Embarrassing for Auckland?

The promoter of the V8 street race thinks that Auckland's rejection of his event is an embarassment to the city.

Well, only if not being internationally known as suckers is embarassing. Personally, I think it's a good reputation to have.

The V8 street race was a scam. There's no other way to describe an event that would have shut down the city while billing Aucklanders for the privilege. It would have added very little to the local economy; with car races everything comes in on the back of a truck, and it was unlikely to attract the same level of international visitors as the Americas Cup. Aucklanders would simply have got a very expensive traffic jam - something they're quite capable of arranging for themselves for nothing. Viewed this way, they are well rid of it.

If hoons want to race their cars, then they should do so on a race-track; if people want to watch, then it is they who should be paying for it - not ratepayers in general.