Nurburgring 745

Nurburgring

The old ‘Ring is the greatest road racing circuit in the world.

The old ‘Ring is the greatest road racing circuit in the world.

With 14 miles and 176 corners, the Nordschleife is a never-ending succession of evocative turns and changing gradient. After the start, which is dominated by a castle overlooking Nurburg village, the cars race out into the mountains, to Flugplatz, Adenau Bridge, Karussel, Wippermann, Pflanzgarten, Tiergarten and so on.

The design was led by architect Gustav Eichler, inspired by the Targa Florio to create a track that would enable the greatest drivers and cars to shine, Construction began in 1925 and the track was opened on June 18, 1927 with the ADAC Eifelrennen, a motorcycle race won by Toni Ulmen. A day later, Rudolf Caracciola became the first on four wheels to win at the new circuit.

From the archive

The Nürburgring’s organisers tried to keep it up to date over the years – resurfacing the track in 1957 and completely rebuilding large parts of it in 1970. But after Niki Lauda’s near-fatal accident at Bergwerk in 1976, the CSI ruled that the circuit was no longer safe for Formula 1.

Instead, government investment helped build a modern Grand Prix track at the old start/finish area. The result was an uninspiring “designed-by-computer” venue that suffers in comparison with the original. The old pits were replaced with a new complex, and a modern hotel now overlooks the startline. The circuit length was increased in 2002 by the introduction of a new infield loop after Turn One.

Thankfully for enthusiasts, the old circuit is still used for the annual, gruelling Nürburgring 24 Hours, as well as a number of other series: the World Touring Car Cup uses the Nordschleife for its German round and the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS, formerly VLN) holds regular races.

Sprint Circuit

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.255 (Miles)

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.252 (Miles)

Type

Permanent road course

Length

1.888 (Miles)

Type

Permanent road course

Length

1.881 (Miles)

New Grand Prix Circuit

Select a year

Type

Permanent road course

Length

3.199 (Miles)

Change

New infield section built after Turn 1

Fastest Race Lap

Max Verstappen (Red Bull RB16-Honda), 1m28.139, 130.662 mph, F1, 2020

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes-Benz F1 W11 EQ Performance), 1m25.269, 135.060 mph, F1, 2020

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.831 (Miles)

Change

Veedol Chicane tightened for Formula 1

Fastest Race Lap

Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams FW23-BMW), 1m18.354, 130.071 mph, F1, 2001

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Michael Schumacher (Ferrari F2001), 1m14.960, 135.961 mph, F1, 2001

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.822 (Miles)

Change

New Grand Prix circuit built

Fastest Race Lap

Teo Fabi (Jaguar XJR-14), 1m21.533, 124.603 mph, Sports Cars, 1991

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Teo Fabi (Toleman TG185-Hart), 1m17.429, 131.207 mph, F1, 1985

Nordschleife

Type

Permanent road course

Length

15.769 (Miles)

Change

Modified Grand Prix Circuit (without Arena) plus Nordschleife

Type

Permanent road course

Length

16.123 (Miles)

Change

Modified Grand Prix Circuit (with Arena) plus Nordschleife

Type

Permanent road course

Length

15.183 (Miles)

Change

Modified Sprint Circuit (with Arena) plus Nordschleife

Type

Permanent road course

Length

15.766 (Miles)

Change

New Grand Prix circuit and Nordschleife

Type

Permanent road course

Length

12.944 (Miles)

Change

Nordschleife. Pit straight bypassed while new Grand Prix circuit was being built

Fastest Race Lap

Stefan Bellof (Porsche 956), 6m25.91, 120.749 mph, Group C Sports Cars, 1983

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Stefan Bellof (Porsche 956), 6m11.13, 125.558 mph, Group C Sports Cars, 1983

Type

Permanent road course

Length

14.189 (Miles)

Change

Nordschleife. Circuit resurfaced, some bumps eased in 1970

Fastest Race Lap

Clay Regazzoni (Ferrari 312T), 7m06.4, 119.795 mph, F1, 1975

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Niki Lauda (Ferrari 312T), 6m58.6, 122.027 mph, F1, 1975

Type

Permanent road course

Length

14.167 (Miles)

Change

Original Nordschleife

Fastest Race Lap

Jim Clark (Lotus 33-Climax), 8m24.1, 101.173 mph, F1, 1965

Fastest Qualifying Lap

Jim Clark (Lotus 33-Climax), 8m16.5, 102.721 mph, F1, 1966

New Grand Prix Circuit Without Arena

Select a year

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.845 (Miles)

Change

New Grand Prix Circuit without Arena, using F1 chicane

Type

Permanent road course

Length

2.839 (Miles)

Change

New Grand Prix Circuit without Arena, using old chicane

Betonschleife

1973 - 1982

Type

Permanent road course

Length

1.424 (Miles)

Original Full Circuit

1927

Type

Permanent road course

Length

17.563 (Miles)

Change

Original full circuit

Fastest Race Lap

Louis Chiron (Bugatti T35C), 15m06.0, 69.787 mph, Sports Cars, 1929

Sudschleife

1926

Type

Permanent road course

Length

4.814 (Miles)

Change

Original Sudschleife

Latest Races

3,413

Championships

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19,321

Results

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25,215

Drivers

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14,545

Teams

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914

Circuits

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