Australian Grand Prix boss Andrew Westacott says he was taken by surprise by reports Sydney is looking to pinch Melbourne’s Formula One race, but declared the event “is not going anywhere”.
Newly-minted New South Wales premier Dominic Perrottet is reportedly looking into the feasibility of staging the race, with a street circuit around The Rocks and Barangaroo floated as a possibility, capitalising on the iconic Sydney Harbour landscape.
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Melbourne has had the race since 1996, after staging its own raid, stealing the race from Adelaide, which hosted the event from 1985-1995. Melbourne has a contract with F1 through until 2025.
Westacott heads up the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, which, despite its name, is an instrument of the Victorian government, not a national body.
He told Wide World of Sports that it’s not the first time New South Wales has tried to hijack the race.
“It took me by surprise, but on reflection these things happen regularly. I remember a number of years ago former NSW premier Mike Baird came out and said he was going to pursue the race,” Westacott said.
“There’s very few global sports that get mentioned at the same level as the Olympic Games, but F1 is one of those sports, and the benefit of F1 to a city is that it’s an annual event.
“It’s a highly sought after event, but the Australian Grand Prix is not going anywhere as far as I’m concerned, we’ve got a strong relationship with Formula One, it’s been built up over a quarter of a century of trust.
“We’re here until 2025, but we can never be complacent, we should never take our eye off the ball, as Adelaide showed in the 1990s.”
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While the NSW government might be keen to promote the unmatched views of Sydney Harbour, Westacott noted the huge disruption it would cause to the local community for the period while the event infrastructure is in place.
Albert Park is a hybrid circuit, meaning much of the setup can take place without severely impacting Melburnians on a daily basis.
He also believes Sydney would be seen as the poor cousin to iconic F1 venues Monaco and Singapore when it comes to street races.
“Formula One events are massive events at a permanent racetrack, let alone a street circuit. The impact of a street circuit is monumental, especially on a city’s day-to-day operations,” he explained.
“Monaco is one example, as is Singapore, they’re pure street races. If Sydney was wanting to be a pure street race, then you’re just copying what they’re doing, and you’re third cab off the rank.”
Melbourne hasn’t staged a race since 2019, with the 2020 event cancelled on the morning of opening practice as COVID-19 restrictions began to kick-in, while the 2021 race was struck off the calendar in July over doubts around restrictions in Victoria.
And while the current deal expires in 2025, Westacott is looking even further down the track.
“I’ve always believed that when you have a partnership, you start talking about the future immediately after you ink the current deal. The dialogue we have is always looking to the future, and that’s healthy,” he said.
“There’s not particular day when you sit down and decide to talk about the future, it’s an ongoing discussion, and our relationship with F1 is very strong.
“I’m sure other states are looking at what they can do, but we’ve got an ironclad contract until 2025, so it’s not as though the race could move tomorrow.
“The whole thing with Sydney is a hypothetical situation, we’ve got a strong relationship with F1 and we want to keep the event here beyond 2025.”
Westacott described the race as “vitally important” for the major events economy in Victoria, explaining that the state needs to get back to big crowds for the Boxing Day Test, the Australian Open, and the Australian Grand Prix.
While tennis is currently wrestling with the issue of players refusing to get vaccinated, it’s not likely to be a problem for the Grand Prix in April.
“I’m confident F1 has a model that is based on a 100 per cent vaccination target, at the moment I think it’s about 98 per cent across the travelling contingent, because they’ve actually seen that it’s a sound strategy for their own business continuity,” he said.
“They’re travelling to 22 races this season, and 23 next season. They know that to be able to travel to all these places they’ve got to be able to protect the travelling personnel.
“I don’t see it being as problematic for the Grand Prix as it is for the tennis.
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