Lusail International Circuit

The Lusail International Circuit (Arabic: حلبة لوسيل الدولية, sometimes rendered Losail International Circuit) is a motor racing circuit located just outside the city of Lusail, north of Doha, Qatar. The track is 5.419 km (3.367 mi) in length, with a main straight of 1.068 km (0.664 mi). It is surrounded by artificial grass intended to stop the sand encroaching on the track.

Lusail International Circuit
Grand Prix Circuit (2023–present)
LocationLusail, Al Daayen, Qatar
Time zoneUTC+03:00
Coordinates25°29′24″N 51°27′15″E
Capacity52,000
FIA Grade1
Broke ground2003
Opened30 September 2004 (2004-09-30)
Construction costUS$58 million
Major eventsCurrent:
Formula One
Qatar Grand Prix (2021, 2023–present)
Grand Prix motorcycle racing
Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
(2004–present)
Doha motorcycle Grand Prix (2021)
FIA World Endurance Championship
Qatar 1812 km (2024)
Former:
World SBK
(2005–2009, 2014–2019)
WTCC Race of Qatar
(2015–2017)
Motocross World Championship (2013–2017)
FIM EWC 8 Hours of Doha
(2007–2012)
GP2 Asia (2009)
Websitehttps://www.circuitlosail.com/
Grand Prix Circuit (2023–present)
Length5.419 km (3.367 miles)
Turns16
Race lap record1:24.319 ( Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB19, 2023, F1)
Motorcycle Circuit (2004–present)
Length5.380 km (3.343 miles)
Turns16
Race lap record1:23.196 ( Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB16B, 2021, F1)

History

Built in just under a year by 1,000 workers at the cost of US$58 million, the track opened in 2004 and hosted the inaugural Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix in the same year, won by Sete Gibernau.[1] In 2007, Lusail added permanent outdoor lighting for night races. At the time, the lighting of the Lusail Circuit by Musco Lighting was the largest permanent venue sports lighting project in the world, a distinction that now belongs to another Persian Gulf motorsport venue, Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The first night race in MotoGP history was the 2008 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix in March 2008.

In February 2009, a GP2 Asia Series nighttime race took place. The World SBK visited Lusail in 2005–2009 and 2014–2019; and the WTCC visited there in 2015–2017.

The circuit hosted the 20th race of the 2021 Formula One season, the inaugural edition of the Qatar Grand Prix.[2] Before the second edition of the Grand Prix,[3] the circuit was renovated, the facilities upgraded, and the capacity was increased from 8,000 to 52,000.[4]

Beginning in 2024, the FIA World Endurance Championship is set to host its season opener at Lusail, the Qatar 1812 km, in addition to the Prologue, the championship's pre-season testing sessions.[5]

Layout history
Lusail International Circuit layout history
  • Grand Prix Circuit (2004–2022)
  • Grand Prix Circuit (2023–present)

Events

Current

Former

Lap records

The official lap record for the current circuit layout is 1:24.319, set by Max Verstappen driving for Red Bull Racing in the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix. As of March 2024, the fastest official race lap records at the Lusail International Circuit are listed as:

CategoryTimeDriverVehicleEvent
Grand Prix Circuit: 5.419 km (2023–present)
Formula One1:24.319[6]Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing RB192023 Qatar Grand Prix
LMDh1:39.748[7]Matt CampbellPorsche 9632024 Qatar 1812 km
LMH1:41.441[7]Jean-Éric VergnePeugeot 9X82024 Qatar 1812 km
GT31:53.529[7]Alessio RoveraFerrari 296 GT32024 Qatar 1812 km
Formula 41:58.374[8]Federico Al RifaiTatuus F4-T4212024 Lusail F4 Saudi Arabian Championship round
Group 52:04.087[9]Kyle TilleyChevron B27S2024 Lusail Classic Endurance Racing round
Touring car racing2:19.449[10]Abdulla Ali AlkhelaifiHonda S20002024 1st Qatar Touring Car Championship round
Motorcycle Circuit: 5.380 km (2004–present)
Formula One1:23.196[11]Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing RB16B2021 Qatar Grand Prix
GP2 Asia1:38.699[12]Davide RigonDallara GP2/052009 Qatar GP2 Asia Series round
GP Masters1:49.116[13]Pierluigi MartiniDelta Motorsport GP Masters car2006 Losail Grand Prix Masters
MotoGP1:52.657Pedro AcostaKTM RC162024 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
World SBK1:56.687[14]Jonathan ReaKawasaki Ninja ZX-10RR2019 Losail World SBK round
Moto21:57.366Sam LowesKalex Moto22023 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
250cc1:59.379Alex DebónAprilia RSV 2502008 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
MRF Challenge1:59.519[15]Toby SoweryDallara Formulino Pro2014 Losail MRF Challenge round
Porsche Carrera Cup2:00.322[16]Clemens SchmidPorsche 911 (991 I) GT3 Cup2015 2nd Losail Porsche GT3 Middle East Championship round
TC12:01.628[17]José María LópezCitroën C-Elysée WTCC2015 FIA WTCC Race of Qatar
World SSP2:01.832[18]Kenan SofuoğluKawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 2017 Losail World SSP round
Moto32:03.135Tatsuki SuzukiHusqvarna FR250GP2024 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
Stock car racing2:04.508[19]Vitantonio LiuzziSpeedcar V82009 Losail Speedcar Series round
125cc2:05.695Scott ReddingAprilia RS125R2008 Qatar motorcycle Grand Prix
Supersport 3002:13.798[20]Ana CarrascoKawasaki Ninja 4002019 Losail Supersport 300 round
Asia Productions 2502:24.177[21]Kasma Daniel KasmayudinYamaha YZF-R252015 Losail ARRC round
Asia Underbone 1302:31.934[22]Ferlando HerdianYamaha T-1502014 Losail ARRC round

