V8 Supercar adds Malaysia to calendar

The first V8 Supercars event in Malaysia will take place in August next year, as part of the Australian series' more-compact calendar.

Street races in Adelaide and Sydney will continue to bookend the schedule, but will be held one week later and one week earlier, respectively, compared to 2015. Confirmation that Kuala Lumpur will host the full field on Aug. 12-14 takes the calendar from 14 championship events to 15.

A handful of V8 Supercars appeared during the inaugural KL City Grand Prix earlier this year in a demonstration capacity aimed at assessing the venue's suitability.

Of the other changes, Phillip Island moves from November to April, while a four-week winter break has been built in between the Winton and Darwin events in May and June.

The Bathurst 1000 will be held on Oct. 6-9 and the series will continue to support Formula 1 at the Australian Grand Prix, albeit with non-points races.

"This more compact calendar delivers consistent and regular events throughout the season and expands the championship into Asia in what is a truly exciting development for the sport," V8 Supercars chief executive James Warburton said. "We believe it will result in an even bigger following for our sport both locally and overseas with bigger crowds and our expanded television coverage.

"A more condensed calendar will help build even more momentum and still provide adequate breaks for the teams and drivers."

2016 V8 SUPERCARS CALENDAR

Originally on Autosport.com