Old-school Circuits
Zandvoort becomes the second new track to be added to the 2020 F1 calendar, following the announcement of a street race in Vietnamese capital Hanoi
After a long gap of 35 years since Niki Lauda's victory with Mclaren, Formula One racing returns to Netherlands. On Tuesday, it was confirmed that Circuit Park Zandvoort, which last staged a grand prix in 1985, is set to replace the Spanish Grand Prix from the 2020 F1 calendar. Max Verstappen's rise as one of the sport's biggest stars has encouraged F1 to strike a deal in the Dutchman's homeland and the Red Bull star is now expected to enjoy some passionate home support.
Another recent development stated that the Vietnamese Grand Prix is due to make its debut in the 2020 season too. The race would be held on a temporary street circuit on the streets of the capital city, Hanoi. The circuit is characterised by wide long straights (the longest is 1.5 km) connected by roundabouts into long braking zones and tight hairpins. The intention is to create a street circuit with overtaking opportunities – more akin to Baku than Monaco. With this, the future of British GP remains uncertain and the race at Silverstone Circuit on July 14, might be the last, if no agreement is reached.
Chase Carey, Chairman and CEO, Formula 1, said, "We are particularly pleased to announce that Formula 1 is returning to race in the Netherlands, at the Zandvoort track. From the beginning of our tenure in Formula 1, we said we wanted to race in new venues, while also respecting the sport's historic roots in Europe. Next season therefore, we will have a brand new street race that will be held in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, as well the return to Zandvoort, after an absence of 35 years; a track that has contributed to the popularity of the sport all over the world."
Over nearly 70 years, the Formula One traveling circus has visited scores of race tracks around the globe. These are our favorites among abandoned and unused former F1 circuits – some a victim of safety issues, others financial, but all of them missed. There remain, sadly, many more that didn't quite make F1 A&G's final cut.
Circuito do Estoril (Portugal)
The Estoril Circuit in Portugal is renowned for being the location of the late Ayrton Senna's first-ever F1 race victory in 1985. It hosted the Portuguese Grand Prix from 1984 to 1996, but was dropped for the following season. Max Mosley, former president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), stated that the Portuguese Grand Prix could be integrated into the Formula One championship, as long as a commercial agreement with the Formula One Management is achieved. However, the Portuguese Grand Prix has not returned so far.
Autódromo Juan y Oscar Gálvez (Argentina)
This track hosted 20 F1 races on and off between 1953 and 1998, using a range of different layouts throughout its time in the sport and Michael Schumacher's 1998 win remains the last. Greats like Alberto Ascari, Juan Manuel Fangio and Jackie Stewart all took victories here. The iconic track is currently going through the process of being repaired and upgraded to match modern standards and is likely to return in the F1 calendar in a few years.
Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari (Italy)
The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari (commonly known as Imola) is a permanent racing circuit which held the 1980 Italian Grand Prix and all subsequent runnings of the San Marino Grand Prix until 2006. The track has been marred by tragedy in the past, with two F1 drivers perishing at the track in 1994 – the greatest F1 driver of all time, Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger It is currently undergoing redevelopments with the aim of returning it to the Formula One calendar. No other venue has hosted more World Championship events.
Nürburgring (Germany)
Christened 'the green hell' by three-time world champion Jackie Stewart, it comprises a whopping 73 turns (33 left, 40 right), with numerous challenging crests, a variety of inclines and gradients and a mixture of road surfaces making it arguably the toughest circuit on the planet. The Nürburgring is in discussions with Formula 1 bosses regarding a return to the calendar. Ongoing financial challenges and a change of ownership has prevented the circuit from hosting F1 grands prix since 2013. The Nürburgring has hosted 40 grands prix, the first of which took place in 1951 on its infamous Nordschleife layout. It lost its place on the calendar following Niki Lauda's fiery accident in 1976, but F1 returned on the shortened version of the track for 1984-85 and then again from 1995 as Michael Schumacher's successes caused F1's popularity to surge in Germany.