WHILE Surfers Paradise will showcase the ultra-competitive V8 Supercar Championship from October 19-22, the product itself is about to hit top gear internationally - making it one of the fastest growing export businesses on the Gold Coast.

By 2009, a third overseas region will be included on the V8 calendar, with South Africa, Singapore and Hong Kong all vying for a slice of the cashed-up V8 enterprise.

Come November, Bahrain, in The Gulf, will get a taste of the action as one of the fastest shows on the road roars into town for the first time. In 2008, New Zealand will host a street race in Hamilton, in a country where the name V8 Supercar has become as synonymous with Kiwi sporting culture as rugby.

More than 1.7 million people attended V8 Supercar events in Australia, China and New Zealand in 2005. The Clipsal 500 in Adelaide, in March this year, attracted a record 270,300 spectators - more than any F1 event held at the circuit.

V8 Supercars Australia chairman Tony Cochrane says the success of the brand has been the result of a two-tier strategy - televising it to the world and then physically taking it to its people.

"V8 Supercars Australia has successfully exported the brand in two distinct parts," says Mr Cochrane.

"We have exported the product via TV to 110 countries and 850 million homes, including Europe, Great Britain and the Middle East. We pretty much cover the planet, except for Africa and parts of Asia, and those areas will be a growing part of our business in the future.

"The second part is that we have successfully taken races offshore. In NZ, the V8s are second behind rugby union as the most watched national sport. We had a five-year deal with China, but for reasons only the Chinese can understand, that deal was cut after one year.

"We are trying to expand and make a strong product in the Middle East. In the US and Europe, there is plenty of motorsport already and our focus is now on the Asian/Indian basins. The way forward has been one of dual focus - and so far it has worked reasonably well for us."

The series will continue its rapid international foray after the fast-tracking of a championship event to be held in Bahrain from November 22-24, to be hosted by the king of Bahrain, Sheikh Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

Mr Cochrane says Bahrain is an untapped resource, a motorsport-mad culture amping to witness the thunder of the V8s first hand. The V8s' inclusion in The Gulf motorsport diary follows the billion-dollar F1 business that has been competing in Bahrain for the past three seasons.

"The Gulf region has a good grip of motorsport. It's a great market for us and there is no major touring car event in the region," says Mr Cochrane.

Manager of leading Gulf performance car centre Brabus, Waseem Al Haddad, echoes the sentiment. He recently told Arabia Motors car magazine: "To me, the most exciting race is the touring cars, because you are driving a normal streetcar, but tuned to produce more power and better handling. F1 and the other cars are fun to watch, but I would really love to see touring cars here in Bahrain."

Exports aside, the V8 Supercars have become a roaring success on the home front. The Championship generates more than $70 million for the south-east Queensland economy - making it the largest single sporting entity in the state.

A study commissioned by V8 Supercars Australia and the Gold Coast City Council reveals that the governing body of V8 Supercars Australia, and seven teams based in south-east Queensland, deliver a significant number of jobs and business to the region.

The report shows that V8 Supercars Australia and its teams sustain a $72.6 million industry in Queensland and more than 625 full-time jobs. It is the highest growth sport in Australia and has been for a decade. A six-year strategic plan - coupled with a new $160 million partnership with the Seven Network - will ensure V8 Supercars remain among the leaders of Australian sport and continue growing as an international export. (Seven has also won the rights to broadcast the Indy event from 2007.)

Mr Cochrane says the study is a valuable insight into how important the sport is to Queensland.

"V8 Supercars is big business - very big business," says Mr Cochrane.

"The fact this industry generates more than $70 million a year for the south-east Queensland economy might surprise many, but it doesn't surprise us.

"This Championship is the largest and most competitive touring car category in the world.

" There are only two domestic markets where motorsport categories are more popular than Formula One - V8 Supercars in Australia and NASCAR in the US. There is no question, putting NASCAR aside, that in global terms, we are the leading touring car sport in the world.

"To be competitive in V8 Supercars requires strong business acumen, a great team and detailed planning across many years. For a new team, it might take three years to run near the top of the field.

"(Race) teams employ hundreds of people to run their operations and join with dozens of other business to keep their teams running on a day-to-day basis. Sponsorship runs into the many millions and all these sponsors are inextricably linked back to the sport.

"V8 Supercars Australia's World headquarters is at Southport where we employ more than 40 people to manage the Championship and oversee television, sponsorship, brand and communications, sales, advertising and commercial operations," he says.

Queensland Sport Minister Tom Barton says the success of V8 Supercars Australia is good news for the motorsport industry.

"V8 Supercars deliver a great product and experience which thousands of Queenslanders enjoy every year," he says.