The most senior police officer in Bathurst wants the city's biggest event to be cancelled, saying COVID-19 risks outweigh the benefits.
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The Bathurst 1000 is set to be held at Mount Panorama from October 8 to 11, with teams and other event personnel to be in the city in the days leading up to the race.
It is unknown at this stage if the event will have spectators, and there is also a strong chance the event could be pushed back a week.
Those views have been raised with the event organisers.
"We've aired our views, the police views, but at the end of the day, as a servant of the government, whatever is decided upon we will then enforce," Supt O'Brien said.
With new cases of COVID-19 continuing to be recorded every day, he feels it is too much of a risk to allow potentially thousands to arrive in Bathurst.
"My job is obviously to protect both my police and the community, hence why my view is the risks I think outweighs the financial and the community gain by holding an event like this at this location, at Mount Panorama," Supt O'Brien said.
He is also growing increasingly frustrated that a decision hasn't been made one way or the other, as police need time to prepare.
"My concern at the moment is there has been no decision as late as [Thursday] as to what the Bathurst 1000 is going to look like," he said.
"We need a decision by government as soon as possible so we can start planning; this is a significant event, regardless of if it is broadcast only or whatever, we need a decision to be made."
Supercars resumed its 2020 season in June and has so far raced at Sydney Motorsport Park and Hidden Valley Raceway in Darwin, with the next round scheduled for Townsville this weekend.
The Darwin events had spectators and race fans will be welcome at Townsville.
If spectators are allowed at Mount Panorama, Supt O'Brien said it will be very difficult to have and enforce a COVID-safe plan.
"We're very concerned about how Supercars, in the current climate, can have a COVID-safe venue due to the unique footprint of the Mount Panorama racing circuit," he said.
"There is no other racing circuit like it in the world. It is a huge space to police and quite frankly, my view is, it cannot be safely secured."
He said he is not alone in his concerns about the race being held and has encouraged other community members to voice their opinions.
What does the mayor think?
Provided the right measures are in place, Mayor Bobby Bourke believes it will be safe for the Bathurst 1000 to go ahead in October.
A key reason for keeping the event on the calendar is the economic boost it brings to the region each year.
Cr Bourke said that regional NSW needs to stay open and that, as long as COVID-19 heath orders and guidelines are followed, it is safe to hold the Great Race.
He also noted that there have been relatively low case numbers in NSW recently, while Bathurst hasn't had any cases in months.
"I think a lot of people now are starting to feel a bit more relaxed on COVID-19; we don't know what will happen with it tomorrow or in a week's time, but our economy, we can't kill it, we need to have that injection of people coming back to our region," Cr Bourke said.
"... If all the conditions are put in place, I don't have a problem with it."
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