Detroit Grand Prix

Formula One

The race dates back to 1982 when it was a Formula One World Championship event held on the Detroit Street Circuit encompassing the Renaissance Center. The original circuit was 2.493 mi (4.012 km) with seventeen corners and proved to be even slower than Monaco. The rough, demanding course included a railroad track crossing and mimicked Monaco, with a tunnel on the main straight. While officially the Detroit Grand Prix, it was also referred to as the United States Grand Prix East because there were multiple Grand Prix races in the U.S. at the time. By the time of the 1988 race, the FIA, the governing body of Formula One, had declared the street circuit's temporary pits and garages were not up to the required standard. The race was already the least popular Grand Prix on the calendar and after a very difficult 1988 Grand Prix the drivers became outspoken with their dislike of the event.

For 1989, race organizers planned to move the race to a new temporary circuit on Belle Isle, a city park in the Detroit River. Along with the criticism of the downtown circuit, local developers were also planning to begin construction along portions of the course, making it difficult to set up in the coming years. The relocation plan to Belle Isle was immediately met with stiff local opposition, both public and political. Even though the circuit would be temporary, permanent garages and pit facilities would have needed to be constructed, at significant expense, and at the odds of conservation groups. Also against their favor was a budding interest to relocate the United States Grand Prix to Laguna Seca. That track was courting Formula One, having recently completed capital improvements, and having just hosted a highly successful United States motorcycle Grand Prix. Furthermore, an upstart group in Phoenix was also aggressively vying for the race.

In October 1988, the plan to move to Belle Isle was scrapped. Formula One left Detroit permanently, and a short time later, it was officially announced that the U.S. Grand Prix was moving to Phoenix.

It was in Detroit in 1983 that Italian driver Michele Alboreto drove his Tyrrell 011 to victory in the US Grand Prix East in what would prove to be the 155th and last ever F1 win by the Cosworth DFV V8 engine.

CART

Renaissance Center: 1989 to 1991

For 1989, the race in Detroit was replaced by a CART series event. Instead of moving to Belle Isle, CART utilized a slightly modified version of the existing downtown Renaissance Center street circuit. The chicane on the main straight was eliminated – something the F1 drivers had been calling for since the first race in 1982. The CART race was held on this 2.52-mile (4.06 km) layout for three years. As had been the case in the event's Formula One days, competitors and fans continued to pan the course, criticizing it for its bumpiness, poor visibility and overall poor layout.

The 1991 event was perhaps the last straw in what was an embarrassment for the organizers. In addition to a disintegrating track made worse by suffocating heat and humidity, it saw Mario Andretti crash his Lola head-on into a tow truck. The safety crew was attempting to remove Dennis Vitolo's stalled car from a blind corner at St. Antoine and East Jefferson Streets. Seconds later Michael Andretti came onto the scene, and crashed into Vitolo's car attempting to avoid his father's wrecked car. Ultimately, promoters considered the downtown circuit a money-loser, and claimed it was suffering from poor television ratings with its Father's Day date (up against the U.S. Open).

Belle Isle: 1992 to 1997

Beginning in 1992, the race was moved to a new temporary course set up on Belle Isle. The move revived a conceptual plan for the Formula One event from four years earlier. One major difference that made Belle Isle viable for CART – and acceptable to locals – was that permanent Formula One style garages and pits were not required by the sanctioning body. The race was also moved up a week, and for 1992, was the first race after the Indianapolis 500 (displacing the traditional Milwaukee Mile). The first layout measured 2.1 miles (3.4 km). Almost immediately, the new course was criticized by drivers for being narrow, slow, and lacking passing zones. It was complemented, however, for its smoothness - a sharp contrast to the rough, manhole-dotted downtown circuit. Fans' opinions were mixed, as sightlines were improved over the downtown circuit, but access to the island was difficult, and the racing was not much better.

Course modification: 1998 to 2000

In 1998, the course layout was modified to eliminate the slow "Picnic Way" segment and series of corners. Instead, the course continued straight along Central Avenue to create a long, fairly-wide straightaway leading into a competitive passing zone. The track then measured 2.346 miles (3.776 km). The revised layout was praised by competitors as being an improvement over the original (1992–1997) course. However, pavement transitions from asphalt to concrete were being blamed for an increase in incidents due to slickness.

The 2000 event saw young Brazilian Hélio Castroneves score his first CART victory for Marlboro Team Penske. After his victory lap, he stopped on the front stretch and climbed the catch fencing in an apparent effort to share his joy with the spectators. Helio became known as "Spider-Man" because of this celebration, which he repeated in his later victories.

