably by making payments to teams – probably through some increases in the Leader Circle scheme – because I do understand their financial concerns. But I don’t see it as a hurdle; it’s a matter of working out the details.”
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article McLaren will create "whole separate team" for Indy 500
Next article King joins RLLR-Honda for Indy 500
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
David Malsher-Lopez
Alex Zanardi: The man whose name is a synonym for “hero”
IndyCar
IndyCar 6 mo
Alex Zanardi: The man whose name is a synonym for “hero”
Remembering Michele Alboreto: F1 ace, Le Mans winner and a good man
Formula 1
Formula 1 6 mo
Remembering Michele Alboreto: F1 ace, Le Mans winner and a good man
IMSA Laguna Seca: Ganassi Cadillac holds off Porsche for victory
IMSA
IMSA
Laguna Seca
May 14, 2023
IMSA Laguna Seca: Ganassi Cadillac holds off Porsche for victory
More from
Will Power
Team Penske and Chevrolet announce multi-year extension of IndyCar partnership
IndyCar
IndyCar 1 mo
Team Penske and Chevrolet announce multi-year extension of IndyCar partnership
Will Power goes from dead last to the podium in manic Markham IndyCar race
IndyCar
IndyCar
Markham
2 mo
Will Power goes from dead last to the podium in manic Markham IndyCar race
How Marcus Ericsson turned a 'Big reset' into a masterclass on the Streets of Markham
IndyCar
IndyCar
Markham
2 mo
How Marcus Ericsson turned a 'Big reset' into a masterclass on the Streets of Markham
Latest news
The numbers that reveal how sprint races have turned the MotoGP title fight upside down
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Qatar GP
59 min
The numbers that reveal how sprint races have turned the MotoGP title fight upside down
2027 Formula E drivers and teams: The line-up so far
Formula E
FE Formula E 3 h
2027 Formula E drivers and teams: The line-up so far
Kimi Antonelli meets Italian president Sergio Mattarella
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1 3 h
Kimi Antonelli meets Italian president Sergio Mattarella
Feature
Discover prime content
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar 15 d
By Joey Barnes
How Spanish engineering and Alex Palou brought IndyCar to Barcelona
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
Feature
IndyCar
Feature
IndyCar 1 mo
By Joey Barnes
Inside AJ Foyt Racing’s transition: Hauger’s arrival, Ferrucci’s future, and the Pierson waiting game
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
IndyCar
By Joey Barnes
You Ask The Questions: David Malukas
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe