NAPA Auto Parts is pleased to confirm that it will be the naming-rights partner of the inaugural NAPA Speedway – Sprintcars in the City – at the 2024 VAILO Adelaide 500 this November.

Celebrating the 25th year of Supercars on the streets of Adelaide, the 2024 event will feature a suite of new activities at the event, making the famed VAILO Adelaide 500 a true Mecca of world class motorsport action.

The NAPA Speedway will be based within the Adelaide street course precinct, allowing traditional fans of the Repco Supercars Championship and the Adelaide event the opportunity to see the 950 horsepower Sprintcars – live and loud!

NAPA Speedway is being hailed as the biggest announcement in Australian sprintcar history. Never before has a Sprintcar race been held in a CBD before and is likely to see the biggest speedway crowds we've ever seen in this country.

The NAPA Speedway will host two nights of explosive sprintcar action, with as many as 40 competitors set to compete in qualify, heats and races on the Thursday and Friday nights of the event.

The VAILO Adelaide 500 has also confirmed that Round 3 of the FOX Australian Supercross Championship will take place at the iconic Adelaide street circuit.

For the Sprintcars, NAPA Auto Parts has also confirmed that Australian international Sprintcar star James McFadden as the first entrant for the Sprintcars in the City at NAPA Speedway.

McFadden, 35, is undoubtably Australia’s leading Sprintcar driver currently racing. In 2024, McFadden is competing in the High Limit Racing series for Roth Motorsports in the USA and currently sits ninth in the standings.

Over the past two Australian summers, McFadden has raced for Hodges Motorsport in the NAPA Auto Parts-supported Sprintcar, competing in the big shows down under, including the Grand Annual Classic and the Australian Sprintcar titles.

McFadden will rejoin Hodges at NAPA Speedway for the inaugural Sprintcars in the City at NAPA Speedway event, to be held as part of the VAILO Adelaide 500 on November 14-17.

More details on NAPA Speedway will be revealed in the coming months.

QUOTES

James McFadden

#5 NAPA Auto Parts Hodges Motorsport

“It’s fantastic that Sprintcars are going to be part of the VAILO Adelaide 500 with their own event,” said McFadden.

“I can’t think of a better place to do it – especially on the streets of Adelaide. It’s a great city for sport and motorsport. To be a part of the Adelaide 500 is huge and it’s one of the biggest motorsport events in the world.

“For us to showcase what we do on a stage as big as this is going to be fantastic.

“I grew up going to Speedway City in Adelaide, and I’m excited to come back to the town. I know how great the fans are, and I’m really excited that NAPA has supported this event.

“The South Australian Motorsport Board are going to make it an unbelievable show.

“To have a Speedway built in the middle of the city, in conjunction with the VAILO Adelaide 500, is huge for the sport of speedway. It’s going to be an awesome show. They’ll be a lot of talented drivers and teams, and Sprintcar has such a big following in Australia.

“I’m really excited for it. It is going to be huge for our sport. Huge for Adelaide and huge for NAPA.

“And I’m coming back home to win this race. Not only for myself, but for NAPA and the fans. It is going to be the biggest stage for Sprintcar racing in Australia.

“To win the race is the ultimate goal. We have the team capable of doing it – the NAPA Auto Parts Hodges Motorsport #5. I won’t be really happy about anything else but winning the race. I’ll be fresh off coming back from America and I’ll be able to hit the ground running.”

Mitch Wiley
Executive General Manager – Marketing, GPC Asia Pacific

“The whole team at NAPA are thrilled to be the inaugural partner of the NAPA Speedway and to see this amazing event come to life, adding to the already world class VAILO Adelaide 500”

“This will be such a unique spectacle, and an incredible moment for all Australian Speedway fans.

“We’re very proud of our partnership with Hodges Motorsport and James over the past two Sprintcar summers, and to be bringing him to this event continues a very successful collaboration.

“Having James back on Australian soil, in the NAPA colours with Hodges for this race is a huge coup. He is Australia’s best Sprintcar driver and will represent the team at NAPA and his sport at the highest level.”

Darren Tindal

Chief Executive Officer, Speedway Australia

“We’re very proud of the amazing entertainment package that speedway provides and can’t wait to see the reactions to just how fast and unpredictable Sprintcars can be,” said Tindal.

“We’ve been very excited to work alongside the VAILO Adelaide 500 team to make sure that they have the best people at their disposal to make this the safest and best showcase of the sport that we can and reignite the passion for speedway in a state that has produced so many champion racers.”