The Australian Superbike Championship’s return to New South Wales was well received, according to series promoters. Image: Toby Lynch.

The Australian Superbike Championship’s long-awaited return to Sydney Motorsport Park was both positive and promising, according to series promoter International Entertainment Group (IEG).

IEG general manager Phil Harper said the feedback in the days following the event indicated the round was well received by riders and teams, ensuring the venue as a fixture on the calendar in future seasons.

“In regards to the Australian Superbike Championship’s first event at Sydney Motorsport Park as a whole, it was great,” Harper told CycleOnline.com.au. “The feedback we have and continue to receive afterwards has been promising.

“This is actually the first time we’ve had riders complain about too much time on the track, which is something we’re not used to!”

“But it is a fantastic track and facility, and it produced some amazing racing, to the level we knew it would.”

Harper said IEG was “quite happy” with the spectator support, noting some of the challenges faced.

“Crowd numbers were good on Sunday, on Saturday, being the first leg of the double header, we were a little disappointed,” he said.

“Taking into consideration it was our first time back in a number of years, and the fact that we’ve effectively stepped into the territory of the opposing promoter, we were quite happy.”

Harper believes the event is the start of a re-building phase in New South Wales for the championship, and said the series’ return to the venue was a significant step forward for the sport in general.

“Obviously New South Wales is one of the largest motorcycle markets, be it road or off-road, so Sydney Motorsport Park is very important to us,” he said. “It’s a great venue and racers love racing there, and us being there is one of the most important things for the ASBK to do moving forward.

“The ARDC (Australian Racing Drivers’ Club) was happy with what we brought to them in terms of the event, so that’s a positive.

“Next year I’d imagine the event won’t be a double header – we’ll look at our options as we review the event more closely.”