Racing history

Formula One
Year Winning driver Winning team
2021 Lewis Hamilton Mercedes
2023 Max Verstappen Red Bull Racing

MotoGP
Year MotoGP 250cc/Moto2 125cc/Moto3
2004 Sete Gibernau Sebastián Porto Jorge Lorenzo
2005 Valentino Rossi Casey Stoner Gábor Talmácsi
2006 Valentino Rossi Jorge Lorenzo Álvaro Bautista
2007 Casey Stoner Jorge Lorenzo Héctor Faubel
2008 Casey Stoner Mattia Pasini Sergio Gadea
2009 Casey Stoner Héctor Barberá Andrea Iannone
2010 Valentino Rossi Shoya Tomizawa Nicolás Terol
2011 Casey Stoner Stefan Bradl Nicolás Terol
2012 Jorge Lorenzo Marc Márquez Maverick Viñales
2013 Jorge Lorenzo Pol Espargaró Luis Salom
2014 Marc Márquez Esteve Rabat Jack Miller
2015 Valentino Rossi Jonas Folger Alexis Masbou
2016 Jorge Lorenzo Thomas Lüthi Niccolò Antonelli
2017 Maverick Viñales Franco Morbidelli Joan Mir
2018 Andrea Dovizioso Francesco Bagnaia Jorge Martín
2019 Andrea Dovizioso Lorenzo Baldassarri Kaito Toba
2020 Cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns Tetsuta Nagashima Albert Arenas
2021 Qatar Maverick Viñales Sam Lowes Jaume Masiá
2021 Doha Fabio Quartararo Sam Lowes Pedro Acosta
2022 Enea Bastianini Celestino Vietti Andrea Migno
2023 Fabio Di Giannantonio Fermín Aldeguer Jaume Masià

FIA World Endurance Championship
Year Hypercar Winners LMGT3 Winners
2024 No. 6 Porsche Penske Motorsport No. 92 Manthey PureRxcing
Kévin Estre
André Lotterer
Laurens Vanthoor		 Alex Malykhin
Joel Sturm
Klaus Bachler

Superbike World Championship
Year Race Winning rider Winning team
2005 Race 1 Troy Corser Alstare Suzuki
Race 2 Yukio Kagayama Alstare Suzuki
2006 Race 1 James Toseland Winston Ten Kate Honda
Race 2 Troy Corser Alstare Suzuki Corona Extra
2007 Race 1 Max Biaggi Alstare Suzuki
Race 2 James Toseland Ten Kate Honda
2008 Race 1 Troy Bayliss Ducati Xerox Team
Race 2 Fonsi Nieto Team Alstare Suzuki
2009 Race 1 Ben Spies Yamaha WSB
Race 2 Ben Spies Yamaha WSB
2014 Race 1 Sylvain Guintoli Aprilia Racing Team
Race 2 Sylvain Guintoli Aprilia Racing Team
2015 Race 1 Jordi Torres Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
Race 2 Leon Haslam Aprilia Racing Team – Red Devils
2016 Race 1 Chaz Davies Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
Race 2 Chaz Davies Aruba.it Racing – Ducati
2017 Race 1 Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team
Race 2 Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team
2018 Race 1 Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
Race 2 Race cancelled
2019 Race 1 Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
SR Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
Race 2 Jonathan Rea Kawasaki Racing Team WorldSBK
2020 Race cancelled

World Touring Car Championship
Year Race Winning driver Winning team
2015 Race 1 José María López Citroën Total WTCC
Race 2 Yvan Muller Citroën Total WTCC
2016 Race 1 Gabriele Tarquini Lada Sport Rosneft
Race 2 Mehdi Bennani Sébastien Loeb Racing
2017 Race 1 Tom Chilton Sébastien Loeb Racing
Race 2 Esteban Guerrieri Honda Racing Team JAS

