Österreichring

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Österreichring
Location	Spielberg, Styria, Austria
Active from	1969 - present
Major events	Austrian Grand Prix (1997-2003), DTM
Surface	N/A
Length	? mi (? km)
Turns	16
Lap record	? (?, ?, ?, class)

The Österreichring is an Austrian race circuit which hosted the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix for 18 consecutive years, from 1970 to 1987. It was later shortened, rebuilt and renamed the A1-Ring, it hosted the Austrian Grand Prix again from 1997 to 2003. The track was then closed and demolished, bought by Red Bull's Dietrich Mateschitz. Renamed the Red Bull Ring the track will be rebuilt and reopened for 2011, when it will host a round of the 2011 DTM season.<ref>Austria back on DTM schedule in '11</ref><ref>[http://www.dtm.com/newsausgabe.php?id=9740 Der DTM-Kalender 2011 - Spannung in sechs Nationen</ref>.

The track is located in Spielberg, Styria. The old Österreichring was more often referred to as being located at Zeltweg, which is bigger and better known. However, the circuit was never relocated, only modified.

In addition, the one-off 1964 Austrian Grand Prix was held at Zeltweg Airfield, so this name was already known.

The original track

The track was known for being very fast, as every corner was taken in no lower than 3rd in 5-speed cars and 4th in 6-speed cars, as well as noticeable changes in elevation during the course of a lap. Many considered the Österreichring to be dangerous, especially the "Boschkurve", a 180-degree right-hand corner with almost no run-off area. Some of the track was just road with little to no protection at all, even up to the final Austrian Grand Prix. Tragically, American driver Mark Donohue died after crashing at the Vost-Hugel Kurve in 1975. In 1976, the Vost-Hugel Kurve was tightened and made into one right hander rather than 2 right-handers with a small section between, and in 1977 it was slowed down and became the Hella-Licht chicane, going from the fastest to the slowest corner on the track. It is also known that four-times World Champion Alain Prost often said that all tracks can be changed but that the Österreichring should remain unchanged, just adding run-off areas would be fine. The track was known for having many crashes at the start of races (especially 6-foot-wide [1.8 m] Formula One cars at the Austrian Grand Prix) because the start finish was very narrow (about 30 feet wide [9.1 m], most start finish straights on other tracks were 60 to 80 feet wide [18 to 24 m]) and it did not provide enough space for cars attempting to pass others, especially cars that stalled or broke at the start.

The A1-Ring

The Österreichring's safety concerns reached a head in 1987 when that year's race needed two restarts following crashes on the starting grid. As a result, the track was abandoned by Formula One for nearly a decade. In 1995 and 1996, it was totally rebuilt, at the same site, by Hermann Tilke. Its length was shortened from 5.942 km (3.692 mi) to 4.326 km (2.688 mi), and the fast sweeping corners were replaced by three tight right-handers, in order to create overtaking opportunities. Its three long straights, as well as a twisty infield section, asked for a setup compromise.

As much of the construction work was paid for by the cellphone provider A1, the track was renamed the A1-Ring.<ref>http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/cir-001.html</ref> It proceeded to host seven Formula One Austrian Grands Prix between 1997 and 2003, as well as several DTM races and Austrian motorcycle races in 1996 and 1997.

Recent news

The grandstands and pit buildings were demolished in 2004, rendering the track unusable for any motorsport category. In late 2004 and early 2005, there were intense discussions whether the owner, Red Bull, would find another use for the site or actually bring back motor sports to it. However, as of January 2005, this seems more unlikely than ever, as Dietrich Mateschitz publicly announced that he had no intention to waste money on a deficitary circuit. This failure of the project, which was of considerable importance for the surrounding municipalities, may even have serious political repercussions, as Styrian governor Waltraud Klasnic had strongly supported the project.

In 2006, Austrian racing driver Alexander Wurz claimed he would buy the circuit and have it renovated, but little has come about this.

During the whole of 2005 there were speculations of Red Bull Racing renovating the track and using it as a personal testing track in Formula One. It remains to be seen if Mateschitz and his Red Bull Racing will do something about the abandoned track.

In 2007, talks involving Red Bull, KTM, VW and Magna International for a neuer Österreichring have failed after VW pulled out.<ref>Wenig Chance auf neue Spielberg-Partner - oesterreich.ORF.at Template:De icon</ref>

In April 2008 the current owners of the track, Red Bull, were to restore the track as a racing venue and DTM chiefs were considering to return there for a race in 2009.<ref>DTM considering return to Austria</ref><ref>Spielberg-Verträge sollen neu verhandelt werden {German}</ref> But in July 2008, the DTM organizers have decided not to include Österreichring into the 2009 program, although plans for the revival of the track are still under discussion.<ref>A1-Ring not included on 2009 calendar</ref>

In October 2008, the track owner Dietrich Mateschitz has ruled out any chance for the track to host a MotoGP or a Formula One Grand Prix in the future, and it will only be used for DTM races. The rebuilt track will be finished by the end of 2010.<ref>No F1 race for rebuilt A1-Ring - Mateschitz</ref>

As of September 2010, it has been confirmed that the rebuilt circuit will host a round of the 2011 DTM season <ref>Austria back on DTM schedule in '11</ref> <ref>Der DTM-Kalender 2011 - Spannung in sechs Nationen </ref>. It is now known as the Red Bull Ring.