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Speedway battle not over as questions grow over Auckland mayoral power
Sport Nation • August 12th, 2026 11:56 am
Western Springs Speedway generally attracts large crowds | Photo: Andrew Cornaga/Photosport
Reports of the ‘Western Springs Bowl’ becoming Auckland’s revised outdoor music venue may suggest the fight to keep speedway at Western Springs Stadium is over - but ongoing court proceedings tell a different story.
Despite plans for the venue to reopen in October, the Save Our Speedway Association says it has not exhausted its options, with the group still pursuing a judicial review and raising concerns about political pressure inside Auckland Council.
The association filed for judicial review to challenge Auckland Council’s decision-making, arguing the correct process was not followed when councillors voted 11–8 in 2024 to move speedway to Waikaraka Park after 95 years at Western Springs.
Save Our Speedway Association spokesperson Jason Jones told Sport Nation Afternoons the group returned to the High Court last month and is still awaiting a decision. However, he said council had continued work at the stadium, insisting it would make their case for pushing speedway out easier.
Jason Jones on the future of speedway | Sport Nation Afternoons
“That process is very complicated and drawn out, so we’re awaiting a decision on that, which can be a number of months,” Jones said.
“Meanwhile, councillors progressed on and put concrete down over what would be the back straight for speedway.
“They’re saying the works are reversible and, of course, anything is reversible, but they’ve pushed on regardless, even with the court proceedings, which is rather annoying.
“We’ve got three lawyers on this, and one is King’s Counsel specialising in government legislation. She’s very, very confident that we’re going to win this.”
Jones also alleged Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown had used committee appointments as leverage over councillors.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown | Photo: Alan Lee/Photosport
“There’s also some maneuvering going on with the mayor,” Jones said.
“Basically, what happens is if you’re on a committee, you get a substantial pay rise and, likewise, you can take a substantial pay cut when you are removed from that.
“Every councillor that supported us was removed from committees."
Jones said he feared elected representatives cannot vote freely on a major public asset if they risked being punished financially or politically. He believed that one councillor, that he would not name, took a 45 per cent pay cut as a result of supporting their cause.
Western Springs Speedway | Photo: Alan Lee/Photosport
“From current events that are occurring on council, I think there are a lot more councillors waking up to the political pressure and the lean by the mayor of removing people off committees,” he said.
In March 2026, Auckland councillors again voted 15-6 to proceed with the Western Springs Bowl proposal. Christine Fletcher, John Gillon, Mike Lee, Greg Sayers, Ken Turner and John Watson voted against the move and wanted to keep exploring other options, including bringing speedway back to Western Springs.
The association's proposal was to privately fund the stadium, while allowing rugby, concerts and speedway to continue. The plan also included new clubrooms for Ponsonby Rugby Club and a community centre featuring a speedway museum and gymnasium - all at no cost to the taxpayer.
“I think we do have some definite openings there to persuade some people to do the right thing,” Jones said.
While Jones accepted the continuation of works may not be illegal, he questioned whether it was appropriate for council to continue while the court process remains unresolved.
“There’s a big difference between what is right morally and ethically compared to what is legal most times,” he said.
“The fact they would push ahead with those works while the court proceedings are underway is very reckless, because you’re looking at ratepayers’ spending.
“Then, obviously, to reverse those works, should we win that court case, is an ongoing cost to the ratepayers.
“So, this whole process is being carried on with an attitude of recklessness and disregard for good business practices.”
10-time New Zealand midget car champion Michael Pickens has shared his support for speedway to remain at Western Springs | Photo: Jeremy Ward/Photosport
In May 2025, Auckland Council decided to ask residents what they wanted to see happen with the stadium in the future.
The council received 14,894 submissions. The largest share, 33 per cent, supported “exploring other ideas”, which Jones said was predominantly associated with speedway continuing. A further 30 per cent supported the concert bowl proposal, 21 per cent preferred a sports arena, and 16 per cent supported keeping the venue largely as it is, but without speedway.
Speedway has been held at Western Springs Stadium since 1929, while concerts have taken place there since 1971. Ponsonby Rugby Club also became part of the venue’s mix in the late ’90s.
Jones said those tenants had previously been able to co-exist, with rugby in the winter months and speedway, concerts and festivals held over summer.
Speedway promoters also planned their events around concerts and festivals.
Midget cars form a 4-wide at Western Springs Speedway | Photo: Photosport
He argued Western Springs was not a single-use venue, but a rare central Auckland asset capable of hosting multiple codes, crowds and cultures.
“You’re looking at an outcome that is achieving what?” Jones expressed.
“We had speedway and concerts and rugby. We’ve had all that there since ’97. In fact, we had speedway and concerts there well before that, into the ’70s.
“So there’s really nothing being achieved here. We’re actually taking a step backwards and providing less in the facility.
“Even if you take speedway out of that equation, you’re still limiting everything else that can happen there.”
Jones also questioned the case for another major concert-focused venue in Auckland.
Eden Park’s updated planning framework allows up to 12 large concerts of more than 30,000 people and 20 medium concerts of 10,000 to 30,000 people each year without resource consent.
Jones said Spark Arena already “sucks up most of the market” for smaller indoor events.
“So you’re looking at a proposal that’s backing another concert venue that I don’t believe is required, because we’ve never filled the capacity for the other two,” he said.
“You’ve really got to wonder what this is all about, because it certainly doesn’t make a lot of sense. If you’re practically business-minded, it really doesn’t make any sense on paper that it’s going to pay off for ratepayers at all.”
NASCAR champion Kyle Larson has regularly raced at Western Springs Speedway and since advocated for its future | Photo: Jeremy Ward/Photosport
Jones said the physical works risk creating a fait accompli by progressing far enough, spending enough and altering enough that council could later argue there is no realistic way back.
“By building what is pretty much a permanent stage now, which they stated was going to be semi-permanent or removable, it has actually locked the venue into a situation where it very much limits what else can be held there,” he said.
“I think a lot of it is internal political pressure, but obviously the fait accompli is really, I think, the aim.
“Throughout this entire process, they have kicked on, which is one of the big arguments that we have in the High Court - whether there has been due diligence and proper process.”
A total of $2.5 million has been allocated to transition Western Springs into a concert venue, while a further $11 million worth of upgrades has been applied to Waikaraka Park. However, the track remained closed for much of the 2025/26 season due to an unraceable surface.
Jones said the High Court case had multiple grounds.
“There are four grounds, not four points, four grounds.
“There are a lot of points within those. We only actually have to win one of those in court, and we’re pretty confident that we will," he said.
“But it depends on what happens after that, because we still need these councillors behind us to make reasonable and good decisions.”
Listen to the full interview below:
