Mosport International Raceway

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Mosport International Raceway

Location Bowmanville, Ontario, Canada
Time zone UTC-5 (UTC-4 DST)
Capacity open seating without capacity limitation
Owner Panoz Motor Sports Group
Operator Panoz Motor Sports Group
Broke ground 1960
Opened 1961
Construction Cost $500,000
Architect Alan Bunting
Former Names Mosport Park
Major Events ALMS Grand Prix of Mosport
NASCAR Canadian Tire Series
Clockwise Road Course
Circuit Length 3.96 km (2.46 mi)
Turns 10
Paved Oval
Circuit Length 0.8 km (0.5 mi)
Mosport Driver Development Centre
Circuit Length 2.4 km (1.5 mi)

Mosport International Raceway (formerly Mosport Park) is a multi-track facility located north of Bowmanville, Ontario. The facility features a 2.459-mile (4.0 km), 10-turn road course; a half-mile paved oval; a 2.4 km advance driver and race driver training facility with a quarter-mile skid pad (Mosport Driver Development Centre) and a 1.4 km kart track (Mosport International Karting). The name is a contraction of Motorsport Park and is properly pronounced Moe Sport.

Contents

[edit] 2008 Major Event Schedule

May 16-18- Victoria Day SpeedFest

June 13-15- Father's Day Doubleheader

June 22-24- 29th International Vintage Racing Festival

July 13-15- Parts Canada Superbike Championship Doubleheader

August 21-24- Mobil 1 presents the Grand Prix of Mosport

[edit] History

Mosport has hosted a wide variety of series throughout its history. The circuit has held Formula One, IndyCar, World Sportscar Championship, Can-Am, Formula 5000, and many other sports car, open-wheel, and motorcycle series. The name "Mosport" is a contraction of Motor Sport, and came from the enterprise formed to build the track.

The circuit was the second purpose-built road race course in Canada, after the Westwood Motorsport Park in Coquitlam, British Columbia[1]. It was designed and built in the late 1950s, and held its first major race in 1961, the Player's 200, a sports car race bringing drivers from the world over to rural Ontario. Stirling Moss won the event in a Lotus 19. The hairpin complex consisting of two corners is named Moss Corner in his honour, as he suggested the layout of the corner, to be of greater challenge to the drivers and more interesting for the spectators.

CanAm first visited the track in its inaugural season in 1966, and hosted at least one event in every year of the series' history, except 1968. In 1967, Canada's centennial year, Mosport hosted Formula One, IndyCar, and a 500cc Motorcycle Grand Prix. F1's Grand Prix of Canada remained at the track until 1977.

Mosport has had a succession of owners since the original public company created to build the track. In 1998, the Panoz Motor Sports Group purchased the facility, and in 1999, the newly formed American Le Mans Series visited Mosport for the first time. For 2001, the entire circuit was repaved to meet FIA specifications, and is now 42 feet (12.8 m) wide. Drivers were consulted to ensure the character of the "old" track was kept; almost all the "racing lines" have been maintained.

Mosport has had several fatalities, both track crew, drivers and riders, the most recognized being German Manfred Winkelhock was killed in 1985 when his Porsche 962 crashed into a concrete wall. [2]

Unlike many historic motorsport venues, Mosport track layout has remained till today mostly unchanged from its original form.

[edit] Events

The track also hosts vintage racing series, motorcycle racing, and Canadian Automobile Sport Club (CASC) amateur events and lapping days.


[edit] Formula One history

Season Date Winning Driver Winning Team Report
1977 October 9 Flag of South Africa Jody Scheckter Wolf-Ford Report
1976 October 3 Flag of the United Kingdom James Hunt McLaren-Ford Report
1974 September 22 Flag of Brazil Emerson Fittipaldi McLaren-Ford Report
1973 September 23 Flag of the United States Peter Revson McLaren-Ford Report
1972 September 24 Flag of the United Kingdom Jackie Stewart Tyrrell-Ford Report
1971 September 19 Flag of the United Kingdom Jackie Stewart Tyrrell-Ford Report
1969 September 20 Flag of Belgium Jacky Ickx Brabham-Ford Report
1967 August 27 Flag of Australia Jack Brabham Brabham-Repco Report


[edit] External links