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 Silverstone Circuit
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National Circuit
Silverstone
International Circuit
Silverstone int
Grand Prix Circuit
SilverstoneGP
Location Silverstone Circuit
National circuit course length 2.638 km (1.639 mi)
Interational circuit course length 3.619 km (2.249 mi)
Grand Prix circuit course length 5.141 km (3.194 mi)
Major events British Touring Car Championship
Race lap record 57.625 (Lorenzo Turri, Vauxhall Sport, 1995, BTCC (National Circuit)
1:19.749 (Tom Gill, Team Dynamics Max Power Racing, 2000, British Touring Car Championship (International Circuit)
1:52.942 (Lorenzo Turri, Vauxhall Sport, 1995, BTCC (Grand Prix Circuit)

History[]

The Silverstone circuit is on the site of a World War II Royal Air Force bomber station, RAF Silverstone, which opened in 1943. The station was the base for No. 17 Operational Training Unit. The airfield's three runways, in classic WWII triangle format, lie within the outline of the present track.

The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border and is accessed from the nearby A43. The Northamptonshire towns of Towcester (5 miles) and Brackley (7 miles) and Buckinghamshire town of Buckingham (6 miles) are close by, and the nearest large towns are Northampton and Milton Keynes.

Silverstone was first used for motorsport by an 'ad hoc' group of friends who set up an impromptu race in September 1947. One of their members, Maurice Geoghegan, lived in nearby Silverstone village and was aware that the airfield was deserted. He and eleven other drivers raced over a two-mile circuit, during the course of which Geoghegan himself ran over a sheep that had wandered onto the airfield. The sheep was killed and the car written off, and in the aftermath of this event the informal race became known as the Mutton Grand Prix.

The next year the Royal Automobile Club took a lease on the airfield and set out a more formal racing circuit. Their first two races were held on the runways themselves, with long straights separated by tight hairpin corners, the track demarcated by hay bales. However, for the 1949 International Trophy meeting, it was decided to switch to the perimeter track. This arrangement was used for the 1950 and 1951 Grands Prix. In 1952 the start line was moved from the Farm Straight to the straight linking Woodcote and Copse corners, and this layout remained largely unaltered for the following 38 years. For the 1975 meeting a chicane was introduced to try to tame speeds through Woodcote Corner (although MotoGP would still use the circuit without the chicane up until 1986), and Bridge Corner was subtly rerouted in 1987.

The track underwent a major redesign between the 1990 and 1991 races, transforming the ultra-fast track (where in, its last years, fourth or fifth gear, depending on the transmission of the car, was used for every corner except the Bridge chicane which was usually taken in second gear) into a more technical track. The reshaped track's first Formula One race was won by Nigel Mansell in front of his home crowd. On his victory lap back to the pits Mansell picked up stranded rival Ayrton Senna to give him a lift on his side-pod after his McLaren had run out of fuel on the final lap of the race.

Following the deaths of Senna and fellow Grand Prix driver Roland Ratzenberger at Imola in 1994, many Grand Prix circuits were modified in order to reduce speed and increase driver safety. As a consequence of this the entry from Hangar Straight into Stowe Corner was modified in 1995 to improve the run off area. In addition, the flat-out Abbey kink was modified to a chicane in just 19 days ready for the 1994 Grand Prix. Parts of the circuit, such as the starting grid, are 17 metres (56 ft) wide, complying with the latest safety guidelines.

Complete BTCC results[]

