Bass Coast Festival cancelled
Barely a month after it was announced, the all-new Bass Coast Festival of Motorsport at Phillip Island was cancelled due to the latest wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the eastern states.
Originally set down for 22-24 October (replacing the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix that was cancelled back in July), the Bass Coast Festival was to combine the mi-bike Motorcycle Insurance Australian Superbike Championship presented by Motul with the Repco Supercars Championship in a “2+4” event, as seen at Darwin’s Hidden Valley this past June.
However, due to a surging COVID-19 outbreak in NSW and new lockdowns in Victoria, event organisers, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation (AGPC), announced on 10 September that the festival would not be going ahead.
“Due to ongoing challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Bass Coast Festival of Motorsport has been cancelled,” said AGPC CEO, Andrew Westacott.
“AGPC would like to thank the Victorian Government, Supercars, Australian Superbike Championship, Porsche Carrera Cup, the Bass Coast Shire Council and associated tourism and business groups for their support during the event creation and planning phases in recent weeks.
“Our appreciation also extends to Motorsport Australia, Motorcycling Australia and the legion of motorsport fans who provided their support for this new event concept.”
The Bass Coast Festival was to be a standalone round for ASBK, with no Australian Supersport, Australian Supersport 300 or other support categories. With the event’s cancellation, ASBK will now join those categories in a double-header weekend at The Bend on 11-14 November (rescheduled from September), with the 2021 season finale set for 3-5 December at Phillip Island.
As with all motorsport events, these remaining rounds are subject to COVID-19 developments.