There are 70 different circuits which have held rounds of the F1 world championship. F1 Fanatic’s circuits history series is brought up-to-date with the six newest tracks.
F1 circuits history articles archive
F1 circuits history part 16: 2008 and beyond
Posted onThe final part of the guide to F1 circuits looks at the new street circuits in Valencia and Singapore set to join the calendar this year. And there are three more new venues set to host F1 races in the next two years – Abu Dhabi, India and South Korea. The Formula 1 calendar could … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 16: 2008 and beyond
F1 circuits history part 15: 2003-2007
Posted onHermann Tilke has had a monopoly on circuit design work in recent years. His brief is apparently are to design safe venues for F1 racing where overtaking is possible – making tracks that are dramatic or challenging is a secondary consideration at best. Recent examples of this include his new circuits in Bahrain, Turkey, China … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 15: 2003-2007
F1 circuits history part 14: 1999-2002
Posted onAt the end of 1990s Formula 1 began to look east. With the teams hit by ever-tighter restrictions on tobacco advertising, and eastern countries offering less tight restrictions, moving the sport beyond its traditional heartland made good commercial sense. The fact that it bolstered the sport’s claim to being a ‘world’ championship was merely a … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 14: 1999-2002
F1 circuits history part 13: 1995-8
Posted onThe after-effects of the traumatic 1994 season were felt throughout the Formula 1 calendar. Circuits that had made temporary changes to slow down high speed sections now had to find ways of making those alterations permanent. And new courses would have to either be much slower or built with even larger run-off spaces. The man … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 13: 1995-8
F1 circuits history part 12: 1994
Posted onThe 1994 season was a traumatic one for Formula 1. It is often remembered solely because of the deaths of Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger. But their deaths at Imola during the San Marino Grand Prix came in a season that saw a higher than average number of driver injuries: JJ Lehto in pre-season testing, … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 12: 1994
F1 circuits history part 11: 1990-3
Posted onIn the early 1990s several tracks appeared on the F1 calendar that have remained a part of F1 ever since: the revised Interlagos circuit in Brazil, the Catalunya track in Spain, and France’s Circuit de Nevers in Magny-Cours, which has remained for 2008 despite the opposition of Bernie Ecclestone. Other tracks came and went: the … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 11: 1990-3
F1 circuits history part 10: 1985-9
Posted onIn the late 1980s it often seemed like good tracks were dropped for safety reasons, and less good tracks found their way onto the calendar because money talked. How else could you explain a circuit like the awful Phoenix street track holding three Grands Prix? Or why the slow and dull Hungaroring remains on the … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 10: 1985-9
F1 circuits history part 9: 1979-84
Posted onThe major changes were happening to the F1 calendars in the early 1980s. Several attempts were made to find new homes for the United States Grand Prix after Watkins Glen and Long Beach were dropped. In addition to the several American circuits below F1 also looked at holding a race in New York, which came … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 9: 1979-84
F1 circuits history part 8: 1975-8
Posted onTracks being altered to include slower corners became commonplace in the second half of the 1970s. Silverstone’s flat-out blast was rudely interrupted by a crude chicane at Woodcote. The other super-quick circuit – the Osterreichring – was also slowed, although both tracks retained much of their essential character. And two tracks we are familiar with … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 8: 1975-8
F1 circuits history part 7: 1971-4
Posted onIn the 1970s F1 continued to visit some of the sport’s great circuits, particularly in South America which boasted the original Interlagos circuit and the extended and very quick Buenos Aires track. But in Europe the trend was away from road courses and towards ‘safer’ autodromes, although many of these new venues (Paul Ricard, Zolder) … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 7: 1971-4
F1 circuits history part 6: 1967-70
Posted onToday’s look at the history of F1 circuits features some of the most popular tracks of the 1970s that were phased out of F1 in the 1980s as the sport looked to improve safety – and make more money. They include Kyalami in South Africa (where political pressures were also at work) and the Osterreichring … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 6: 1967-70
F1 circuits history part 5: 1961-6
Posted onSome of F1’s most famous and popular circuits feature in today’s instalment of the guide to F1 tracks. Watkins Glen in America, Clermont-Ferrand in France and Brands Hatch in Great Britain. And one of my own personal favourites, the Mexico City circuit. But as ever there are a few oddballs as well – East London … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 5: 1961-6
F1 circuits history part 4: 1958-60
Posted onThe history of F1 circuits continues with a look at some of the curious tracks from the late ’50s and early ’60s, including the track that was so dangerous it was dropped for the ‘safer’ Nurburgring Nordschleife. Plus the host of the one-off Moroccan Grand Prix, two of the first homes of the United States … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 4: 1958-60
F1 circuits history part 3: 1954-7
Posted onThe third part of the guide to Formula 1 circuits includes the longest track ever used for an F1 race – and no it’s not the Nurburgring. Plus the former site of the British Grand Prix that is now home to horse racing, and the fearsome Monza oval.
F1 circuits history part 2: 1951-3
Posted onThe second part of the guide to F1 circuits includes the infamous Nurburgring Nordschleife, and the home of the Dutch Grand Prix. It also includes the circuit at Buenos Aires where hundreds of thousands flocked to watch arguably the world championship’s first great – Juan Manuel Fangio.
F1 circuits history part 1: 1950
Posted onStarting today is the first in a new series looking at how Formula 1 circuits have changed since the world championship started in 1950. From the days of 14-mile monsters like the Nurburgring to today’s computer-designed autodromes in exotic venues like Shanghai, the evolution of F1 circuits reveals how the sport has expanded beyond its … Continue reading F1 circuits history part 1: 1950