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Om Donington Park:
Donington Park is a motorsport circuit near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England.
Originally part of the Donington Hall estate, it was created as a racing circuit during the pre-war period when the German Silver Arrows were battling for the European Championship. Used as a military vehicle storage depot during World War II, it fell into disrepair until bought by local construction entrepreneur Tom Wheatcroft. Revived under his ownership in the 1970s, it hosted a single Formula One race, but became the favoured home of the British round of the MotoGP motorcycling championship. Leased by Donington Ventures Leisure Ltd in 2007 the hope that Formula One racing could return to the track, the incomplete venture failed to raise sufficient financial backing during the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis. DVLL consequently lost the rights to the British rounds of both Formula1 and MotoGP, and in its bankruptcy returned the track to the Wheatcroft family in December 2009. The only proposed race meeting that was announced prior to recent developments was the BTCC meeting. However in October 2010, it was confirmed that the UK round of the WTCC would move from Brands Hatch to Donington for the 2011 season.[1] Also at the end of 2010, it was announced that Donington would become home to an annual historic motorsport event, the Donington Historic Festival (April 30-May 1, 2011). World Superbikes held the European Round in 2011 and 2012 at Donington but as from 2013 there will be no European round and the British round will move from Silverstone to Donington.
Contents [show]
History[edit]
Creation, Pre-War racing[edit]
Donington Park motor racing circuit was the first permanent park circuit in England, which also ended the race circuit monopoly that Brooklands had held since 1907.
Fred Craner was a former motorcycle rider who had taken part in seven Isle of Man TT races,[2] and was by 1931 a Derby garage owner and secretary of the Derby & District Motor Club.[3] Craner approached the then owner of the Donington Hall estate, Alderman John Gillies Shields JP, to use the extensive roads on his land for racing.[2]
The original track was 2 mile 327 yd (3,518 m) in length, and based on normal width unsealed estate roads.[2] The first motor cycle race took place on Whit Monday, 1931.[2] For 1933 Craner obtained permission to build a permanent track, with the original layout widened and sealed at a cost of £12,000.[2] The first car race was held on 25 March, followed by three car meetings further that year. The first Donington Park Trophy race was held on 7 October 1933, and the 20-lap invitation event was won by the Earl Howe in a Bugatti Type 51.[2]
Donington Park showing Spitfire sculpture and track (2005)
In 1935 the first 300-mile (480 km) Donington Grand Prix was won by Richard "Mad Jack" Shuttleworth in an Alfa Romeo P3.[4] In the 1937 Donington Grand Prix and 1938 Donington Grand Prix, the race winners were respectively Bernd Rosemeyer and Tazio Nuvolari, both in Auto Union 'Silver Arrows.'
The circuit at Donington Park was closed in 1939 due to World War II, when it was requisitioned by the Ministry of Defence and was converted into a military vehicle depot.[5]
Wheatcroft revival (19712006)[edit]
In 1971 the circuit was bought by business man and car collector Tom Wheatcroft, who funded the rebuilding of the track. Wheatcroft moved his collection to the circuit, in a museum now known as the Donington Grand Prix Exhibition which opened in 1973, and has the largest collection of Grand Prix cars in the world.
The motor racing circuit re-opened on 27 May 1977, the first postwar race meeting was organised by the Nottingham Sports Car Club, but that nearly didn't happen, as the local ramblers tried to assert their rights to retain access to footpaths at the eleventh hour. The meeting went ahead as a "Motor Trial", a legal loophole that curtailed the use of single seater racing cars for that opening meeting. The NSCC continued to run race meetings at Donington until the Donington Racing Club was formed and a licence to run race meetings obtained.
The Melbourne Loop was built in 1985 to increase the lap distance to 2.5 miles (4.02 km) and allow the track to host Grand Prix motorcycle races at 1.957 miles (3.149 km) without the loop, the circuit was deemed too short. This shorter layout remains as the National circuit, which is used for most non-Grand Prix events.
In recent times Donington has held meetings of MotoGP, the British Touring Car Championship and British Superbike Championship, as well as the 1993 European Grand Prix.
