The raw sounds from inside the cabin of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup are a true delight. And thanks to the combination of a brand new 991-based GT3 Cup, Steven Richards, Speedcafe and Sydney Motorsport Park you can experience those sounds right now!
[Thanks to John for the tip]
The official Sydney Motorsport Park twitter feed brings our attention to a new outright lap record for the recently extended 4.5km Long Circuit. F3 driver Nathan Gotch from the AGI Sport team is the man at the wheel and you can join him after the break to relive the new 1:49.4 benchmark.
Following yesterday’s news concerning Sydney Motorsport Park we can now bring you an onboard lap of the new 4.5km Long Circuit.
V8 Supercar driver Jonathon Webb is at the wheel of a Radical sportscar and the new section of track starts at 1:03 into the clip. The 830m extension to the original Eastern Creek layout takes around 30 seconds for Webb to complete.
[Source: Speedcafe]
A new name—Sydney Motorsport Park—and a #12 million dollar works program has turned Eastern Creek Raceway into “a professional, modern, international entertainment destination” according to Glenn Matthews, CEO of the Australian Racing Drivers’ Club.
Most of the upgrades centre around an 830m track extension starting from turn 6 at the south-eastern corner of the track. This has been complemented by improvements to the pitlane facilities and a new branding rollout to announce the new name, including a new website.
The 830m addition has created the 4.5km “Long Circuit” while the original 3.9km “Grand Prix Circuit” can still be used. In addition the track can now be separated into the 2.8km “GP North” and 1.8km “GP South” configurations which will allow two different events to be run at the same time.
Speaking at today’s official opening Glenn Matthews said: “What we have in Sydney Motorsport Park is unique in Sydney, and indeed NSW. It is the only permanent race track in the Sydney basin, and as a result the decision was taken that its name should reflect this.
“There are now four different track configurations, with the ability for the North GP and South GP layouts to operate at the same time, which significantly increases our capacity.”
Already the new layout has secured the return of the V8 Supercars to the track, with an event to be held there in August. Meanwhile, Matthews promised today, “There are some other exciting announcements regarding major events coming very soon too.”
Work is still ongoing for the control tower and pitlane complex that will be used to operate GP South circuit. They’ll be positioned adjacent to turns four and five.
We’ve included a couple of before and (almost) after satellite images below, along with an interview with V8SC driver Jonathon Webb, who was interviewed at today’s opening.
[Source: Sydney Motorsport Park]
UPDATE 24 May: A short video from Sydney Motorsport Park about the launch has been added below.