Circuito de Jerez
Coordinates: 36°42′30″N 6°2′3″W / 36.70833°N 6.03417°W / 36.70833; -6.03417
Location | Jerez de la Frontera, Andalusia, Spain |
---|---|
Time zone | GMT +1 |
FIA Grade | 1 |
Broke ground | 1984 |
Opened | 1985 |
Major events | Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix Formula One FIA Formula 2 Spanish Grand Prix European Grand Prix |
Grand Prix Circuit (current) | |
Length | 4.428 km (2.751 mi) |
Turns | 13 |
Grand Prix Circuit (1991-1996) | |
Length | 4.422 km (2.75 mi) |
Turns | 15 |
Race lap record | 1:23.135 ( Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Williams-Renault FW19, 1997) |
Grand Prix Circuit (1986-1990) | |
Length | 4.218 km (2.621 mi) |
Turns | 16 |
Race lap record | 1:24.513 ( Riccardo Patrese, Williams-Renault FW13B, 1990) |
Website | www.circuitodejerez.com |
Circuito de Jerez-Ángel Nieto (formerly known as Circuit of Jerez and Circuito Permanente de Jerez), is a 4.428 km (2.751 mi) racing circuit located close to the city of Jerez de la Frontera, 90 km (55.9 mi) south of Seville and deep within the sherry-producing south of Spain. The project was led by the Spanish engineer Manuel Medina Lara, based on a preliminary idea from Alessandro Rocci.
Circuit history
The circuit opened on 8 December 1985. During 1986 the circuit hosted the first international motorcycle event in Spain in March and the Formula One Spanish Grand Prix in April. The circuit's relatively remote location hindered significant spectator turnout, although up to 125,000 can be accommodated. Because of this, F1 moved to Barcelona following the 1991 race.
Due to the hosting of the European Grand Prix in 1994, the circuit instituted safety and layout changes from the 1990 configuration, including a new chicane (the Senna curve) at the corner where Martin Donnelly had an appalling accident during qualifying for the 1990 Spanish Grand Prix, and the elimination of 4 corners to create the long right hander, Curva Sito Pons. Jerez also hosted the 1997 European Grand Prix, which was the championship decider between Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve, who collided during the race.
During the podium celebrations of the 1997 race, Jerez's Mayor Pedro Pacheco disrupted the podium celebrations by presenting a trophy that was supposed to be presented by a dignitary from Daimler-Benz. This incident resulted in the track being temporarily banned from hosting a Grand Prix.[1] It has never hosted another Grand Prix, but remains one of the most popular venues for winter testing.
During 2005, the track was resurfaced. It was expected that the Champ Car World Series would race there in 2008[2] until the series was cancelled early in the year after merging with the IndyCar Series.
On 2 May 2013, it was announced that the final corner would be renamed after Spanish MotoGP world champion Jorge Lorenzo.[3]
In 2017, FIA Formula 2 hosted a stand-alone event on October 7 and 8 at the circuit.
On 3 May 2018, the circuit was renamed in honor of the former motorcyclist Ángel Nieto, who died in 2017.
References
^ "Chaves y Pacheco irrumpieron en el podio". Diario El País. 1997-12-13. Retrieved 2008-07-02..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ "CHAMP CAR: 2008 Schedules Confirmed". speedtv.com. 2007-04-11. Archived from the original on 2008-02-06. Retrieved 2010-02-04.
^ "MotoGP Twitter". 2013-02-05. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
External links
- Circuito de Jerez official website