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Mini Australia boss David Woollcott says they are terminating their five-year contract with Toleman Motorsports after just three years. He cited the loss of TV from Seven's main V8 Supercars telecast and the growing exense of the series.
"Many of the competitors didn't take five-year contracts; they just took year-by-year contracts. "The series started just before the GFC struck and then the first operator went broke, so it's struggled." However, he speculated that the series may come back "in a few years''.
The series has attracted a strong field of competitors including Paul Stokell and Jason Bargwanna, plus celebrity drivers at some events. Mini corporate communications manager Piers Scott says the termination of the series has nothing to do with the spectacular crash earlier this year at Queensland Raceway where a Mini rolled into the crowd, narrowly missing spectators. The crash was shown around the world on YouTube.
Woollcott says Mini will remain committed to motorsport. He says its new Countryman AWD car will be in several World Rally Championship events next year, with a full season in 2012. "Mini will always be in motorsport,'' he says.
Woollcott says he is unsure what will happen to the 30 Mini Challenge cars owned by Mini and Toleman Motorsports.
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