Dubai Autodrome International Circuit GP Circuit
Dubai Autodrome International Circuit GP Circuit Notes:
The Dubai Autodrome International Circuit is a 3.34-mile (5.37-km) racetrack inside one of the largest entertainment complexes in the world: Dubailand, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The autodrome has four different configurations for racing, two of them with FIA Grade 1 licenses and a kartdrome for go-karting competitions. The Asian Le Mans Series and the Formula Regional Asian Championship are two of the regular motorsport events held at the Dubai Autodrome. There are only two seasons in Dubai: the super hot and rainless summer and the mild winter with occasional downpours. The excruciating heat and humidity of the desert summer make racing at night the best option during that season.
The trajectory of the Grand Prix Course in the Dubai Autodrome International Circuit runs through 16 corners surrounded by ample asphalt runoffs that increase the racetrack's safety. Races start/finish in the autodrome's front straight, where top racecars can reach 200 km/h (124 mph). The first corner is a fast-paced right-hander followed by a slight bend to the left in turn two. The road course snakes from turns three to six, leading drivers into a heavy downshifting spot at corner seven's entry. A pair of left-handers get drivers in the back straight and from there, into the challenging six corners remaining. Turns ten to twelve are supertight and require heavy steering to avoid the curbs, and the sweeping corner 13 sees racers flying at 190 km/h (118 mph). The uphill corner number 14 has the shortest radius in Dubai Autodrome, and after that, racers go downhill through 15 and 16 to re-enter the front straight with the finish line on sight.
GP Circuit Notes:
Dubai Autodrome's Grand Prix Circuit represents the United Arab Emirates' premier FIA Grade 1 racing facility, stretching 5.390 kilometers (3.349 miles) through 16 turns across the Dubai Motor City development in the desert outskirts of Dubai. Designed by Clive Bowen of Apex Circuit Design and opened in October 2004, the GP Circuit was pioneering as the first FIA-sanctioned facility to incorporate wide asphalt run-off areas throughout the entire layout, setting a safety standard that would become the norm in modern circuit design. The full GP configuration combines high-speed straights—where GP2 Asia cars have reached speeds enabling a 1:41.220 track record set by Kamui Kobayashi—with technical sections featuring hairpins, chicanes, and sweeping curves that test both aerodynamic efficiency and mechanical grip.
What distinguishes the Dubai Autodrome GP Circuit is its location in one of the world's most extreme racing climates, where ambient temperatures routinely exceed 45°C during summer months and track surface temperatures can surpass 70°C, creating tire degradation challenges unmatched anywhere in global motorsport. The circuit's FIA Grade 1 license confirms it meets all requirements to host Formula One, though it primarily serves GT championships, touring car series, and the region's growing motorsport community rather than F1's calendar. The wide asphalt runoff areas—revolutionary when constructed in 2004—provide safety margins while removing the gravel-trap penalties that define European circuits, creating a different risk-reward calculation where track limit violations cost time rather than race-ending beaching. Air-conditioned pit facilities and climate-controlled paddock areas reflect the necessity of supporting motorsport in desert conditions, while the facility's location within Dubai Motor City positions it as both a competitive venue and commercial motorsport complex serving the Middle East's expanding racing culture.
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