It?s another sad day for road racing, as we learn that the International Ulster GP has been cancelled. No, it?s nothing to do with the pandemic, it?s all about cash. Again.

The Revival Racing Club (the team trying to revive the Ulster GP after it was cancelled and halted indefinitely after the 2019 event) have been trying their best to drum up the funds to pay for an event that, for the last few years of its running, lost a considerable amount of money. The previous organisers, the Dundrod and District Motorcycle Club had run debts of up to £300,000 leaving numerous partners, suppliers, and riders out of pocket (they even owed me a few quid).

To put the event on in 2022, the Revival Racing Club asked Tourism NI for £800,000. That was to help pay for the Ulster GP as well as to contribute to the North West 200.
How much"

But whilst the amount was signed off by the Department of Finance and the Department for the Economy, Tourism NI weren?t having any of it. In fact they said?

?The funding request has now been considered by Tourism NI?s board and it concluded that it could not justify the level of funding requested both on financial and legal grounds. Like all public bodies, Tourism NI is operating in a highly constrained budget environment and is considering requests for support for a range of events across Northern Ireland in 2022. Tourism NI has provided Revival Racing with an indicative offer as to what it could expect to receive and what we beli...