White Elephant Racing Circuits

[Spectoremg]

Prompted by the 'What Tracks Will Get The Boot' thread I thought it might be interesting to have a list of tracks that were anything from stillborn at the design stage to the dog's wotsits for five minutes and were then ditched.
Apologies if I'm duplicating another thread.

[novitopoli]

I fear the Circuit of Wales (which was already planned to host the British MotoGP round this year) will soon join such a list. Plus, the Port Imperial Street Circuit.

[DemocalypseNow]

I think most former (and some current) circuits will have fulfilled this criteria at some time. Racing circuits aren't really particularly useful for anything other than motorsport, so if the track promoters are unwilling to shell out for a decent calendar of events, they'll struggle to keep the track in business.

Recent white elephants;

Istanbul Park
Shortly after its inception in the mid 2000s, this better-than-average Tilkedrome had the the F1 circus (and its typical support package), MotoGP, DTM, FIA GT and WTCC all turning up in a single calendar year. The glory days of a decade ago are starting to feel more like a century ago, such has been the aggressive decline in the reputation of events hosted there now.

The only travelling championship to pitch up at Istanbul Park in 2015 is the FIA World Rallycross Championship. Aside from this, a standalone event dubbed the "Istanbul 12 Hours" is the only other event on the calendar, and has already been pushed back by a month and a half, having originally been pencilled in for last weekend but moved to mid-October.

If the decline continues at its current rate, we may have seen the last of this impressive facility on the the racing map.


Korea International Circuit
Another one that looks to be on the brink of being mothballed entirely. Built in the middle of nowhere on purpose, with intentions of building offices & infrastructure around it with the track as a centrepiece, the money for the construction of these further projects unsurprisingly never materialised. Thus, another potentially world class facility with significant initial investment will go to waste.

The only event of any note still hosted at Yeongam is the local GT series, SuperRace Championship. The rest of the time, it's used for typical run of the mill circuit activities - hire karting, track days, and the like. Given the size of the facility, and therefore the maintenance costs involved, with its inconvenient location factored in, it will surely be only a matter of time before the track is permanently shuttered.

[AndreaModa]

I fear the Circuit of Wales (which was already planned to host the British MotoGP round this year) will soon join such a list.

Yep, 100% agree. I've rambled on plenty enough about the merits (or rather lack of) in the main MotoGP thread about this project. The people behind it are completely deluded, in the same way the Donington F1 project was. Both are eerily similar and will no doubt end the same way. The only bonus here is that a much-loved and iconic circuit isn't going to be ruined by a half-finished job in the process.

Speaking of the Donington project, I guess that's a prime candidate for this thread isn't it?

Here's a guide to the corners around what would have been the track.

And here's some more shots of the track and two cars racing round.

I still maintain that this would have been a great addition to the calendar had it all been done properly. Donington is a great circuit in its own right, a lovely setting and packed out with British fans it would have been brilliant.

[Bobby Doorknobs]

I fear the Circuit of Wales (which was already planned to host the British MotoGP round this year) will soon join such a list.

Yep, 100% agree. I've rambled on plenty enough about the merits (or rather lack of) in the main MotoGP thread about this project. The people behind it are completely deluded, in the same way the Donington F1 project was. Both are eerily similar and will no doubt end the same way. The only bonus here is that a much-loved and iconic circuit isn't going to be ruined by a half-finished job in the process.

Speaking of the Donington project, I guess that's a prime candidate for this thread isn't it?

Here's a guide to the corners around what would have been the track.

And here's some more shots of the track and two cars racing round.

I still maintain that this would have been a great addition to the calendar had it all been done properly. Donington is a great circuit in its own right, a lovely setting and packed out with British fans it would have been brilliant.

I remember my brother and I discussing going to Donington for the 2010 British Grand Prix. Seeing the museum would have been amazing

[dr-baker]

I've visited many race tracks in my time - Silverstone, Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Thruxton, Monza, Rockingham - but I have also been to perhaps what is the original White Elephant, Brooklands. The section that is left is as magnificent and as derelict as Monza's oval banking. For the world's original purpose-built motor racing track, it is a sorry sight and I maintain that it should have been preserved by National Heritage or somesuch similar organisation. I am happy that there is at least a small section left however, and that there is a museum around it.

