TOP GEAR LAUNCHES THE GREATEST OUTDOOR MOTORING FESTIVAL IN SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

Today the official schedule for the greatest outdoor motoring festival on earth was unveiled, the first ever Top Gear Festival Sydney taking place at Sydney Motorsport Park, Eastern Creek for one weekend only - and only in Sydney on Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th March 2013.

 

Jeremy Clarkson, James May and The Stig will be joined by Australian co-host Shane Jacobson and a host of international celebrities as they descend on the newly refurbished Sydney Motorsport Park with over 9 hours of live automotive mayhem each day across two race circuits and live action zones. 

 

For the first time ever on a Sydney track the Red Bull Racing Formula One team together with Mark Webber will take pole position on the new and extended Circuit. As well as attempting to break the lap record they’ll be squaring off against reigning V8 Supercars champion Jamie Whincup and racing legend Craig Lowndes in The Ultimate Race: F1 Vs V8.

 

It will be a weekend of motoring firsts as Clarkson throws down the gauntlet to various forms of transport in Clarkson Vs, James May attempts to speed up the Express Postal service with help from a few MotoGP legends with the Postie Bike Challenge, and The Stig sets power lap times in some of the rarest supercars the country has ever seen. Alongside the opening round of 2013 racing for the Touring Car Masters series featuring John Bowe and Jim Richards, and Radical Australia Cup, a world renowned athlete will be taking on Clarkson in a 100m race and we will see if we can get a man to jump a Lamborghini at 100kph 

 

Three celebrity teams will battle it out in the inaugural Tri-Nation’s Cup; a series of motoring challenges that risk life and limb, but ends in glory and possibly a small trophy for the winners. Australia wil be lead by Craig Lowndes, New Zealand skippered by Fabian Coulthard and the rest of the world captained by none other than The Stig. If that’s not enough we’ll be running myPlates Star in a Reasonably Priced Car challenge  each day on the technical 1.8km myPlates South Circuit. Australian Socceroo Brett Emerton, Olympic Gold medalist Steve Hooker, cricketing legend and TV personality Michael Slater, Channel 9 reporters Roz Kelly and Emma Freedman and the Triple M Grill Team boys Matty Johns, Gus Worland and Mark Geyer are just a few of the celebrities who will test their limits behind the wheel of our reasonably priced car. 

 

If it’s got wheels and an engine we’ll be pitching it into battles on track. Former F1 World Champion Alan Jones will be setting his 1980 Williams F1 car against Bathhurst legend Colin Bond in Alan Moffat’s 1977 Ford Falcon. Jamie Whincup will be taking on aerobatic  pilot Matt Hall to settle which is faster round the track In the Car vs Plane Race. And we’ll be attempting to jet power Clarkson so he can drag race himself down the main straight…

 

Australia is only the second country in the world to host a Top Gear Festival, and it will only take place in Sydney. Across the Festival weekend the Yokohama Stunts & Jumps Zone will feature extreme stunt rider Matt Mingay, Showtime FMX with their own brand of insane freestyle motocross action, Jack Field and the Flair Action Riders, and Stunt Driving School  offering visitors the chance for a white knuckle ride.

 

Sixteen of Australia’s finest drifters will also take to the myPlates South Circuit in the Just Cars Drifting sessions to tear it up and show the true extremes of drifting lead by Beau Yates, Luke Fink and Rob Whyte. World famous Deus Ex Machina will take to the track, with on-track parades daily to include their world famous creations.

 

The Variety Family Zone will be filled with fun and entertainment for the younger generation; Land Rover Discovery and freestyle trial bike will be showcasing their skills on the brutal Onsite Rental Group Off-Road Challenge; and there’s a wide range of delicious food and drink experiences, including cider gardens, all combining to create an unmissable weekend.

 

Jeremy Clarkson was quoted as saying, “it’s another chance for us whinging poms to get sunburnt and attacked by spiders” when Sydney was sighted as the perfect place to host the massive outdoor track festival.

 

Top Gear Live Creative Director, Rowland French, said “as usual we’ve made it as ambitious as humanly possible, and if we pull it off this will be our greatest festival yet. Nowhere else in the world allows petrolheads to witness Top Gear challenges from the comfort of their own piece of sun drenched grass. What could possibly go wrong, right?”

 

Minister for Tourism and Major Events, George Souris, is proud that Sydney was chosen as a global location for the Festival, saying, “The exciting line-up of world-class motoring action and driving talent at Top Gear Festival Sydney 2013 offers festival-goers from Sydney, interstate and overseas a fantastic weekend for the whole family at Sydney Motorsport Park.

 

I encourage everyone to experience this wonderful live outdoor event based on the internationally renowned Top Gear television program and successful live arena shows right here in NSW.

 

“The New South Wales Government is committed to building and delivering the best major events calendar in the country and events like Top Gear Festival Sydney, ensure that we continue to deliver on that promise.”

 

The Festival is open from 8am till 6pm each day, with free CityRail public transport available on presentation of a valid Festival ticket. The closest station is Blacktown, and shuttles will run all day to and from Sydney Motorsport Park.

 

Tickets start from just $29.00 for a child’s General Admission, and $79.00 for an adult’s General Admission.  Discounted Family General Admission Packages are also available and start at $180.00 for x2 adults and x2 children (4 – 12 year olds).

 

Tickets are available from Ticketek – 132 849 - http://www.ticketek.com.au/topgear

 

In Australia, Top Gear series 19 can be seen first on Foxtel’s BBC Knowledge from Sunday February 3 at 7:30pm (AEDT) and then on the Nine Network and Go!

 

Top Gear Festival Sydney is proudly supported by the NSW Government, through its tourism and major events agency Destination NSW, and is a key event on the NSW Events Calendar.

 

SYDNEY MOTORSPORT PARK – Ferrers Road, Eastern Creek

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

www.topgearfestivalsydney.com.au

 

 

Top Gear Festival Sydney official schedule announced at a media call event today presented by Shane Jacobson, The Stig, with highlights including The Stig in a Lexus LFA, John Bowe in a classic Touring Car Masters muscle car, a thrilling Radical Australia Cup entry, drifting champion Beau Yates, an iconic Deus Ex Machina bike, as well as the Lexus CT200h ‘myPlates Star in a Reasonably Priced Car’, all on track, joined by world renowned aerobatic pilot Matt Hall sweeping overhead.

 

For further information,

Marlene Richardson – Publicist, Top Gear Festival Sydney M: 0409 888 218