Rockingham Motor Speedway
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Use British English Template:Advert Template:Infobox motorsport venue
Rockingham Motor Speedway was a motorsport racing venue in Rockingham, Northamptonshire, England, United Kingdom, near the town of Corby. It hosted professional and club races, as well as testing, track days, driver training, exhibitions and conferences. It claimed to be Europe's fastest racing circuit,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and was the first banked oval constructed in Britain since the closure of Brooklands in 1939.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The venue entered administration in 2017 and hosted its final motor race in November 2018.<ref name=FinalRace>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2021, the facility was purchased by Constellation Automotive for £80million.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
HistoryEdit
Construction of Rockingham started late in 1999, with the opening meeting planned for May 2001.<ref name="Swinger"/>
Rockingham Motor Speedway was constructed on a British Steel works brown field site as a banked oval with the intention of bringing the American oval racing across the Atlantic for the first time. The opportunity was taken to use the infield for further circuits.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Swinger"/>
After almost ten years of planning and 23 months of construction work, Rockingham opened for business on Monday 15 January 2001. It was formally opened by the Queen on 26 May 2001.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
After the sale of the venue, Rockingham held a "super send-off" to mark its final day as a racing circuit on 24 November 2018.<ref name=FinalRace/> The circuit was sold to Rockingham Automotive Limited, who used the facility for vehicle storage and logistics.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In mid-2021, Constellation Automotive who own brands such as Cinch, and We Buy Any Car purchased the site.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Since then, Constellation Automotive's online car sales brand, Cinch, has used the circuit to film YouTube content,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> including car reviews and lap time challenges, titled on its channel as 'Fast Laps'. Cinch Motoring Editor, Sam Sheehan, has driven cars ranging from the Hyundai i20N hot hatch to a road-legal track car produced by Spartan Motor Company.
Sheehan used the Spartan to set an overall lap record for Rockingham's National Circuit on 26 May 2023, beating the previous fastest time of 1:14.20, set by a Palmer Jaguar JP1 prototype, by five-hundredths of a second.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The circuitEdit
Rockingham had 13 configurations of track, which could be used for anything from touring cars to motorcycles to rally cars. The circuit was overlooked by the 6280 seat Rockingham Building, a steel-framed, glass-fronted grandstand building containing suites, offices, bars and kitchens, and by four grandstands. Together, the building and grandstands offered a total seating capacity of 52,000. The inner pit and paddock complex was accessed from the Rockingham Building via two pedestrian tunnels and there was a further spectator viewing area on top of the pit garages.<ref name="rockingham.co.uk"/>
The oval circuitEdit
The Template:Cvt American-style banked oval circuit was Template:Convert wide and had a maximum bank angle of seven degrees and comprised four very distinct corners. Rockingham's oval was unique in the UK and one of only two speedways in Europe (the other being Lausitzring). The oval circuit could also be converted to a road course layout for events by positioning temporary chicanes and curves both on the main area and apron of the circuit.Template:Fact
In early September 2001, the Champ cars came to Germany and England for the first time, to contest oval racing at the German 500 (kilometer, not miles) and the Rockingham 500, rounds of the 2001 CART season (Championship Auto Racing Teams) FedEx Championship Series. After the 11 September terrorist attacks and subsequent closing of airspaces, but with most equipment and personnel already being in continental Europe, the first ever German 500 was held under difficult circumstances. Unreliable weather and a bad crash of Alex Zanardi did not help, either.Template:Fact
The British round at the weekend of 20–22 September was in jeopardy, too. However, the logistics were worked out, with many of the teams stripping off their sponsors' logos ("livery") as a mark of respect for the victims of the attacks. The race distance was also shortened to 300 km. Victory was snatched on the exit of Turn Four of the last lap by Gil de Ferran driving the Marlboro Team Penske Honda–powered Reynard 01I at a race average speed of Template:Cvt from Kenny Bräck at the wheel of the Team Rahal Lola-Ford Cosworth B1/00, and the Newman-Haas Racing Lola-Toyota B1/00 driven by Cristiano da Matta. The fastest lap, and therefore outright lap record, was set by Patrick Carpentier in 25.551secs (Template:Cvt) in the Player's Forsythe Racing Reynard-Cosworth. Carpentier became for first Canadian to ever hold the outright lap record at an English circuit.<ref name=Swinger>Peter Swinger, "Motor Racing Circuits in England : Then & Now" (Ian Allan Publishing, Template:ISBN, 2008)</ref>
The US-based series returned in September 2002. This was the last time Champ Cars raced at this facility. The race ran over the full distance of 500 km, Scotland's Dario Franchitti took the chequered flag in his Team KOOL Green Lola-Honda, beating Cristiano da Matta by just 0.986 of a second .<ref name="champcarstats.com">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
The International Super Sportscar Circuit (ISSC)Edit
The ISSC was Template:Cvt long and between Template:Cvt wide, with a maximum bank angle of seven degrees at turn one. Rockingham's International Super Sportscar Circuit was used by the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, as well as for most other car race events. The circuit combined long straights, sweeping high-speed bends (including the infamous Turn 1 and Gracelands) with a lower speed, highly technical infield layout. Average lap speeds around the circuit ranged from 1m 24s in the BTCC to 1m 12s in British F3.
