Q&A with Mark Warren Chief Executive of the South Australian Motor Sport Board

What first drew you to motorsport?

It started first with a love of cars. When I was 10, I wanted to either be a race driver or micro surgeon who drove a Sandman panel van. I built my first engine at 14 and inherited my mother’s Renault 15 that I rebuilt with twin-webers and a Gordini cam. Then came a string of VW fastbacks that my future wife loved. The motorsport interest naturally followed from being a boy-racer.

What are the long-term goals of South Australia’s Motor Sport Board and the local motorsport industry?

The Premier is committed to grow and build motor sport events in South Australia in a way that adds significantly to our vibrancy and prosperity. Prosperity comes from not only the economic benefits of attracting visitors for major events, but also from inspiring people to engage in motor sport as an industry sector that is integral to developing advanced engineering and manufacturing. It is the role of the Board to inspire that engagement with motor sport.

You have previously been in the position from 2010 to 2016. Now in your second stint, what new challenges does motorsport and the racing industry face as we gear up for the return of the VALO Adelaide 500?

The automotive landscape has changed significantly over the last decade with trends towards SUVs and electrification. Motorsport’s challenge is to remain relevant and inevitably transition to electrification as we’re already seeing with enthusiasts taking their EVs to track days, so the desire for performance hasn’t gone away where ‘fast and loud’ will be celebrated on the racetrack. The VALO Adelaide 500 will be the last time a Holden V8 competes in Supercars which is the end of an era not to be missed. In 2023 we’ll see the new Gen 3 Supercars competing on Adelaide’s streets.

How can we leverage events such as the VALO Adelaide 500 to support South Australia’s automotive, retail and service industry?

The VALO Adelaide 500 shines a spotlight on all things automotive and motorsport. That creates an opportunity for the industry to engage with the public in a dynamic and entertaining way. Supercars is the pinnacle of motorsport in Australia and the sport continues to lead the charge in terms of performance technology and safety enhancements in road cars.

How do you foresee new and emerging technological advancements, within the automotive industry, will affect or evolve motorsport in the future?

Together with electrification, vehicles are full of control systems. Race teams now have more computer technicians and data analysts than they have on the wrenches. The precision engineering and CAD design of components will always be critical, however the gains of a few tenths on the track now come down to car setup and analysing the data to deliver the performance. There has never been more relevance or transferability between motorsport and the automotive sector.

Businesses across the state have faced skilled labour shortages and supply chain issues. Has the motorsport industry experienced these challenges, and if so, how has it been addressed?

Highly skilled workers are always in demand and it’s no different in the motorsport industry, particularly with the well-published shortages in defence and mining industry sectors. The advantage for the automotive and motorsport sectors is it is driven by passion for the product and generally is a fantastic entry point for people to become skilled. Motorsport can set up highly skilled workers for life in technical and engineering fields.

So what can fans expect this year on the track?

The 2022 VALO Adelaide 500 will showcase world-class motorsport categories, with the Repco Supercars Championship to be supported by the popular Dunlop Super2 Series, Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS, Gulf Western Oil Touring Car Masters, the S5000 Tasman Series and the Battery World Aussie Racing Cars Super Series.

Mark Warren (far right) at the VALO Adelaide 500 launch.