BATHURST will no longer host the final round of the 2020 Supercars Championship after a revised calendar was released on Friday morning.
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Mount Panorama was slated to host its regular Bathurst 1000 round along with the deciding round in February in the draft calendar, but after the final update the season will now finish under lights at Sydney Motorsport Park in December and the second Bathurst round is no more.
Supercars CEO Sean Seamer said the update to the revised calendar has been made following weeks of discussions with key stakeholders including broadcast partners and team owners.
"When the draft calendar was released four weeks ago, our primary objective was to ensure we returned to racing as soon as possible," Seamer said.
"This allowed us to put a stake in the ground and ensure we returned to the track quickly following the COVID-19 shutdown.
"The calendar announced in May was based on the best information we had at the time.
"With an eye on 2021, teams and broadcast partners have agreed it is in all parties' best interests commercially and competitively to finish this year's campaign in December and start the new season in the New Year."
The Bathurst 1000 has retained its original date on October 8-11.
The final round of the 2020 championship will be under lights at Sydney Motorsport Park on December 12-13.
Mount Panorama was one of the losers in the revised calendar along with The Bend and New Zealand, who had their races cut from the final schedule.
Supercars stated the cancellation of those latter rounds was a "consequence of the COVID-19 circumstances which are beyond our reasonable control."
Deputy Premier of NSW John Barilaro said the revised calendar is a great result for fans of motorsport racing in Australia.
"This is fantastic news for fans of the Australia Supercars Championship who want to see competitive racing and see a result before the end of the calendar year," he said.
"The Bathurst 1000 is the pinnacle of motorsport racing so to see it remain the showcase event is incredible news for everyone involved."
The Sandown event shifts from December to September, returning to its traditional pre-Bathurst calendar position.
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