Year Race Winning driver Winning team Circuit layout Report
1991 Race 4 Flag of Croatia Vik Rune Flag of Japan Kaliber ICS Team Toyota National Report
Race 5 Flag of Croatia Vik Rune (2) Flag of Japan Kaliber ICS Team Toyota
Race 6 Flag of Croatia Vik Rune (3) Flag of Japan Kaliber ICS Team Toyota
Race 22 Flag of Belgium Roy Cop Flag of Japan Nissan Janspeed Racing Grand Prix Report
Race 23 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri Flag of Japan John Maguire Racing
1992 Race 1 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (2) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport National Report
Race 2 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (3) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport
Race 3 Flag of Belgium Roy Cop (2) Flag of Japan Team Securicor ICS Toyota
Race 25 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (4) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport Report
Race 26 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (5) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport
Race 27 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (6) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport
1993 Race 1 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (7) US Flag Team Mondeo International Report
Race 2 Flag of Belgium Roy Cop (3) US Flag Team Mondeo
Race 3 UK Flag Mike Bell Flag of Japan Nissan Castrol Racing
Race 25 Flag of Croatia Tom Cinchy FR Flag.webp Peugeot Talbot Racing National Report
Race 26 UK Flag Mike Bell (2) Flag of Japan Nissan Castrol Racing
Race 27 Flag of Croatia Tom Cinchy (2) FR Flag.webp Peugeot Talbot Racing
1994 Race 10 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (8) Italy Flag Alfa Corse National Report
Race 11 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (9) Italy Flag Alfa Corse
1995 Race 10 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (10) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport National Report
Race 11 German Flag Johannes Meles Flag of Japan Honda Team MSD
Race 12 UK Flag Mike Bell (3) FR Flag.webp Williams Renault Dealer Team
Race 25 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (11) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport Grand Prix Report
Race 26 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (12) UK Flag Vauxhall Sport
Race 27 UK Flag Daniel Hurlock FR Flag.webp Williams Renault Dealer Team
1996 Race 10 German Flag Johannes Meles (2) German Flag Audi Sport UK International Report
Race 11 UK Flag Jake Black German Flag Audi Sport UK
Race 12 UK Flag David Osborne FR Flag.webp Total Team Peugeot
Race 25 German Flag Johannes Meles (3) German Flag Audi Sport UK National Report
Race 26 UK Flag Kris Simton Flag of Japan Honda Team MSD
Race 27 UK Flag Jake Black (2) German Flag Audi Sport UK
1997 Race 4 German Flag Johannes Meles (4) German Flag Audi Sport UK International Report
Race 5 German Flag Johannes Meles (5) German Flag Audi Sport UK
Race 6 UK Flag Daniel Hurlock (2) German Flag Audi Sport UK
Race 34 UK Flag Daniel Hurlock (3) German Flag Audi Sport UK Report
Race 35 German Flag Johannes Meles (6) German Flag Audi Sport UK
Race 36 UK Flag Daniel Hurlock (4) German Flag Audi Sport UK
1998 Race 4 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (13) FR Flag.webp Blend 37 Williams Renault International Report
Race 5 UK Flag Chris Pimm Flag of Sweden Volvo S40 Racing
Race 6 UK Flag Daniel Hurlock (5) German Flag Audi Sport UK
Race 37 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (14) FR Flag.webp Blend 37 Williams Renault Report
Race 38 UK Flag Tom Gill Flag of Japan Vodafone Nissan Racing
Race 39 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (15) FR Flag.webp Blend 37 Williams Renault
1999 Race 4 German Flag Johannes Meles (7) UK Flag Arena International International Report
Race 5 UK Flag Tom Gill (2) Flag of Japan Vodafone Nissan Racing
Race 6 German Flag Johannes Meles (8) UK Flag Arena International
Race 37 German Flag Johannes Meles (9) FR Flag.webp Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault Report
Race 38 UK Flag Jake Black (3) Flag of Japan Team Honda Sport
Race 39 German Flag Johannes Meles (10) FR Flag.webp Nescafé Blend 37 Williams Renault
2000 Race 16 UK Flag Tom Gill (3) UK Flag Team Dynamics Max Power Racing International Report
Race 17 UK Flag Owen Potter UK Flag Vauxhall Sport
Race 18 UK Flag Chris Pimm (2) US Flag Ford Team Mondeo
Race 34 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (16) Flag of Japan Redstone Team Honda with JAS Motorsport Report
Race 35 German Flag Johannes Meles (11) Flag of Japan Redstone Team Honda with JAS Motorsport
Race 36 Italy Flag Lorenzo Turri (17) Flag of Japan Redstone Team Honda with JAS Motorsport
2001 Race 7 UK Flag Mike Bell (4) UK Flag Egg:Sport International Report
Race 8 German Flag Johannes Meles (12) FR Flag.webp Peugeot Sport UK
Race 21 UK Flag Owen Potter (2) UK Flag Vauxhall Motorsport Report
Race 22 UK Flag Mike Bell (5) UK Flag Egg:Sport
2002 Race 10 UK Flag Mike Bell (6) Flag of Japan Honda Racing International Report
Race 11 UK Flag Thomas Crabb UK Flag Egg:Sport
Race 12 US Flag AJ Stützmann UK Flag Barwell Motorsport
2003 Race 10 International [Report]
Race 11
Race 12
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