Istanbul Park

Intercity Istanbul Park, also known as the Istanbul Racing Circuit or initially as the Istanbul Otodrom, is a motor sports race track in the Tuzla district of Istanbul, Turkey. Designed by Hermann Tilke, it opened on 19–21 August 2005. It has been called "the best race track in the world" by former Formula One Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone, who held the managing rights of the circuit between 2007 and 2011. The circuit has been currently managed by the Turkish company Intercity since 2012. Description The venue of the Turkish Grand Prix is located in the crossing of boundaries of Pendik and Tuzla districts on the Asian side of Istanbul, close to the junction of Kurtköy on the north side of the O–4 motorway, linking Istanbul to Ankara; and close to the junction of Istanbul Park on the south side of the O–7 motorway. It is near Sabiha Gökçen International Airport and is surrounded by forests and fields. The Istanbul Park racing circuit was one of only seven circuits running anticlockwise in the 2021 Formula One season, the others being the Imola Circuit (used for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix), the Baku City Circuit (used for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix), Circuit of the Americas (used for the United States Grand Prix), the Interlagos Circuit (used for the Brazilian Grand Prix), the Jeddah Corniche Circuit (used for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix), and the Yas Marina Circuit (used for the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix). This unusual anti-clockwise layout leads to increased strain on the other side of the driver's neck than they would experience at most other circuits, especially through the long high-speed left-hander at turn 8.