THE 2025 REPCO Supercars Championship calendar is out, and it represents an improvement in several areas over the 2024 edition.

Let alone the fact the number of events has grown, the cadence between them has improved and clearly shows where things are heading when conditions – the 2026 TV deal and subsequent and hoped for increased remuneration to teams, for example – allow for further expansion.

Think of this calendar as a stepping stone to where it should be, rather than the finished product.

It’s not hard to picture the 2025 schedule and add two additional events to make it to 15, which most agree is the sweet spot for a proper, fully-blown Supercars schedule.

It’s not the perfect schedule (if there is such a thing) but it is a significant improvement over this year even if the net gain is only one event.

Here’s TRT’s round-by-round take on the lay of the land in 2025.  

1 – SYDNEY MOTORSPORT PARK

WHILE it is a stop-gap ahead of the 2026 debut of the Perth street race, which will give the Supercars Championship an opener it hasn’t had since the days of Newcastle or Adelaide, running a night race in Sydney to kick off the calendar makes a lot of sense.

TV will appreciate the timing and because it’s after a majority of the Cricket is done – and before footy starts – it gets to launch the season in clean air. The big question is where does Sydney go when the Perth event lands, but the early spot in the calendar makes sense for running into the dark when it’s not going to be 10 degrees out near the Western Sydney tip and / or biscuit factory.

As an aside, it’s only three weeks after the Bathurst 12 Hour which offers Supercars, who promotes the Bathurst enduro as well, valid cross promotional opportunities across the two New South Wales events.

2 – AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX

THE earlier date for the Grand Prix next year, in its capacity as the F1 season opener, probably helped push the Sydney event earlier into February to allow for space for the Grand Prix.

Albert Park is a big commitment, with teams usually bumping in on Tuesday or early Wednesday, so it turns into more than a week with cars out of the shop. Was never not going to be on the calendar and if reports of a much more fan-friendly paddock location are accurate then it’s a win for Supercars – even if it seems unlikely they’ll ever get back to pit lane, though the bigger question is; do they really need it? More emphasis on ‘owning’ Thursday would make a much more sensible push at Australia’s largest event.

3 – TAUPO

THE huge success of the first trip to the centre of the North Island was a showcase for how good the Kiwi market is for Supercars.

There’s more fat either side of the Kiwi round this year to allow for sea-freighting the cars across the Tasman, which takes longer but is about a quarter of the price for the championship and event to underwrite. Most pundits expect 2025 to be the last time there’s just one New Zealand round on the calendar, too.

Going by sea and shipping container makes it very easy to shift internally in New Zealand as well as across the ditch, and the fan reaction would seem to make it a no-brainer. Regardless, Taupo was a smash this year and turns out is a very excellent place to visit, too. Worth a look if you’d like a holiday next year.

4 – SYMMONS PLAINS

RUNNING in the middle of winter was poor this year, even if the weather was actually warmer than it was in 2023.

Still, the bad publicity and chatter around the timing of the Tasmanian event made it feel somewhat the ugly duckling of the calendar this year, so moving back to the earlier phase of the season is not only better from a climactic standpoint, but given it’s the only round in a seven-week stretch between New Zealand and Perth, it gives Tasmania a chance to breathe within the broader schedule.

That’s good for the Tassie Government, the circuit itself and the hardened Tasmanian fans who continue to turn out each year.

5 – PERTH

THE Annual trip to Wanneroo is likely to be the last next year, with the street race in the city forthcoming in 2026, so if you’ve never been to the fantastic little circuit an hour north of the WA capital you should make your plans now. Pushing the event into July isn’t likely to change things too much – as the locals will tell you, their weather is pretty much fantastic all year round. The big question is what fills this gap in ’26, when the street race opens the season?

6 – DARWIN

A one-week break from Perth means that teams can head straight from the West and head North to Hidden Valley, without the expense and logistical challenges of having to drive all the way back across the country.. only to have to go halfway back the other direction a week later.