Support races for the Detroit Grand Prix included the Motor City 100 for the SCCA Trans-Am Series, and the Neon Challenge celebrity race. Scenes from the film Driven were filmed during the race weekend in 2000.

The event, along with the Michigan 500, provided two CART races in southern Michigan annually.

Demise: 2001

Even though the track was a temporary street course, it became known as The Raceway on Belle Isle. As the years went by, the track was increasingly criticized for its narrowness, poor access, and its overall uncompetitive nature. The once smooth surface was aging in the harsh Detroit winters, and along with it came bumps, cracks and potholes. The circuit gained a reputation of being the "worst" and "least popular" venue on the entire schedule. In 1997, it was noted that race winner Greg Moore started seventh and did not pass a single car competitively out on the track for position all day. Participants also disliked the facility because of its lack of paved areas for support activities. Paddock areas were often muddy and unable to accommodate the teams.

After the 2001 race, CART's contract with Belle Isle expired. Attendance had been noticeably slipping. Negotiations to continue the event went over the summer, but eventually stalled. Organizers briefly entertained an idea to return to the old downtown circuit, but those plans were quickly scuttled. The series chose to drop the race from the schedule and the event went on hiatus.

IndyCar

2007 to 2008

In 2006, Roger Penske spearheaded talks to revive the race for 2007 as part of the ALMS and IndyCar Series schedules. Penske had recently experienced tremendous success as head of the Super Bowl XL Detroit Metro Host Committee. On September 29, 2006, it was announced that the Detroit Indy Grand Prix would return as the tenth race of the ALMS's 12-race season and penultimate race of the IndyCar Series' seventeen-race schedule.

To improve access to the track, a park-and-ride system, similar to what was used at Super Bowl XL, was implemented. Further paddock and track work was completed before the race. The 2007 event attracted a strong crowd, and was considered a success. It was held again in 2008. During this period, the event utilized the original (1992–1997) course layout, with some minor improvements. Some of the barriers were moved back, particularly inside the apexes of some of the turns, to effectively widen some curves and improve sight lines. Some barriers, including the metal guardrail on the pit straight, had been entirely removed.

On December 18, 2008, the scheduled race for 2009 was canceled. The ongoing automotive economic crisis, and its impact on the Detroit-area was the primary reason. Roger Penske did not rule out a return in the future.

Doubleheader era

For the 2012 season, the race on Belle Isle was revived for a second time. The event was situated on the weekend immediately after the Indianapolis 500. Starting in 2013, the race was hosted as a unique "doubleheader" weekend. The race weekend would consist of two separate, points-paying races, one each on Saturday and Sunday. The races were treated as separate events, with separate qualifying, full championship points, and the results of the first had no bearing on the lineup for the second (as had been the case with some previous "twin" race formats). Beginning in 2013, the race also returned to the more popular and more competitive "long" course (1998–2001 layout).

On April 6, 2020, IndyCar announced the cancellation of the 2020 edition due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Organizers stated that Michigan's stay-at-home order (which was extended through April 30) would hinder the necessary preparations to hold the race, and that the race could not be reasonably rescheduled due to other events having been booked on Belle Isle already. The race returned in its traditional double header format for 2021. On September 19, 2021, IndyCar announced that the Detroit Grand Prix would be altered from a two race weekend to a single race weekend as part of their 2022 schedule.

Downtown revival

Mere weeks after the 2022 IndyCar schedule was announced, Penske Entertainment Group revealed that altering the Detroit Grand Prix to a single race weekend was done as part of a proposal discussed with the city of Detroit to return the race back to the Renaissance Center, utilizing a new downtown circuit beginning in 2023. In November 2021, the City Council of Detroit unanimously approved Penske Entertainment's plan and announced an initial three-year contract to return the Detroit Grand Prix back to the downtown streets for a single race weekend beginning in 2023.

The new downtown circuit is based on lessons learned from the Nashville Street Circuit. It is designed to be less disruptive to city traffic while also being more accessible to spectators and having more points of visibility to the racing than the old Detroit Street Circuit. The new circuit features ten corners and is 1.645 mi (2.647 km) in length compared to the 2.500 mi (4.023 km) circuit used by Formula One and CART and the 2.360 mi (3.798 km) Raceway at Belle Isle Park. It travels from the start/finish line on Atwater Street and heads onto Schwarzer Street, Franklin Street, and Rivard Street in the first series of corners. From Rivard Street drivers make a sharp left turn onto the circuit's most prominent feature, a 0.7 mile straightaway down East Jefferson Avenue. This straightaway is the longest straightaway on an IndyCar street circuit. The circuit then turns onto Bates Street before heading back onto Atwater Street. The only part of the old Detroit Street Circuit used on the new circuit is the old circuit's 16th and 17th corners that were then known as The Ford Corner. On the new circuit this section includes the 8th and 9th corners. Neither of the tunnels nor side streets used on the old Detroit Street Circuit are used on the new circuit to minimize impact on local businesses and city traffic around downtown Detroit. To increase spectator viewership IndyCar and Penske Entertainment offer free viewership at multiple points along the circuit. In 2021, the Detroit City Council stated the entire circuit would be fully resurfaced before the race.

