The end may be in sight for New Zealand V8 Supercar fans' winter of disappointments.
A promotion group is working in Auckland to regain the Supercar championship round, lost when Auckland and Wellington failed to deliver street races and a horse-racing dispute appeared to rule out Pukekohe.
Now equine peace has been restored and the vastly improved Pukekohe track could be available.
But the price for bringing the big V8s here has gone up because their controlling body, Avesco, would consider only airfreighting the cars across the Tasman, an approach that proved successful on the longer haul to China recently.
The success of that race at Shanghai has whetted Avesco boss Tony Cochrane's appetite for overseas ventures and Malaysia, Bahrain and South Africa have all come calling. That means New Zealand fans, sponsors and officials should back the latest bid or there may not be another chance.
This weekend the Supercars will have their sixth round at the Hidden Valley track near Darwin in the Northern Territory with Todd Kelly the man to beat.
Tapper reinstated
Auckland rally driver Mark Tapper has been reinstated to the results of the recent Hella International Rally of Rotorua.
He was excluded for allegedly using an illegal intercooler on his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo7. But Mitsubishi Motors has now provided the paperwork to verify the part was legal.
Tapper reclaims his third place overall and is first junior driver in the national rally championship after round four. He also won the final leg in the Rotorua event - setting fastest time on all of the day's four stages.
The next round of the championship will be held in Hawkes Bay over the weekend of July 30-31.
Aussie arriving
Another Aussie is to join the New Zealand V8 championship next season. Luke Youlden will drive a Ford for the Powerbuilt team.
He is competing in the Aussie Carrera Cup Porsche series, where he lies fourth, and will drive in the V8 Supercar endurance races with the Stone Brothers team.
Michelin patch job
Michelin has offered to refund the money paid by the 120,000 spectators at the farcical United States Grand Prix, which was ruined because the French company failed to produce a safe tyre for the teams it supplies.
The offer, with a pledge to buy 20,000 tickets to give away for next year's event, is aimed at heading off sanctions on the teams.
But the Indianapolis authorities will want some compensation for the $US13.5 million ($19.3 million) it cost to stage the not-so-grand prix and sponsors, television fans and punters around the world will not be easily placated.
Cunningham mark II
Auckland karter Mitchell Cunningham, 18-year-old younger brother of 2003 world champion Wade Cunningham, had his best performance yet at the second round of the European championship at Mariembourg in Belgium.
Cunningham, who drives for Italy's CRG team, set the 23rd fastest time in qualifying, just one place behind reigning champion David Fore. In the heats he finished 12th in the first one, 20th in the second and ninth in the third.
That got him into the two finals in which he finished 21st and was classified 25th in the second.
BMW placing
Former Hamilton karter Chris van der Drift recorded fourth and fifth placings in the Formula BMW championship on the German track at Oschersleben over the weekend. He remains in third place in the championship.
Hamilton tests well
Matthew Hamilton, who drove in the inaugural Toyota Racing Series around New Zealand last season, has had a successful test with the Brian Stewart Racing team at Nashville, Tennessee, in and Infiniti Pro Series car.
The Christchurch 21-year-old hopes to make the jump to Infiniti Pro next year.
<EM>Pitstop</EM>: V8 supercars may stage Pukekohe comeback
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