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Supercars has confirmed the essential of its formats for 2019, the Gold Coast having to stay after two races of 300 km.
A move to Saturday's qualifying sprints and a 500km Sunday race was planned as part of a PIRTEK Enduro Cup reshuffle, aligning the format with that of Sandown.
However, the Supercars Commission has decided that the 2×300 km format, used since 2010, will be retained.
"At the largest meeting of the Commission before Newcastle, it was decided to keep the successful and proven format of two races of 300 km, one per day," said CEO Sean Seamer.
"The format will allow us to continue to explore an international presence at the event."
It was also confirmed that the ITM Auckland event in Pukekohe would remain an international SuperSprint for 2,200km, canceling rumors that it could become a two-driver event.
Pukekohe has actually traded places on the schedule with Sandown, due to the shift from air freight to sea freight and the subsequent need for additional travel time in the schedule.
This means that the first race for co-drivers will be the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000, followed by the Gold Coast 600 and the Sandown 500.
The standard SuperSprint format – including a 120km race on Saturday and 200km on Sunday – will be used again at Symmons Plains, Winton, Hidden Valley, Ipswich and The Bend.
Phillip Island will also become a SuperSprint, having traveled a 2×250 km format over the past two seasons.
Elsewhere, the events in Adelaide and Newcastle retain their 2x250km schedule, while Townsville continues with 2x200km.
The exact composition of the Melbourne 400 at Albert Park and SuperNight – which will pass from Sydney to Perth next year – has not been announced yet.
Final test and qualifying schedules for all events are expected to be announced in the coming weeks, along with an increase in tire allocation for the SuperSprints.
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