Super X ‘revolution' dumped by GAS
Global Action Sports, which took over rights to a new-look Australasian Supercross Championship in 2008, has now pulled the pin, citing massive financial lossesSuper X, the completely revamped Australasian Supercross Championship brand adopted by Global Action Sports (GAS) in 2008, is no longer, with the sports company citing substantial financial losses for its decision to end its association with the series.
An unsustainable drop in ticket sales is cited as the major reason, with average crowds falling by nearly 50 percent over the last two years. But the worries haven’t just begun: the series has lost money from the get-go.
“It is with very heavy hearts we have made this decision, but the bottom line is that there are not enough paying fans to support the huge expense of putting this series on,” said the Managing Director of GAS, Michael Porra.
“Even in year two with Chad Reed racing at every round we saw a significant decline in ticket sales where we averaged approximately 6000 fans per round. This trend continued in year three and in year four we averaged only 3500 fans per round resulting in a seven-figure loss.”
Super X exploded onto the Australian market in 2008 with live television coverage of every round, new race formats, and world class tracks at blue-chip venues around Australia and New Zealand. But that failed to translate into sustainable mainstream interest.
“Australia is a very competitive market for action sports as well as mainstream sport and entertainment, and this combined with a very poor economy has definitely played a huge factor in this unfortunate outcome,” said Porra.
“We had a very ambitious vision for the sport of supercross in Australasia and have invested millions of dollars into this series, but unfortunately there appears to be no light at the end of the tunnel and we cannot afford to continue with these huge losses.
“I have very much enjoyed my time getting to know the sport and along with my team, we have done all we can to try and make the series a success. I really hate the thought of giving up, but I am left with no choice.”
Motorcycling Australia is now calling for expressions of interest from clubs which would like to promote the 2012 championship.
Tags
Please see our Editorial Guidelines & Code of Ethics (including for more information about sponsored content and paid events). The information published on this website is of a general nature only and doesn’t consider your particular circumstances or needs.
