The United States Grand Prix
is a motor race which has been run on and off since 1908, when it was known as the American Grand Prize
. The race later became part of the Formula One World Championship.
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US GRAND PRIX TICKETS
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History
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American Grand Prize
The race was known as the
American Grand Prize
from its start in 1908 to 1916.
Revival
The United States Grand Prix was revived on
October 12,
1958 as a sports car race at
Riverside International Raceway. The race formed part of the
USAC Road Racing Championship and the American
Chuck Daigh won in a
Scarab, beating
Dan Gurney's
Ferrari into second place.
[1]
Sebring
Russian-born
Alec Ulmann organized the
first Formula One American Grand Prix on the road course at
Sebring, Florida in December, 1959 as the last race of the season.
The starting grid included seven American drivers, but
New Zealand's
Bruce McLaren, in a
Cooper, took his first win in F1 and was, at the time, the youngest driver ever to win a Grand Prix. McLaren took the lead on the last lap of the race when his team-mate,
Jack Brabham, ran out of fuel. Brabham had to push his car over the line to finish fourth and clinch his and the team's first World Championships.
Despite providing an exciting climax to the season, the race wasn't successful from the hosts' standpoint, as the promoters barely broke even.
Return to Riverside
Ulmann moved the race to the
Riverside International Raceway in
Riverside, California in
1960.
Stirling Moss put on quite a show in his privately-entered
Lotus by winning from the pole. However, while the driver's purse was enormous (as at Sebring), the event was received no better than the previous year's and became another one-off.
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Watkins Glen
In
1961, however, when
Cameron Argetsinger was asked to host the race at the
Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in
Watkins Glen, New York, where international road racing was well established, the third time was indeed the charm and F1 found the United States Grand Prix's home at The Glen. Over the next twenty years, the event became a cherished tradition among the fans as loyal crowds gathered each year on the wooded hills of upstate
New York. It was one of the season's most popular events with the teams and drivers as well, receiving the Grand Prix Drivers' Association award for the best organized and best staged GP of the season in
1965,
1970, and
1972. From
1976 to
1980 the race was called the
United States Grand Prix East
to differentiate from the
United States Grand Prix West
held in Long Beach the same years. In 1980, financial difficulties and the inability of the circuit to safely handle the increasingly faster and stiffer ground effect cars of the era led to the Glen's exit from the Formula One calendar after
Alan Jones won the 1980 race for
Williams. Since then, no United States Grand Prix has been held on a natural road course.
Long Beach
See
United States Grand Prix West.
Las Vegas
See
Caesars Palace Grand Prix.
Detroit
See
Detroit Grand Prix.
Dallas
See
Dallas Grand Prix.
Phoenix
Plans to continue Formula One races in the Detroit area at the nearby
Belle Isle did not materialize, and in 1989, Formula One moved to
Phoenix, Arizona. The
Phoenix street circuit was laid out in downtown Phoenix and was unpopular with drivers and the local crowd. After the race in 1991 was attended by little more than 18,000 spectators, Formula One left and did not return to the United States until 2000.
Indianapolis
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It was not until
2000 that another United States Grand Prix took place, this time at legendary
Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The infield road course uses approximately one mile of the storied oval, but in a clockwise direction. This is distinctly different from most United States motor racing, which is run counter-clockwise. However, it follows the general procedure of F1, in which the vast majority of races are run clockwise. The crowd at the 2000 race was estimated at over 225,000, perhaps the largest ever in F1.
Michael Schumacher's win was his second of four straight to end the season as he overtook
Mika Häkkinen for his third Championship. In 2001, the race went off less than three weeks after the
events on 11 September 2001 in the US, and many teams and drivers featured special tributes to the USA on their cars and helmets. The
2002 edition was known for Schumacher and team-mate
Rubens Barrichello trading places near the finish line. Held in September its first four years, the USGP at Indianapolis was moved to an early summer date in
2004. In 2005, problems with
Michelin tyres led to seven teams withdrawing from the race after the formation lap. Only the three teams (six cars) with
Bridgestone tyres started the
2005 United States Grand Prix, and the event was considered a farce. Many commentators questioned whether a United States Grand Prix would be held in Indianapolis again, but the
2006 United States Grand Prix was held the next year, on
2 July 2006, without controversy.
On
12 July 2007, Formula One and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway announced that the 2007 US Grand Prix would be the last one held at IMS for the foreseeable future, as both sides could not agree on the terms for the event. Reportedly the door has been left open to renegotiate the possibility of returning the USGP to Indianapolis.
Future
The future of the United States Grand Prix is extremely uncertain following the announcement that it would not return to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in
2008.
[2] Though there was no United States Grand Prix for 2009, it remains to be seen if the event will be held in the USA in future years. Formula One commercial rights holder
Bernie Ecclestone has also said that he is considering having a second US Grand Prix, possibly on the west coast, in the future years.