Wet handling facilityEdit
The site had a wet handling area with a kick plate which was used to simulate a variety of driving conditions including ice, rain and slippery wet leaves. These different road conditions were simulated at much slower speeds than in normal driving and in a fully controlled environment. The area was designed to give drivers a greater understanding of the latest ABS, traction control and crash mitigating technologies, and the way that they affect vehicle control.
Layout configurationsEdit
- Rockingham Motor Speedway Oval.svg
Oval Circuit (2001–2018)
- Rockingham Motor Speedway - Road course.svg
International Super Sports Car Circuit (2001–2018)
- Rockingham Motor Speedway International Long.svg
International Long Circuit (2001–2018)
- Rockingham2.svg
International Short Circuit (2001–2018)
- Rockingham Motor Speedway National.svg
National Circuit (2001–2018)
Lap recordsEdit
Rockingham is Europe's fastest banked oval racing circuit, with the unofficial lap record for the Template:Convert oval set at 24.719 seconds by Tony Kanaan in his Lola B01/00 Champ Car on 22 September 2001 – an average speed of Template:Convert. Rockingham was the first purpose-built banked oval in the UK since Brooklands in 1907. It has an all-seating capacity of 52,000 and has both an oval and a racing circuit.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> The fastest official race lap records at Rockingham Motor Speedway are listed as:
Major racing resultsEdit
CART ChampionshipEdit
| Year | Race | Driver | Constructor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Rockingham 500 + | Template:Flagicon Gil de Ferran | Reynard 01I |
| 2002 | Sure For Men Rockingham 500 | Template:Flagicon Dario Franchitti | Lola B02/00 |
+ Race shortened due to lack of practice. <ref name="champcarstats.com"/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
British Formula Three seasonEdit
British Touring Car ChampionshipEdit
| Year | Race | Driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 9 | Template:Flagicon Matt Neal | Honda Civic Type-R |
| Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 10 | Template:Flagicon Yvan Muller | Vauxhall Astra Coupé | |
| 2007 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 4 | Template:Flagicon Fabrizio Giovanardi | Vauxhall Vectra |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 5 | Template:Flagicon Fabrizio Giovanardi | Vauxhall Vectra | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 6 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | SEAT León | |
| 2008 | HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 4 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic |
| HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 5 | Template:Flagicon Mat Jackson | BMW 320si | |
| HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 6 | Template:Flagicon Matt Neal | Vauxhall Vectra | |
| 2009 | HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 25 | Template:Flagicon Stephen Jelley | BMW 320si |
| HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 26 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | Chevrolet Lacetti | |
| HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 27 | Template:Flagicon Stephen Jelley | BMW 320si | |
| 2010 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 4 | Template:Flagicon Matt Neal | Honda Civic |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 5 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | Chevrolet Cruze | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 6 | Template:Flagicon Matt Neal | Honda Civic | |
| 2011 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | Chevrolet Cruze LT |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon James Nash | Vauxhall Vectra | |
| 2012 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | MG6 GT |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic | |
| 2013 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Andrew Jordan | Honda Civic |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Rob Austin | Audi A4 | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Andrew Jordan | Honda Civic | |
| 2014 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Colin Turkington | BMW 125i M Sport |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Colin Turkington | BMW 125i M Sport | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Rob Austin | Audi A4 | |
| 2015 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Mat Jackson | Ford Focus ST |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic Type R | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Jason Plato | Volkswagen CC | |
| 2016 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon Gordon Shedden | Honda Civic Type R |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Sam Tordoff | BMW 125i M Sport | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Árón Smith | Volkswagen CC | |
| 2017 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 22 | Template:Flagicon James Cole | Subaru Levorg GT |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 23 | Template:Flagicon Ashley Sutton | Subaru Levorg GT | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 24 | Template:Flagicon Andrew Jordan | BMW 125i M Sport | |
| 2018 | Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 19 | Template:Flagicon Adam Morgan | Mercedes-Benz A-Class |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 20 | Template:Flagicon Ashley Sutton | Subaru Levorg GT | |
| Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, Rd 21 | Template:Flagicon Chris Smiley | Honda Civic Type R |
<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
British Superbike ChampionshipEdit
| Year | Race | Rider | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 2001 British Superbike Championship Rd.23 | Template:Flagicon Sean Emmett | 996cc Ducati 996 |
| 2001 British Superbike Championship Rd.24 | Template:Flagicon Michael Rutter | 750cc Kawasaki ZX-7RR | |
| 2002 | 2002 British Superbike Championship Rd.13 | Template:Flagicon Michael Rutter | 996cc Ducati 996 RS |
| 2002 British Superbike Championship Rd.14 | Template:Flagicon Michael Rutter | 996cc Ducati 996 RS | |
| 2003 | 2003 British Superbike Championship Rd.13 + | Template:Flagicon Yukio Kagayama | 999cc Suzuki GSX-R1000 |
| 2003 British Superbike Championship Rd.14 | Template:Flagicon Yukio Kagayama | 999cc Suzuki GSX-R1000 |
+ Qualification cancelled due to dangerous track conditions, grid decided by championship positions.