Other events taking place at the track include a 1000 km endurance race for the Le Mans Series in 2006, the World Series by Renault and the Great and British Motorsport Festival. On 26 August 2007, the circuit hosted the British Motocross Grand Prix, with a purpose-built motocross circuit constructed on the infield of the road circuit.[6]
World Series by Renault at Donington Park's Melbourne Hairpin in 2005
Donington Ventures Leisure (20072009)[edit]
In 2007, Wheatcroft via the holding company Wheatcroft & Son Ltd, sold a 150 year lease on the land on which the track and museum are located to Donington Ventures Leisure Ltd (DVLL).[7]
In July 2008, it was announced that DVLL had won the rights to the British Grand Prix for 17 years from July 2010, with North West Leicestershire council approving plans for the required track and facility rebuilt design by Hermann Tilke to be constructed from January 2009.
On 27 and 28 September 2008, the Motocross des Nations, the biggest and longest running event in World Championship Motocross, was at Donington Park.[8]
In April 2009, Wheatcroft & Son Ltd took legal action against DVLL in Derby County Court, seeking £2.47m in rent arrears, as well as forfeiture of the lease. The legal action put the future of the British Grand Prix in doubt, with Bernie Ecclestone restating that if Donington did not meet required standards to host the event, there will be no British Grand Prix from 2010.[9]
On 5 June 2009, it was announced that an out of court settlement had been reached between Wheatcroft & Son Ltd and DVLL.[10]
On 24 October 2009, media sources reported that Donington had failed to raise the £135 million needed to stage a British Grand Prix. The BBC commented in its coverage that: "Donington's bid looks over, and that Ecclestone has offered the race to Silverstone."[11] Although DVLL gave further public relations assurance that it would be able to raise the required finance and host the Grand Prix, on 29 October 2009, Ecclestone confirmed that the British Grand Prix would not be held at Donington.
On 18 November 2009, the company went into administration.[12][13] Acting chairman Mr Price said: "This need not be the end of Formula One racing at Donington. It still remains a fantastic location. It needs people of vision to get the dream to the starting grid. We are certainly hopeful that a 2011 Grand Prix could take place at the site."[14]
On 7 December 2009, Formula One Management announced that Silverstone had been awarded a 17-year contract to hold the British Grand Prix from 2010 until 2026.[15]
On 11 December 2009, it was announced that DVLL had lost the rights to hold the British Superbike Championship race due to be held on 1012 September 2010. These dates will now be used for a race at Croft.[16]
Return to Wheatcroft family (2009present)[edit]
Donington's Dunlop Bridge
On 24 December 2009 it was announced that a buyer for Donington Ventures Leisure had not been found, which thus meant that the 150 year lease given by Wheatcroft & Son Ltd to Donington Ventures Leisure was terminated.[17] The ownership immediately reverted to Wheatcroft & Son Ltd, now led by Kevin Wheatcroft in light of the death of his father in 2009. Wheatcroft vowed to re-open Donington Park as soon as possible.[18] There were hopes to re-open the circuit in August 2010.[19]
On 26 May 2010 Wheatcroft announced that the lease for Donington Park had been sold (Subject To Contract) to Worcestershire-based Adroit Group. Adroit proceeded to resurrect the circuit, not only rebuilding the removed track sections, but also renewing infrastructure. This included the re-alignment of Foggy's bend, but not the old Dunlop Bridge due to new built MSA/FIA regulations. As a result of a series of inspections, the circuit successfully regained its ACU, MSA and FIA Grade 2 licences. However, Wheatcrofts and Adroit failed to agree terms of a final lease contract, and hence terminated their outline agreement.
The Wheatcroft-owned company Donington Park Racing took control of the circuit in late 2010, gaining events from both World Touring Cars and the World Superbikes, plus the inaugural Donington Historic Festival.
Motorsport at Donington[edit]
Superleague Formula cars down the main straight at Donington Park in 2008
At Donington Park several motorsport events including BTCC, British F3, British Superbike Championship, SBK, Superleague Formula, Pickup Truck Racing have all been held at the circuit.
