Details of new Mondello Park Motorcycle Racing Championship Announced
Following on from the recently released changes to Motorcycle Racing events at Mondello Park, Motorcycling Ireland’s Short Circuit Committee along with the venue are pleased to announce final details of how the new championship will be structured.
Following direct consultation with riders, sponsors, race organisers and other interested parties the championship organisers will now concentrate their efforts to promote the new Short Circuit Motorcycle Racing format into just four events, rather than spreading it over six weekends. Three of the four Mondello Park Championship race meetings will take place over two days with one being a single day event. The remaining two Motorcycle dates on the Mondello Park calendar will revert to being one-day Clubman Championship race meetings.
As previously announced, Championships with enough entries to require a pair of grids will be run as two classes. ‘National’ grade riders will race for the overall 'Pro Championship', while ‘Clubman’ grade riders will compete for ‘Cup’ class points as well as overall points, which is similar to the system used in BSB for many years. Qualifying will be split, with the grids for the ‘A’ and ‘B’ races then being based on qualifying times, irrespective of class. A rider registered for the ‘Cup’ class will score points in that class irrespective of which race they are placed in after qualifying. This new format will ensure that the fastest and slowest riders are kept apart as much as possible and will give less experienced riders the chance to fight for ‘Cup’ honours while also measuring their performance against the best o! f the ‘Pro Championship’ riders. Newcomers, those holding their first race licence, will not be allowed to race in the ‘A’ race and will be placed in the ‘B’ race irrespective of where they qualify.
Along with the provision of two stand alone Clubman dates, two of the feature events on the calendar will also be opened up to the Irish Superbike competitors to count as championship rounds. The dates for these races will be August 7th & 8th and October 2nd & 3rd, which will also include the Mondello Masters. At these meetings Irish Superbike championship points will be on offer within the Mondello Park championship races but not the Grand Final, which will be open to the thirty fastest racers on the day from any class. As with all Mondello Park Championship events the Grand Final will be the race that all riders will want to qualify for, as this will be where the Prize Money is presented. Along with the on-the-day prize fund a healthy end of season fund will also be available to the top ‘Pro’ and ‘Cup’ class riders.
With the number of high profile races reduced to four, Mondello Park will now begin working on a promotional package to try to entice greater numbers of spectators to the circuit’s Motorcycle races. Concentrating on improving the race day experience with greater emphasis on the feature classes, including grid interviews and podium presentations will be just part of the changes. Additions to the commentary team and the introduction of side attractions at each event, will also add to the attractiveness of a day out at Mondello and it is hoped that these new initiatives will be supported by all involved with Irish Short Circuit Motorcycle racing.
2010 Mondello Park Motorcycle Race Dates
April 11th Irish Clubman Championship
May 22nd/23rd Mondello Park Championship
July 4th Mondello Park Championship
August 7th/8th Mondello Park Championship including ISB
September 19th Irish Clubman Championship
October 2nd/3rd ‘Mondello Masters’ Mondello Championship Final including ISB