Edmonton will keep its commitment to hold the 2010 Rexall Edmonton Indy even though this year, the international racing event racked up a deficit of $3.9 million, Mayor Stephen Mandel said Wednesday.

In spite of taking a $3.9 million loss on the Rexall Edmonton Indy in 2009, the city's mayor said Wednesday he will go ahead with the 2010 edition of the international racing event. (CBC)"The City of Edmonton has to meet its obligations and contracts we've signed into. I think that's important," Mandel said.

The city won the bid to host the annual race from 2008 to 2010. If the 2010 event were cancelled, it would face financial penalties from the Indy Racing League.

"The numbers I'm not going to give, [but it would] cost us more to back out than [to] stay in," Mandel said. "We can do a much better job financially than we have in the past.

"I think in the past, there has not been a very concerted effort to reach out to the business community to get involved in it, and my belief is we can bring this in at a very reasonable cost and a very reasonable deficit."

He would not say what a reasonable deficit might be.

Indy brings 'significant profile to the city'

The event itself is co-ordinated by Edmonton Northlands, the not-for-profit organization that runs various events on behalf of the city. Officials with the organization blamed losses from the 2009 Indy on the recession. They also urged people to see the race in a broader context that takes into account the economic impact of the event.

"We certainly believe that the event brings significant profile to the city," said Brian Leadbetter, director of government and community relations for Northlands.

"While we do appreciate that there are significant financial challenges … the success of the event should not be measured only in financial terms."

The 2008 Indy left Edmonton with a deficit of $5.3 million.