It was thought that the race would return to the calendar for
2009 on the track configuration that was used for the 2008 race in the MotoGP championship.
[3] The Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner at the time,
Tony George, claimed that the USGP would not return to Indianapolis unless it made financial sense. Due to the expensive fees paid to host a grand prix, the race would require a title sponsor to be economically viable. Just Marketing International has been hired for the purpose of finding a sponsor.
[4] Ultimately, the United States Grand Prix was not on the Formula One calendar for 2009.
According to the
Speed Channel's broadcast team, Ecclestone met with teams at
Spa-Francorchamps shortly before the running of the
2008 Belgian Grand Prix on 7 September 2008 to tell them that the United States Grand Prix will likely return in 2010, but no confirmation was made regarding whether Indianapolis will again serve as the race venue.
In August 2009, Ecclestone remarked that there was no immediate plan to return Formula One to the US, vowing "never to return" to Indianapolis.
[5] He also remarked that races in Las Vegas or New York were "not currently doable".
Winners of the United States Grand Prix
Events which were not part of the Formula One World Championship are indicated by a pink background.
Notes:
- From 1908-1916, the race was named the American Grand Prize
.
| Year
| Driver
| Constructor
| Location
| Report
|
| 2007
| Lewis Hamilton
| McLaren-Mercedes
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2006
| Michael Schumacher
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2005
| Michael Schumacher
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2004
| Michael Schumacher
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2003
| Michael Schumacher
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2002
| Rubens Barrichello
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2001
| Mika Häkkinen
| McLaren-Mercedes
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
| 2000
| Michael Schumacher
| Ferrari
| Indianapolis
| Report
|
1999
-
1992
| Not held
|
| 1991
| Ayrton Senna
| McLaren-Honda
| Phoenix
| Report
|
| 1990
| Ayrton Senna
| McLaren-Honda
| Phoenix
| Report
|
| 1989
| Alain Prost
| McLaren-Honda
| Phoenix
| Report
|
1988
-
1981
| Not held
|
| 1980
| Alan Jones
| Williams-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1979
| Gilles Villeneuve
| Ferrari
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1978
| Carlos Reutemann
| Ferrari
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1977
| James Hunt
| McLaren-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1976
| James Hunt
| McLaren-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1975
| Niki Lauda
| Ferrari
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1974
| Carlos Reutemann
| Brabham-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1973
| Ronnie Peterson
| Lotus-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1972
| Jackie Stewart
| Tyrrell-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1971
| François Cevert
| Tyrrell-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1970
| Emerson Fittipaldi
| Lotus-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1969
| Jochen Rindt
| Lotus-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1968
| Jackie Stewart
| Matra-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1967
| Jim Clark
| Lotus-Ford
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1966
| Jim Clark
| Lotus-BRM
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1965
| Graham Hill
| BRM
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1964
| Graham Hill
| BRM
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1963
| Graham Hill
| BRM
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1962
| Jim Clark
| Lotus-Climax
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1961
| Innes Ireland
| Lotus-Climax
| Watkins Glen
| Report
|
| 1960
| Stirling Moss
| Lotus-Climax
| Riverside
| Report
|
| 1959
| Bruce McLaren
| Cooper-Climax
| Sebring
| Report
|
| 1958
| Chuck Daigh
| Scarab-Chevrolet
| Riverside
| Report
|
1957
-
1917
| Not held
|
| 1916
| Howdy Wilcox
Johnny Aitken
| Peugeot
| Santa Monica
| Report
|
| 1915
| Dario Resta
| Peugeot
| San Francisco
| Report
|
| 1914
| Eddie Pullen
| Mercer
| Santa Monica
| Report
|
| 1913
| Not held
|
| 1912
| Caleb Bragg
| Fiat
| Milwaukee
| Report
|
| 1911
| David L. Bruce-Brown
| Fiat
| Savannah
| Report
|
| 1910
| David L. Bruce-Brown
| Benz
| Savannah
| Report
|
| 1909
| Not held
|
| 1908
| Louis Wagner
| Fiat
| Savannah
| Report
|
Title sponsors
- Toyota United States Grand Prix 1977
–1980
- Caesars Palace Grand Prix presented by Nissan/Datsun 1981
–1982
- Iceberg United States Grand Prix 1989
–1991
- SAP United States Grand Prix 2000
–2002
See also
- Detroit Grand Prix
- United States Grand Prix West
- Caesars Palace Grand Prix
- Dallas Grand Prix
References
- USAC Road Racing Championship 1958
- Speedway drops Formula One race
- Autosport magazine, 27 March 2008 p.11
- Speedtv.com"USGP Needs Title Sponsor to Return" retrieved 4 April 2006
- http://www.zimbio.com/Formula+One+United+States+Grand+Prix+-+Indianapolis/articles/3miRm682I25/Eccle