[AshSimmonds]

http://carsguide.news.com.au/site/motoring-news/story/creek_seeks_a_gt_round/

Sportscars sought after track's revamp.

Sydney's Eastern Creek Raceway wants to bring world-class sportscar racing back to Australia after failing to steal the Grand Prix from Albert Park.

The track operator, the Australian Racing Drivers Club, has commissioned a masterplan for its redevelopment by British track designers, Apex.

The masterplan is meant to update the circuit, now in its 18th year, to help attract high-profile international events.

The FIA GT Championship is run by French promoter Stephane Ratel, who aims to make it a world championship by 2010.

He claims he could “sign with a promoter tomorrow” in Australia and Eastern Creek general manager Geoff Arnold didn't deny it is the ARDC when questioned by carsGuide.

“The FIA GT Championship is one of the events we'd like to attract to Sydney,” Arnold says.

Ratel has always maintained that Australia is a crucial element to his plans to make the GT Championship a true world series.

He was here in 2004 to watch races at Surfers Paradise, Phillip Island, and he visited Bathurst.

But Eastern Creek appears to have moved into pole position to secure an FIA GT round, thanks to its upgrades.

Apex is due to deliver its masterplan to the ARDC by the end of next month and Arnold hopes to have a decision about what changes will be made by the end of the year.

Despite being unable to lure the Grand Prix, and losing the A1GP race and its V8 Supercar round, Arnold says the track will still be upgraded.

“The plan is, and always was, to look at a redevelopment of Eastern Creek because it's 18-years old,” he says. “We need to do something to improve the venue for the next 18 years.”

[Snowman]

A mate of mine works for one of the top FIA GT teams (Jet Alliance - DB9R) and you will see on their 2008 calander a fly out round to Argentina this year for the last round.

Something to consider though is that they were telling me that a lot of the teams are saying if they can't win the championship then they aren't going to go to that round as it is a huge financial drain in a market that doesn't support their key sponsors. If it was going to come to Oz you'd want some form of garantee that all the teams would come - maybe by making it an early season race or something.

Because you'd hate for us to get something like this and then it only be half assed.

[ferrarifixer]

Andrew is right. They won't come here unless heavily subsidised, or some kind of reward.

That doesn't mean they won't come here!

I say they should make it a double header... they all stay here for 3-4 weeks... do E creek, then a weekend off, then do Bathurst..

[RS]

A mate of mine works for one of the top FIA GT teams (Jet Alliance - DB9R) and you will see on their 2008 calander a fly out round to Argentina this year for the last round.

Something to consider though is that they were telling me that a lot of the teams are saying if they can't win the championship then they aren't going to go to that round as it is a huge financial drain in a market that doesn't support their key sponsors. If it was going to come to Oz you'd want some form of garantee that all the teams would come - maybe by making it an early season race or something.

Because you'd hate for us to get something like this and then it only be half assed.

it  will be like the ALMS race here in adelaide all over again