As a thought, there’s a superb opportunity to give the good folk of WA’s far North some motorsport action here – send the Transporters up to the Top End via Broome and get a local version of ‘track to town’ (Cable Beach to town?) happening and hit one of the few corners of the country that the sport is yet to touch. I mean, they’re kind of going that way anyway, so why not maximize the trip by getting to some fans who may never have seen the sport in the flesh.

The place would go crazy, it’d be great PR and, as an aside, we could all go to Matso’s brewery, which is supposedly very good.

7 – TOWNSVILLE

THE Northern swing is locked in long-term and remains the most sensible thing Supercars has ever done from a calendar point of view. Moves back one week next year, but still falls in the School Holiday period. Hopefully avoids a Cowboys game at the nearby stadium or, if there is another clash, there’s actually some cross promotion achieved next year. Regardless, good trip, timing, a staple.

8 – QUEENSLAND RACEWAY

THIS is the big addition to the calendar and reward for Tony Quinn who continues to chuck cash at racetracks that need it.

The Greater Brisbane region is enormous and a sporting powerhouse and not having a Supercars round in the area – the Gold Coast may as well be in a different state – was a big hole in the calendar. QR now has the facilities to properly support an event of this scale and anyone who has been to the SpeedSeries rounds for the last two years will agree how good the place is. Pit lane improvements continue to evolve and you can bet TQ’s team will put on an excellent event. A big win for the calendar.

9 – THE BEND

THE FULL month between QR and The Bend is probably not ideal but will allow teams to prepare and test for the first 500km enduro at South Australia’s circuit.

There’s been lots of chatter around this versus the history of the Sandown 500 (though the blips when that race went to Phillip Island and QR often get glazed over in said chats), but with Sandown’s long-term future still up for grabs and the facility itself in desperate need for upgrades and investment – as documented recently by TRT – The Bend is the obvious place for a pre-Bathurst warm-up.

It’s got incredible facilities, and the circuit will likely lend itself to longer distance Supercars racing where strategy, tyre wear and other elements will play more of a role than in sprint racing at the same circuit. Many have judged a 500km race at The Bend before it’s even happened – we’d suggest giving it a chance.

10 – BATHURST

THE Great Race runs on its traditional weekend and there’s little more to say than that. Be there.

11 – SURFERS PARADISE

THE post-Bathurst party everyone needs is locked in for several more years and remains one of the most ‘I can’t quite believe they let us race here’ places on the calendar.

12 – SANDOWN

OKAY, so a lot will complain about the lack of this being a 500km race and the ‘traditional’ Bathurst warm-up and that’s fine. But on the upside, it’s clearly been a big effort to keep the venerable old girl on the calendar for the time being and if you can set aside feelings of loss over the enduro, then it’s actually a bloody good place for it.

Not only does it become the critical round that decides who does what in the championship decider a few weeks later, it shifts the race outside of footy season which is a big win in a place like Melbourne. The biggest win? While still notoriously unpredictable, Melbourne’s November weather is obviously better than it is in September, so the chances of an event being held in good conditions is upgraded significantly.

Let’s hope when formats are announced there’s something interesting for Sandown suitable for the penultimate round of a title race or, as many have longed for, it serves as a return for Retro round. Retro round was cool. We like retro round.

13 – ADELAIDE

THE best place for a season finale returns, a week later than this year. It gives Adelaide a spectacular end of the year, too, with the Ashes test match just a few weeks later.

More importantly, Supercars retains a huge run home in their 2025 calendar, charging from Bathurst to the Gold Coast, Sandown and Adelaide all within the space of eight weeks. At least three of those races will be on free to air and all of them are clear of conflicts with any of the other major sports that could suck attendance, airtime and eyeballs away.

The first half of the season is quite padded out – this will likely change in ’26 with the arrival of Perth and potentially another New Zealand event – but the run home is well sorted.