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United States GP Facts & Figures
 

 

  
Facts & Figures
 
- Indianapolis is the capital of the US state of Indiana and has a population of
860,454. Established in 1821, Indianapolis is the twelfth largest city in the USA.

- The Indianapolis Motor Speedway was built in 1909 as a two and half mile oval
circuit. Its original brick paving gave rise to the nickname “The Brickyard” which
has survived to this day. The famous Indy 500 race was first staged at The
Brickyard in 1911.

- While the Indy 500 runs in an anti-clockwise direction, Formula One events are
run clockwise and use only part of the oval. In 2000, a narrow, twisty infield
section was added to the original circuit specifically for Formula One events. The track comprises 13 turns, comprising four left-handed and nine right-handed
corners.

- Indianapolis’ Formula One track measures 4.192 km. The 73 lap race covers a
total distance of 306.016 km.

- In 2004, Indianapolis will host its fifth successive United States Grand Prix.
Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) won the debut race in 2000, while Mika Hakkinen
won for McLaren-Mercedes in 2001. Ferrari’s Rubens Barrichello won in 2002
while Michael Schumacher claimed his second US victory last year.

- The first United States Grand Prix was held at Sebring and was won by Bruce
McLaren in a Cooper Climax. Formula One moved to Riverside for the 1960
Grand Prix, and then on to Watkins Glen the following year where a total of 20
World Championship races have been held. Between 1976 and 1983, Formula
One made eight appearances at Long Beach for the USA West Grand Prix. The
1980s also saw two Grands Prix held in Las Vegas, one in Dallas and seven in
Detroit. From 1989 to 1991, Phoenix hosted the United States Grand Prix. To
date, the United States has hosted 47 Formula One Grands Prix.

- WilliamsF1 has won five times on American soil. Alan Jones claimed the team’s first US win in 1980 at Watkins Glen while in 1981 the Australian secured both US victories in Las Vegas and at Long Beach. Keke Rosberg won the 1984 US Grand Prix, hosted in Dallas, as well as taking the 1985 win in Detroit.

- In 1984, Nelson Piquet claimed victory in Detroit in a BMW-powered Brabham.

- In the 2003 United States Grand Prix, Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf
Schumacher qualified in fourth and fifth places respectively. However,
intermittent rain compromised both of the BMW WilliamsF1 Team’s drivers’ races. Montoya finished the race in sixth position following a collision with Barrichello and a subsequent stop-go penalty. His team-mate, Ralf, also suffered as a result of the rain, and was forced to retire on lap 22 from second place when he spun off a wet track while running on slick tyres.

- The Indianapolis circuit holds particular significance for Juan Pablo Montoya. In
2000, the Colombian made motor sport history when he won the legendary Indy
500 in his debut race, a feat no one has achieved since Graham Hill’s debut
victory in 1966.

- The current Formula One lap record, set in 2003, stands at 1:11.473m and was recorded by last year’s winner, Michael Schumacher. Kimi Raikkonen claimed pole position with a 1:11.670m in the McLaren-Mercedes.

- The 2004 United States Grand Prix starts at 12.00hrs, local time, on Sunday
20th June.
 
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