FUNDING issues have hit the world of road racing hard again this week after the organisers of the Ulster GP have officially abandoned plans to run the event this August.
The plan was to hold the event between the 18th and 19th of August, which would have made it the first running of the historic race since 2019, shortly before Covid-19 had landed. The Dunrod and District Motor Club has this week confirmed that spiralling costs are at the heart of the issue, and have stated it is with ‘deep regret’ that this year's planned event will not run.
Ulster GP August Revival Scrapped
The club goes on to state that to begin with it had the full backing of Castlereagh City Council and the Ulster Grand Prix Supporters’ Club, and that a number of teams and riders were behind the event. It seems though that financial uncertainty is once again at the heart of the issue, and the club claims that despite ‘numerous requests’ to view the public liability insurance the Motorcycle Union of Ireland and Ulster Centre had in place the document was not forthcoming. Instead, the organising club was being asked to make a payment of £26,000 by mid-April, although the club’s legal team advised not to proceed with the payment without actually seeing the insurance policy.
The statement from the club also cites uncertainty around what backing the event would get from Tourism Northern Ireland, a point that seems to be the final nail in the coffin for this year’s revived event.