Formula One[edit]
1993 European Grand Prix[edit]
Main article: 1993 European Grand Prix
Donington Park was the host of the 1993 European Grand Prix on 11 April 1993, which was affected by rain. The race was notable for the dominance of Ayrton Senna where he won the race by over 1 minute from Damon Hill, having advanced from fifth to first in the opening lap.
This race was described by AtlasF1 as the 'Drive of the Decade'.[20] There is a memorial to Senna in the grounds of the racetrack, outside a shop selling motorsports memorabilia.
Failed 2010 British Grand Prix bid[edit]
Proposed 2010 circuit
See also: 2010 Formula One season
On 4 July 2008, Bernie Ecclestone announced that Donington Park would hold the British Grand Prix from 2010 onwards in a 17-year deal, having been hosted exclusively by Silverstone since 1987.[21] On 10 July 2008, the proposal was that the track would have a major upgrade designed by Hermann Tilke, to include an entirely new pit complex along Starkey's Straight and increasing the circuit length to 2.944 miles (4.738 km), by the addition of a new infield loop, to get it up to the standards required for modern day Formula One racing.[22] [23][24][25]
The proposal was that race would be the first to be accessed only by public transportation, as cars will not be allowed to enter the facility. This was in part was an answer to the lack of road access, which even when 30,000 bikers exit major motorcycle events resulted in long tailbacks. The proposal was that a shuttle-bus service would run from the close by East Midlands Parkway station, on the Midland Main Line from London to Sheffield.[26]
In light of the financial crisis and Donington's potential inability to raise finance, on 20 June 2009, Bernie Ecclestone stated that there would be a British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 2010 if Donington was not ready to host it. This was a change from his previous "Donington or nothing" standpoint and he cited changes in the structure of the BRDC meaning there was a better way of negotiating with them over future commercial rights. Furthermore during an interview with the BBC about the Formula One Teams Association threatening to break away and form their own series, FIA president Max Mosley said it was "highly likely" the 2010 British Grand Prix would return to Silverstone.[27]
Donington was given an extended two-week deadline to prove it had the funds to host the 2010 British Grand Prix, however, on 22 October 2009, fundraising attempts fell through.[28] Ecclestone later confirmed that Donington would not be hosting the British Grand Prix.[29]
On 18 November 2009, less than one month after it was confirmed that the Donington had lost the right to host the British Grand Prix, circuit owner Donington Ventures Leisure Limited was placed into administration.[30] Although Ecclestone gave the option of reviving the deal for new owners, in December 2009 Silverstone won the contract for the next 17 years.[31]
FIA World Touring Car Championship (2011-)[edit]
After five years at Brands Hatch, the WTCC moved to Donington Park in 2011. The event attracted thousands of people on race day, where the two races were both won by Yvan Muller for Chevrolet. The weekend also had two races for the Auto GP series as well as the Maserati Trofeo.
MotoGP (19872009)[edit]
Donington Park has also been the home of MotoGP. From 1977 when MotoGP started in the United Kingdom it was held at Silverstone for 10 years until 1986. For 23 years, Donington held the race up until 2009, but in light of the proposed Donington Formula1 deal, MotoGP administrators Dorna Sports agreed a 10 year deal with Silverstone from 2010. Following the failed 2010 Formula1 bid, Donington has lost both competitions for the foreseeable future in less than a year.
