WTCC not to return to Macau next year

The FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC), whose traditional finale has been held at the Macau Grand Prix since 2005, will not be returning to town next year, according to the newly published WTTC calendar. The championship will kick off in Argentina and is set to end in November at Losail, Qatar.
The championship will only visit China on September 27 at the Shanghai International Circuit. The season finale is taking place on November 22, as WTCC’s first night race at Losail, Qatar.
WTCC’s season finale has been held at the Macau Grand Prix for the last ten years. According to the Macau Grand Prix Committee coordinator, João Manuel Costa Antunes, this is “a natural decision”.
Speaking to Radio Macau, Mr Costa Antunes said that matters relating to broadcasting and TV scheduling played a role in the FIA World Motor Sport Council’s decision.
He expressed that it’s still too early for the Macau Grand Prix’s organization committee to announce whether they will have another race replacing WTCC. “Each year, there are several suggestions [of races] that are left out of our calendar. At this moment we are still assessing results. We will have a schedule proposal to be submitted for approval in Macau in the first months of next year,” he said.
Macau has been the climax of the WTCC calendar each year since the series was reborn in 2005.