To witness a race filled with thrill and action, one must watch the Turkish Grand Prix. The circuit of Istanbul, created by Hermann Tilke, is one of the trickiest circuits on the F1 calendar. Unlike other tracks, it is an anti-clockwise circuit that has forests and fields covered throughout the course.
The circuit does not have a long history of being home to F1 races. It was the chaos caused by the coronavirus pandemic that has led to Turkey hosting the race in 2020 after a gap of nine years. The Istanbul Park in 2020 declared the world champion of that season - Lewis Hamilton.
The Turkish Grand Prix taking place in 2021 was hanging by a thread after the United Kingdom decided to place Turkey under the red list. And this consequently would make life harder for the entire F1 crew traveling in and out of the UK, especially amidst a cramped racing calendar this season. However, Japan arrived as a blessing in disguise. With Suzuka backing out of the calendar, F1 will now have a breathing space between Turkey and the United States Grand Prix. Hence, the show will go on!
The circuit has faced a lot of discrepancies and controversies throughout its existence in the F1 championship. It was in 2011 that the Turkish authorities withdrew their names from the list of grounds for the F1 events.
The 2021 season's Turkish Grand Prix will commence on October 8, 2021, with the main race scheduled later on October 10, 2021.
Name | Nationality | Year |
Felipe Massa | Brazilian | 2006, 2007, 2008 |
Manufacturer | Year |
Ferrari | 2006, 2007, 2008 |
McLaren | 2005, 2010 |
The Istanbul Park Circuit has staged seven F1 weekends so far.
This track measures up to 5.338 kilometers that comprise 58 laps and 14 turns. It has built-in sharp chicanes with a radius of not over 15-meters and has covered four ground levels with the two extremes of the track running over 650- meters.
The most challenging corners of the circuit are Turn 1 and Turn 8. Turn 1, also recognized as the " Turkish Corkscrew" comprises an edgy downhill left-hander just after the front straight. Turn 8, commonly known as "Diabolica" consists of four apexes and is one of the most adventurous turns in the entire circuit. The grid has also been host to other motorsports, besides F1.
In Asia, Australia, and Latin America, the practice sessions, qualifying, and the race will be telecast on the Fox Sports Channels. The Indian subcontinent can view it on the Star Sports Network.
Belgium has RTBF and Telenet while Brazil has TV Globo and SporTV to enjoy the race.
While China telecasts on CCTV, Tencent, Guangdong TV, and Shanghai TV, Canada will stream the event on RDS and TSN. The Czech Republic and Slovakia will broadcast on Sport 1, Sport2, and Sport5.
The people of Denmark can catch the action on TV3+, TV3 Sport, and ViaSat. Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have TBC for their broadcast requirements while Finland will air the race on MTV. France will do so on TF1 and Canal+.
Germany, Austria, and Switzerland will showcase the entire event on RTL Germany and n-tv. Greece will stream it on ERT and Cosmote TV, and Hungary will do so on M4.
Israelis can view the entire event on The Sports Channel, and those in Italy can tune into Sky Italia and TV8. Japan can enjoy the race on Fuji Television, Network Inc., and Dazn.
Mexico can watch the action on TUDN Mexico. The Netherlands will telecast the event on Ziggo, while New Zealand will broadcast it on Spark Sport.
Poland and Portugal will have the broadcast handled by Eleven Sports. Match TV will broadcast the race in Russia while those in Turkey can watch the entire event on S Sport.
The United Kingdom can watch it on channels like C4 and Sky Sports, while ESPN will telecast it for the USA.
FOUNDED | 2005 |
FIRST HELD | 2020 |
LAPS | 58 |
LAST RACE POLE POSITION PODIUM | 2020 Lance Stroll (1:47:765) 3. Sebastian Vettel (+31.960) 2. Sergio Perez (+31.633) 1. Lewis Hamilton (1:42:19:313) |
MOST WINS | Felipe Massa |
MOST CONSTRUCTORS WINNERS | Ferrari |
CIRCUIT DETAILS CIRCUIT LENGTH | 5.338-km |
TICKETS | Formula1 Tickets |
TV TELECAST, LIVE STREAMING | Formula1 Website |