Circuito de Jerez

Coordinates: 36°42′30″N 6°2′3″W / 36.70833°N 6.03417°W / 36.70833; -6.03417

Circuito de Jerez

Location	4 miles north-east of Jerez de la Frontera, Andalucia, Spain
Time zone	GMT +1
Major events	Formula One Spanish Grand Prix European Grand Prix Spanish motorcycle Grand Prix
Length	4.428 km (2.751 mi)
Turns	13
Lap record	1:23.135 ( Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Williams, 1997)

Circuito de Jerez (Circuit of Jerez), formerly known as Circuito Permanente de Jerez, is a 4,428 m (2.752-mile) racing circuit located close to the city of Jerez de la Frontera, 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 track during 2010 F1 pre-season testing

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 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. 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 on 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 Champ Car World Series season^[2] until the series was cancelled early in the year after merging with the IndyCar Series.

References

1. ^ "Chaves y Pacheco irrumpieron en el podio". Diario El País. 1997-Dec-13. http://www.elpais.com/articulo/deportes/PACHECO/_PEDRO_/PSA/CHAVES/_MANUEL_/PSOE/CADIZ/JEREZ_DE_LA_FRONTERA_/CADIZ/Chaves/Pacheco/irrumpieron/podio/elpepidep/19971213elpepidep_11/Tes. Retrieved 2008-Jul-02. 
2. ^ "CHAMP CAR: 2008 Schedules Confirmed". speedtv.com. 2007-Apr-11. http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/champcar/41439/. Retrieved 2010-Feb-4. 

External links

• Circuito de Jerez official website
• Formula 1 official website
• MotoGP official website
• Satellite picture by Google Maps
• Audio walkthrough of the track, for use with games