Header Image: Eastern States Speedway
Eastern States Speedway has called off this weekend’s New Zealand Streetstock Grand Prix due to wild weather that passed through the region on Friday evening.
While the severe conditions that plagued much of the country on Friday initially appeared to have largely evaded Blenheim, luck finally ran out at 6.00 pm- around the same time racing was due to commence.
The decision was made to abandon Friday night’s programme, turning the event into a one-day meet. The call proved correct, with rain intensifying soon after, and Blenheim recording 12.4 mm of precipitation between 7 pm and 10 pm.
Although weather conditions improved on Saturday, the racing surface proved beyond recovery despite the best efforts of track staff. Social media footage showed the track saturated, deeply churned, and unfit for racing.
Even with improving conditions, the extent of the rainfall also raised concerns over how quickly the grass infield could recover.
“Sorry folks,” Eastern States Speedway posted on social media. “As much as our track prep crew have worked their backsides off trying to bring the track right, it’s just not going to work.
“The hard decision has been made to cancel this weekend’s Bateman Motorsport NZ Streetstock GP.
“The club will regroup and confirm a new date to run this event as soon as possible.”
Streetstocks will return to action next weekend with the South Island Championship at Greymouth’s Greenstone Park Speedway.