FIM Endurance World Championship
Year Manufactor Winning team Winning riders
2007 Suzuki Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Vincent Philippe
Matthieu Lagrive
2008 Yamaha Yamaha Austria Racing Team Igor Jerman
Steve Martin
Steve Plater
2009 Yamaha Yamaha Austria Racing Team Igor Jerman
Steve Martin
Gwen Giabbani
2010 Suzuki Suzuki Endurance Racing Team Vincent Philippe
Sylvain Guintoli
Freddy Foray
2011 Yamaha GMT94 David Checa
Kenny Foray
Matthieu Lagrive
2012 BMW BMW Motorrad France Thevent Sebastien Gimbert
Damian Cudlin
Erwan Nigon

Motocross World Championship
Year Race MX1 MX2
2013 Race 1 Clément Desalle Jeffrey Herlings
Race 2 Tony Cairoli Jeffrey Herlings
Year Race MXGP MX2
2014 Race 1 Maximilian Nagl Dylan Ferrandis
Race 2 Gautier Paulin Jeffrey Herlings
2015 Race 1 Maximilian Nagl Jeffrey Herlings
Race 2 Maximilian Nagl Jeffrey Herlings WMX
2016 Race 1 Tim Gajser Jeffrey Herlings Courtney Duncan
Race 2 Tim Gajser Jeffrey Herlings Courtney Duncan
2017 Race 1 Tony Cairoli Pauls Jonass
Race 2 Tony Cairoli Pauls Jonass

Speedcar Series
Year Race Winning driver Winning team
2009 Race 1 Gianni Morbidelli Palm Beach
Race 2 Vitantonio Liuzzi Union Properties

GP2 Asia
Year Race Winning driver Winning team
2009 Race 1 Nico Hülkenberg ART Grand Prix
Race 2 Sergio Pérez Barwa International Campos

References
  1. "Losail International Circuit". RacingCircuits.info. Retrieved 2020-07-16.
  2. "F1 to hold first Qatar Grand Prix at Losail this November". Motor Sport Magazine. 30 September 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2021.
  3. "Formula 1 Qatar Airways Qatar Grand Prix 2023".
  4. Horton, Phillip (30 May 2023). "Qatar GP organisers reveal Lusail renovations". motorsportweek.com. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  5. Tribune, Qatar (2023-06-11). "'Qatar 1812' unveiled as name for 2024 FIA World Endurance Championship race". Qatar Tribune. Retrieved 2023-09-20.
  6. "Qatar Grand Prix 2023". Formula1.com. 8 October 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2023.
  7. "FIA WEC 2024 - Qatar 1812 KM - Race Final Classification by Driver Fastest Lap" (PDF). FIA. 3 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  8. "2024 Aramco F4 Saudi Arabia - Race 4 Final Classification" (PDF). 17 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
  9. "2024 Classic Endurance Racing - Qatar 1812 KM - Race (1 Hour 1 Minute 2 Seconds) Final Classification" (PDF). FIA. 1 March 2024. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  10. "2024 Qatar Touring Car Championship - Qatar 1812 KM - Race 2 10 Laps / Max. 35 Minutes) Final Classification" (PDF). FIA. 1 March 2024. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  11. "Qatar Grand Prix 2021". Formula1.com. 21 November 2021. Retrieved 7 March 2022.
  12. "Lusail International Circuit, Qatar 2009 – GP2 Asia results". autoevolution.com. 13 February 2009. Archived from the original on 16 September 2011.
  13. "2006 Losail Grand Prix Masters". Motor Sport Magazine. 29 April 2006. Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  14. "World Superbike Motul Qatar Round, 24-26 October 2019 Results Tissot Superpole Race" (PDF). World Superbike. Dorna. 26 October 2019. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  15. "Qatar Superbike1-QCH1-MRF Challenge 17th Friday October QSBK-1 QCH-1-MRF Challenge – MRF Challenge Race-2". 17 October 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  16. "QCH R5-Porsche G3 CUP-Radical Car Feb.6,2015- QCH4-GT3 Cup-Radical Car – GT3 Cup Race 2". 6 February 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  17. "WTCC 2015 » Losail International Circuit Round 23 Results". 27 November 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  18. "Qatar Round, 2-3-4 November 2017 World Supersport – Results Race" (PDF). World Superbike. Dorna. 4 November 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2022.
  19. "2009 Losail Speedcar – Round 5". Motor Sport Magazine. 13 February 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  20. "Motul Qatar Round, 24-26 October 2019 Race Results" (PDF). World Superbike. Dorna. 26 October 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  21. "Asia Road Racing Championship Saturday 3rd October 2015 Asian Production 250 CC Race 2 Race (9 Laps) started at 21:30:53". 3 October 2015. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
  22. "2014 Asia Road Racing Championship Round 6 Losail International Circuit, Qatar December 14, 2014 Underbone 130cc Race 1" (PDF). 14 December 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2023.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Losail International Circuit.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.