Lap records[edit]
Category Time Driver Car Date
F1 1:10.458 Alain Prost Williams FW15C 1993 European Grand Prix[32]
Group C 1:16.952 Jean-Louis Schlesser/Mauro Baldi Mercedes-Benz C11 1990 480 km of Donington[33]
LMP1 1:20.756 Jean-Marc Gounon/Gregor Fisken/Alexander Frei Courage LC70 2006 1000 km of Donington[34]
LMP2 1:20.921 Matthieu Lahaye OAK-Morgan 2012 6 Hours of Donington[35]
F2 1:23.116 Tobias Hegewald Interwetten Racing 2009 Donington Formula Two round[36]
MotoGP 1:27.676 Dani Pedrosa Honda RC211V 2006 British motorcycle Grand Prix[37]
WSB 1:27.716 Tom Sykes Kawasaki ZX-10R 2012 Donington Superbike World Championship round[38]
FIA GT1 1:27.746 Laurens Vanthoor Audi R8 LMS 2012 FIA GT1 World Championship season
DTM 1:28.206 Bernd Schneider Mercedes-Benz CLK-Class 2003 Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters season
LMGTE 1:29.328 Jonny Cocker JMW Ferrari 458 Italia 2012 6 Hours of Donington
WTCC 1:37.380 Robert Huff Chevrolet Cruze 1.6T 2011 FIA WTCC Race of UK[39]
Other events[edit]
Beside motorsports many other events are held at Donington including Music Festivals like the Download Festival, the Donington Park Sunday Market and the Donington Grand Prix Museum exhibition.
The Senna Memorial at Donington Park.
Music festivals[edit]
Main articles: List of Donington Park Festivals, Monsters of Rock, and Download Festival
Donington Park has a long history of holding rock festivals having played host to the Monsters of Rock festival from 1980 to the mid 90s, when groups such as AC/DC, Metallica and Iron Maiden performed there. With a few years off the park then played host to Stereophonics' A Day At The Races event and the Rock and Blues Festival in 2001, and the Ozzfest in 2002.
In 2003, the Download Festival (owned and operated by Live Nation) began annually at the venue and continues to an increased three-day event with five stages, though as of 2008 the event is now held outside of the track boundary.
Donington Grand Prix Exhibition[edit]
Main article: Donington Grand Prix Exhibition
The Donington Grand Prix Exhibition first opened to the public in March 1973. Five halls, with over 130 exhibits, illustrate the history of motor sport from the turn of the 20th Century. Cars include examples driven by such famous names as Nuvolari, Mansell, Prost, Moss, Senna, Fangio, Clark and Stewart. The Donington Grand Prix Exhibition houses a collection of McLaren and Vanwalls racing cars. Notable exhibits include the 1936 twin engined 500 bhp (373 kW) Alfa Romeo Bimotore which has a top speed of 200 mph (320 km/h), Jim Clark's World Championship winning Lotus 25, the 'howling' flat 12 Ferrari 312B, and Stirling Moss's Lotus, in which he defeated the Ferrari works team in the 1961 Monaco Grand Prix. The Collection also features the World's largest collection of Driver's Helmets.[citation needed] There are several different type of simulators that allow users to experience the thrills of racing at speed.
The exhibition has currently re-opened as of 6 January 2010 along with the cafe and race control offices.[18]
Location[edit]
Donington Park lies south west of Nottingham, south east of Derby and is situated in Leicestershire. It is a matter of a few yards/metres east of the border with Derbyshire and indeed has a Derbyshire postcode and telephone code. The western end of the runway at East Midlands Airport is just 400 yards from the eastern end of the racing track. It is also fairly close to the M1.
East Midlands Parkway railway station and Derby Midland Station are close by and the owners have expressed their desire for spectators to use these stations and coaches to the circuit.[40] The owners are also in support of any future light rail transport to East Midlands Airport itself.
Media[edit]
Donington Park has been simulated and can be driven in several racing simulations, such as Spirit of Speed 1937 (the 1937 version of the track is featured, as the name suggests), Sports Car GT, Le Mans 24 Hours, ToCA Touring Car Championship, ToCA 2 Touring Cars, ToCA Race Driver, ToCA Race Driver 2, TOCA Race Driver 3, GTR, GTR2, GT Legends, F1 Challenge '99-'02(with a mod), Grand Prix 4 (1993 configuration, unofficial add-on track), MotoGP 3, Redline, rFactor, SBK-07, Race Driver: GRID, Need for Speed: Shift, and Project Cars (under the name Derby Park). Donington Park also appears in the game Guitar Hero: Metallica as a playable venue. (Grand Theft Auto San Andreas) SKC MTA Server Donington Race Track (Made by HumanTraffic) Källa: Wikipedia.
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