[FMecha]

Korea International Circuit
Another one that looks to be on the brink of being mothballed entirely. Built in the middle of nowhere on purpose, with intentions of building offices & infrastructure around it with the track as a centrepiece, the money for the construction of these further projects unsurprisingly never materialised. Thus, another potentially world class facility with significant initial investment will go to waste.

The only event of any note still hosted at Yeongam is the local GT series, SuperRace Championship. The rest of the time, it's used for typical run of the mill circuit activities - hire karting, track days, and the like. Given the size of the facility, and therefore the maintenance costs involved, with its inconvenient location factored in, it will surely be only a matter of time before the track is permanently shuttered.

A Japanese Super GT race was planned there, but it fell through after several delays and they went to Thailand instead.

[girry]

Worried the Kymi Ring project might turn into one. Rumours say they've prepared the area, but that's a long long way from a complete track, especially given that nbody really seems to know where the money is coming from - they're saying it's going to be ready in 2016...

[Barbazza]

I've visited many race tracks in my time - Silverstone, Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Thruxton, Monza, Rockingham - but I have also been to perhaps what is the original White Elephant, Brooklands. The section that is left is as magnificent and as derelict as Monza's oval banking. For the world's original purpose-built motor racing track, it is a sorry sight and I maintain that it should have been preserved by National Heritage or somesuch similar organisation. I am happy that there is at least a small section left however, and that there is a museum around it.

I've probably mentioned it before, but my best mate lives right near Brooklands - it's always a pleasure to see what's left of the track.

As for other tracks that didn't make it - what was the one in America that was on, off, on again repeatedly in the early 80s - was it Los Angeles?

[dr-baker]

I've visited many race tracks in my time - Silverstone, Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Thruxton, Monza, Rockingham - but I have also been to perhaps what is the original White Elephant, Brooklands. The section that is left is as magnificent and as derelict as Monza's oval banking. For the world's original purpose-built motor racing track, it is a sorry sight and I maintain that it should have been preserved by National Heritage or somesuch similar organisation. I am happy that there is at least a small section left however, and that there is a museum around it.

I've probably mentioned it before, but my best mate lives right near Brooklands - it's always a pleasure to see what's left of the track.

Yeah, I've been once, last summer. It is a pleasure, but knowing half the track is missing, and will never be recovered due to the industrial estate, is sad at the same time.

Also, this track in Iceland, I believe, was rumoured to be in line to host an A1GP round in due course (had A1GP survived and the track was built). I might have been tempted to have gone to that ha that happened. But Apex's website suggests that some activity takes place there, even if it is not a fully constructed race track, like a driver safety training school.

[Bobby Doorknobs]

I've visited many race tracks in my time - Silverstone, Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Thruxton, Monza, Rockingham - but I have also been to perhaps what is the original White Elephant, Brooklands. The section that is left is as magnificent and as derelict as Monza's oval banking. For the world's original purpose-built motor racing track, it is a sorry sight and I maintain that it should have been preserved by National Heritage or somesuch similar organisation. I am happy that there is at least a small section left however, and that there is a museum around it.

I've probably mentioned it before, but my best mate lives right near Brooklands - it's always a pleasure to see what's left of the track.

Yeah, I've been once, last summer. It is a pleasure, but knowing half the track is missing, and will never be recovered due to the industrial estate, is sad at the same time.

Also, this track in Iceland, I believe, was rumoured to be in line to host an A1GP round in due course (had A1GP survived and the track was built). I might have been tempted to have gone to that ha that happened. But Apex's website suggests that some activity takes place there, even if it is not a fully constructed race track, like a driver safety training school.

I believe Dublin was also supposed to host an A1GP round on a street circuit designed by Hermann Tilke. As great as it would have been to have an international motorsport event within a reasonable distance of my home, I don't believe the track would have been any good. Dublin doesn't have great roads for racing, the best they could have done probably would have been Phoenix Park (formerly hosted the Irish Grand Prix in the 1930s and which I believe still hosts Formula Libre races), although as far as I know Tilke was looking at designing a track in the city centre.

[Faustus]

See this related old thread:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=3540