THE ADELAIDE Motorsport Festival will return this year, locking in December 7-10 as the new dates for the event held at Victoria Park.

The new dates will be a relief to Motorsport fans with the growing event having previously tentatively confirmed November 25-26 this year: the same dates as the Virgin Australia Supercars Championship finale’ on the streets of Newcastle.

The revised 2017 date is two weeks later than last year – to not only accommodate the Supercars date clash, but also the first ever day-night Ashes test match scheduled to commence on Saturday, December 2.

With the Ashes test expected to sell out at least the first two days and the festival receiving backing from the Adelaide City Council and South Australian Tourism commission, pushing the event later into December to avoid the Supercars clash and the test match seemed to be the logical choice.

The date will still allow for the Festival to utilise elements of the Clipsal 500 infrastructure that is  in the early stages of construction by December, including the track fencing on the Eastern side of the Victoria park circuit.

“We can confirm that the Adelaide Motorsport Festival 2017 will be held from 7th to 10th December. The Victoria Park Sprint will be held over the weekend of the 9th and 10th of December,” the event posted on their official Facebook page.

“We would like to thank the South Australian Tourism Commission for their continued support and use of Clipsal 500 infrastructure at this time which also allows us to attract drivers and cars that have concluded their normal racing championships interstate and overseas.”

The 2016 event, held in late November, was a success despite scorching temperatures throughout South Australia that weekend.

The Formula 1 demonstration was the highlight, Ivan Capelli’s run in his old Leyton House March late on the Sunday afternoon – that saw him re-set the Victoria Park sprint circuit track record – being one of the major talking points post-event. F1 greats Stefan Johannson and Pierluigi Martini were also part of the event.

The 2016 event also saw increased manufacturer involvement from brands activating on site and with the Classic Adelaide Rally, that takes in the Adelaide Hills and surrounds from the Thursday prior to the Sprint event starting.

Check out http://adelaidemotorsportfestival.com.au/ for more on the event.

2016 AMF EVENT VIDEO: