Porsche Announce 2020 Calendar and PAYCE as Series Sponsor for Next Two Years
Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia have announced an all Australian calendar for 2020. Troy Bundy, Head of Motorsport for Porsche Cars Australia made the announcement to teams, drivers, sponsors and media partners at the series’ annual Awards Dinner after the final round on the Gold Coast.
The 2020 calendar aligns with rounds of the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship and the Australian Grand Prix, with the country’s premier support category encompassing an eight round series headlining at Australia’s marquee motorsport events across the country.
The 2020 calendar kicks off with its traditional start at the Superloop Adelaide 500 on the 20-23 February followed by the glitz and glamour of the Australian Grand Prix on the 12-15 March. There is an early break over April and May before the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Championship reconvenes for round 3 at the Watpac Townsville 400 in 26-28 June.
The Championship stays up north for round 4 in Darwin Triple Crown on the 17-19 July before heading back south for the highly anticipated Sydney Super Night Race on the 28-10 August. A month later the teams will again enjoy the fast and flowing curves of The Bend Motorsport Park, before heading to the Bathurst 1000 in early October. The final round again will be at the Vodafone Gold Coast 600 on the 30 October – 01 November.
After the reveal Bundy explained the key factors when developing the 2020 calendar, “Every year we get feedback from our customers through a survey and from that feedback what stood out was that everyone wanted to continue to race at the biggest motorsport events of the year in front of the biggest crowds, while enjoying the best support and television package available.”
“This calendar delivers on these objectives with every race being a marquee event with great tracks, big crowds and just a premier class experience for our customers, teams, and sponsors.”
The second big announcement of the night was that PAYCE have resigned as the title series’ sponsor for a further two years.
On the announcement Bundy said, “It gives me great pleasure to announce that PAYCE have secured the title partner rights for Carrera Cup for the next two years, taking them to the end of the life the 911 Gen II program.”
“Partners like PAYCE are incredibly important to us as we just couldn’t deliver the level of programme we do without their support,” he continued.
“We have been fortunate enough to secure the largest sponsorship support in Carrera Cup’s 15-year history and for us that has allowed us to reinvest that support back to the drivers and customers through improved calendars, television packages, prizes as well the Michelin Junior program,” Bundy continued.
“Personally, it’s hugely gratifying to secure PAYCE as our title partner for the series for the next two years as they have been a fantastic partner of the category for a number of years both partnering with the series as well as a range of teams and drivers. They secured our title partner rights at the end of the last year and we are very grateful the faith they have shown in our program to continue until the end of 2021.”
According to John McMellan Director PAYCE Consolidated Pty Ltd, “PAYCE has a long-time association with Australian motorsport through its support of drivers, teams, and categories. At PAYCE, we see many synergies between our company and this popular sport, including sharing a passion for what we do.”
“PAYCE has had a long term association with Porsche Carrera Cup Australia for quite some time on both the driver side and the series. This year we decided to take up the series title rights and it’s been a great partnership ever since,” McMellan said.
“PAYCE’s renewed investment in the series’ is a testimony to the standard of racing and presentation of Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup, both on and off the circuit. We are very pleased to confirm the extension of our series partnership for another 2 years,” he concluded.
2020 Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia Calendar
Round 1 Superloop Adelaide 500 Adelaide 20-23 February
Round 2 Australian Grand Prix, Melbourne 12-15 March
Round 3 WatPac Townsville 400 Townsville 26-28 June
Round 4 BetEasy Darwin Triple Crown, Darwin 17-19 July
Round 5 Sydney Super Night Race, Sydney 28-30 August
Round 6 The Bend OTR 500, Tailem Bend 18-20 Sept
Round 7 Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 Bathurst 08 – 11 Oct
Round 8 Vodafone Gold Coast 600 Gold Coast 30 Oct– 01 Nov
For more race information, videos and interviews throughout the weekend, follow the Porsche PAYCE Carrera Cup Australia social pages: Instagram – @carreracupaus / Twitter – @CarreraCupAus / Facebook.com/CarreraCupAus
Sources: Angus Thompson/Porsche Cars Australia