While event dates of September 19-20 had been previously announced by the Sunraysia Drag Racing Association for a round of the Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Series, the ongoing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to provide whatever certainty possible for competitors has forced the decision to cancel the event.

“In light of the continually evolving situation here in Australia and most especially in Victoria and New South Wales, combined with the resulting ongoing border restrictions, together SDRA and ANDRA knew that the difficult yet right thing to do was to make this decision now so we can best inform and look after our competitors,” ANDRA Chief Executive Officer, Brett Stevens, said.

“This is not a decision that has been come to lightly, but with border restrictions likely to continue for some time and the safety of our members our paramount concern, it is a decision that can no longer be avoided if we are to act in the best interest of our competitor base.

“We have been working around the clock with SDRA and all of our ANDRA member tracks around the country since March to assist them to navigate constantly changing restrictions and work on returning to racing in a safe manner, and we will continue to do so. We ask that you support the SDRA and all our member tracks wherever you can as we all work together under these exceptionally trying conditions.”

SDRA President Kingsley Kuchel echoed Stevens’ comments.

“This is definitely something we hoped would not transpire. Unfortunately we are at the point now where this is the right thing to do to give our competitors as much advance notice as possible. It simply has become undeniable that proceeding with the event in September is not possible due to a lack of certainty about what restrictions will be in place at that time,” Kuchel said.

“We want nothing more than to be back fully operational and running events as we normally would, but these are far from normal times for us and every day is still so uncertain.

“We are incredibly grateful for the continued support of our racers and sponsors and we hope to see many events including Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Series events held here at our facility in the future. You can rest assured we are doing everything we can to make this a reality when conditions permit.”

ANDRA continues to work with member tracks and the relevant health authorities on events of all types, including those that will make up the 2020/2021 Summit Racing Equipment Sportsman Series calendar.

“We understand everyone is anxious to know the dates for the next national season and we can assure you we are working hard to bring these dates to you, but as evidenced by the current situation around the 2020 Sunset Strip Nationals, we are operating in very uncertain terrain. We thank our members for their patience and understanding of this situation and will be sure to release any updates we can in a timely manner,” Stevens said.

For more from ANDRA, visit www.andra.com.au

For more from SDRA, visit www.sunsetstrip.org.au