Shanghai International Circuit facts for kids
The Shanghai International Circuit is a famous place in China where exciting motor racing events happen. It's located in the Jiading area, close to the big city of Shanghai. This circuit hosted its very first Formula One race, the Chinese Grand Prix, on September 26, 2004.
Main straight and pit lane area
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| Location | Shanghai, China |
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| Time zone | GMT +8 |
| Opened | 2004 |
| Construction cost | $450 million |
| Architect | Hermann Tilke |
| Major events | FIA Formula One Chinese Grand Prix V8 Supercars A1 Grand Prix Grand Prix of Nations, China |
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| Length | 5.451 km (3.387 mi) |
| Turns | 16 |
| Race lap record | 1:32.238 ( Michael Schumacher, Ferrari, 2004) |
Contents
How the Circuit Was Built
The Shanghai International Circuit cost about $450 million to build. This huge project was paid for by a special company supported by the government. Experts in design and building started planning the circuit in April 2003.
It's amazing to think that this world-class racetrack was built on what used to be swampland! It took only 18 months to change the swamp into a racing circuit. A team of 3000 people worked day and night to finish the construction quickly.
What Races Happen Here?
Besides Formula One, the circuit has hosted many other exciting races. These include:
- A round of the MotoGP world championship, which is for motorcycles.
- The V8 Supercar championship from Australia.
- The final races of the A1 Grand Prix series in 2006 and 2007.
The last MotoGP race at the Shanghai International Circuit was in 2008. The FIM (the group that runs motorcycle racing) decided not to have races there in 2009 because too many people came, causing overcrowding.
Circuit Design and Layout
Like many modern Formula One tracks, the Shanghai International Circuit was designed by Hermann Tilke. He is famous for designing racetracks around the world.
One of his special design features is a very long straight section followed by a sharp turn called a hairpin turn. On this long straight, between corners 13 and 14, Formula One cars can go faster than 300 kilometers per hour (about 186 miles per hour)!
The shape of the track was inspired by a Chinese character. It looks like the character "shang" (上), which is the first part of the city's name, Shanghai. This character means "above" or "ascend."
Racing Records
Here are some of the fastest lap times set at the Shanghai International Circuit. These times are for the full track, which is 5.451 kilometers long.
| Category | Record | Driver/Rider | Car/Bike | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formula One | 1:32.238 | Michael Schumacher |
Ferrari | 26 September 2004 |
| GP2 Asia Series | 1:46.470 |  Kamui Kobayashi |
DAMS | 18 October 2008 |
| A1GP | 1:51.832 |  Darren Manning |
Team Great Britain | 1 April 2006 |
| MotoGP | 1:58.139 |  Colin Edwards |
Tech 3 Yamaha | 3 May 2008 |
| 250cc | 2:04.543 |  Jorge Lorenzo |
Fortuna Aprilia | 5 May 2007 |
| 125cc | 2:11.572 |  Mika Kallio |
Red Bull KTM GP 125 | 13 May 2006 |
| V8 Supercars | 1:51.056 * |  Todd Kelly |
Holden VZ Commodore | 12 June 2005 |
- This record was set on a shorter version of the circuit (4.600 km).
Images for kids
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Satellite image of the circuit, as it appeared in April 2018
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Exterior of main grandstand
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Main grandstand
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View from the main grandstand
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Covered grandstand H & K
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Grandstand H & K
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Pit
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See also
In Spanish: Circuito Internacional de Shanghái para niños