Past winners

CART / Indy Racing League / IndyCar Series

1996, 2007, 2008, & 2015 II: Races shortened due to 2 hour time limit.

2012: Race shortened due to darkness after 2 hour suspension for track repairs.

2015 I: Race shortened due to lightning policy.

2019 I: Race shortened to 75 minute time limit due to lightning policy delaying the start.

Race summaries

1989: Emerson Fittipaldi touched wheels with Mario Andretti on lap 2, puncturing a tire and sending him to the back of the field. But Fittipaldi charged from 27th position to second place in the closing laps. Polesitter Michael Andretti led 52 of the first 54 laps, but a radio wire became tangled in the throttle pedal. On lap 55, the throttle pedal stuck sending Andretti into a barrier. Scott Pruett was now leading the race by 17 seconds, but was forced to back off to conserve fuel. Fittipaldi blew by Pruett with four laps to go to take the victory.

1990: Michael Andretti started from the pole position and led wire-to-wire, winning the race in dominating fashion. Danny Sullivan was running close behind in second place on lap 46 when during his final pit stop, an impact wrench failed. The wheel was not properly fastened, and on the out-lap, the drive pegs on the wheel broke, putting him out of the race. Bobby Rahal nursing brakes, finished second, over one minute and 48 seconds behind Andretti. Rahal held off Emerson Fittipaldi who finished close behind in third.

1991: Emerson Fittipaldi, expecting the birth of his fifth child, was leading Bobby Rahal in the closing laps when gearbox problems arose. With seven laps to go, Fittipaldi's car kept jumping out of gear. He was mostly forced to hold the gearshift lever to hold the car in gear with his right hand, and steer with only his left hand, on the rough, bumpy, demanding circuit. Rahal charged hard, but Fittipaldi held him off for the victory by 0.29 seconds. The race is best-remembered for a bizarre incident involving Mario and Michael Andretti. On lap 48, Dennis Vitolo stalled in turn four with a seized transmission. Safety crew tended to Vitolo's car, hooking up a tow rope. Mario Andretti came around what was a blind corner, locked up his brakes, and rammed hard into the back of the safety truck. The nose of the car was wedged underneath the truck's bumper, and the track was nearly blocked. A couple cars (including Fittipaldi) skirted by the scene, but seconds later, Michael Andretti slid and crashed into the back of Vitolo's car. The track was now completely blocked, and the red flag was put out to clean up the scene. This would be the final race held at the Renaissance Center circuit until 2023.

1992: For 1992, the race was moved to a new circuit on Belle Isle. Michael Andretti led the early laps, with Paul Tracy (subbing for Rick Mears) and Bobby Rahal close behind. Tracy made a daring pass on lap 38 for the lead going into turn one, nearly touching wheels with Andretti. On lap 58, Tracy was leading Andretti, with Bobby Rahal in third. All three cars were nose-to-tail. Andretti attempted to pass Tracy for the lead, but this time, the two cars touched. Both Tracy and Andretti slid high and scraped the concrete wall, allowing Bobby Rahal to slip by both to take the lead. Tracy later dropped out with gearbox failure, but Andretti stayed with Rahal, despite nursing an ill-handling machine. On the second-to-last lap, Andretti spun out and dropped to fourth while Rahal cruised to victory.

Support races

Stadium Super Trucks

^A Race suspended after three laps following Matt Mingay's wreck on lap three that resulted in injury.

Trans-Am Motor City 100

Starting in 1984, the SCCA Trans-Am Series held a support race during the Grand Prix weekend. The Motor City 100 was often regarded as one of the most important events of the Trans-Am schedule due to the increased television and sponsor exposure, made possible by the international broadcast of the Grand Prix. The Trans-Am race wasn't popular with the Formula One drivers though with the heavy and powerful Trans-Am cars with their huge rear wheels having a tendency to break up the track, already in a suspect state thanks to the heat of the summer when the races were scheduled. This often made the Grands Prix a more difficult prospect due to drivers having to go offline on to the 'dirty' part of the road to avoid problem areas on the track surface.

^B Winner Wally Dallenbach Jr. was disqualified due to car being underweight.