ITM has signed as a platinum sponsor of the biggest sporting event in New Zealand — the V8 Supercar Championship round in Hamilton.
The Hamilton 400, New Zealand’s only round of the V8 Supercar Championship, will be held on the new street circuit on April 18 to 20.
It has created extraordinary interest, with local fans queuing for up to six hours in the rain for the first release of tickets. The first year is limited to 60,000 spectators each day.
The event will form the third round of 2008’s V8 Supercar Championship and will be set around a 3.4km circuit, with the pits and start-finish line on Mill St opposite the Waikato Stadium. It then travels alongside Seddon Park, the international cricket ground, and through the streets of the Frankton business community.
Fans will be able to leave the ticketed precinct and wander through the Frankton Village which is inside the circuit but which will continue to operate.
Grandstands will hold up to 24,000 fans, along with corporate hospitality and general admission, with 15 big screens dotted around the circuit.
“The street race will be a completely different experience to a race circuit,” promoter Dean Calvert says.
“There will be entertainment, big screens and merchandise spread around the precinct.”
Other entertainment includes the Super 14 rugby match on the Friday night between the Chiefs and the Crusaders, while there will be two major concerts in Seddon Park on Saturday and Sunday after racing. The concerts will be free for anyone who has a ticket to the motor racing.