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Other eventsEdit
The Rockingham StagesEdit
On 12 December 2004, the first Stage Rally, the Rockingham Stages, was held at the venue. This was jointly promoted by Middlesex County Automobile Club and Thame Motorsport Club. The two day event rapidly grew to be one of the favourite events on the British stage rally calendar. For several years it was a round of the MSN (Motor Sports News) Circuit Rally Championship. The 2018 Rockingham Stages was the last competitive motorsport event to be held at the Speedway.
| Year | Overall Winner | co-driver | Car |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | John Stone | Lee Carter | MG Metro 6R4 |
| 2004 | John Stone | Lee Carter | MG Metro 6R4 |
| 2005 | Steve Simpson | Mark Booth | Hyundai Accent WRC |
| 2006 | Steve Simpson | Simon Hunter | Hyundai Accent WRC |
| 2007 | Steve Simpson | Simon Hunter | Hyundai Accent WRC |
| 2008 | Steve Simpson | Simon Hunter | Hyundai Accent WRC |
| 2009 | Steve Simpson | Simon Hunter | Hyundai Accent WRC |
| 2010 | Tony Racey | Paul Heath | Subaru Impreza |
| 2011 | Pete Rayner | Aron Rayner | Ford Escort Mk.II |
| 2012 | Paul King | Alicia Miles | Ford Escort RS |
| 2013 | Paul King | Fiona Scarrett | Ford Escort RS |
| 2014 | David Tinn | Marc Fowler | Proton Satria Neo Millington |
| 2015 | David Tinn | Giles Dykes | Proton Satria Neo Millington |
| 2016 | Rhys Yates | Tom Woodburn | Ford Fiesta R5 |
| 2017 | William Hill | Richard Crozier | Ford Fiesta R5 |
| 2018 | Paul King | Alicia Miles | Ford Escort RS |
<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Oval racingEdit
From 2001 to the end of 2007, Rockingham organised and funded American-style Stockcar racing on the oval. Originally known as ASCAR, the series changed name to "Days of Thunder", and then to SCSA (Stock Car Speed Association), before re-branding to the MAC Tools V8 Trophy for its final season in 2007. All cars were UK variants of the American "ASA National-Tour" Howe Racing chassis, running with either Ford, Chevrolet or Pontiac bodies. A change of circuit ownership for 2006 saw the end of promotion and funding for the series, and low grids in 2007 led the organising club (BRSCC) to amalgamate it with a road course series, and eventually to the demise of both championships before the end of 2008.
Other activitiesEdit
The circuit was operational 357 days a year and the majority of events that took place at the venue were not motorsport competitions. Events ranged from manufacturer product launches to dealer training, track days and testing, and corporate and experience days.
The City Auction Group holds an auction weekly at the circuit.
The Learning Grid Rockingham Festival in the first week of July promotes science and engineering to school pupils.
The venue had a sizeable showground area which has hosted the following shows:
- The French Car Show
- The Site Equipment Demonstration (SED) Show
- Greenfleet
- The LCV Show
- Stobart Fest
- Japfest 2
Media appearancesEdit
TelevisionEdit
- Fifth GearTemplate:Citation needed
- Wheeler DealersTemplate:Citation needed
- Saturday Night Takeaway<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation
|CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Magazines and newspapersEdit
The Telegraph and Fiat held a track day at Rockingham in 2012 and published a number of articles featuring the circuit.Template:Citation needed AutosportTemplate:'s Caterham SP300R video review was made on the ISSC Template:Citation needed, and Car Magazine did a track test on the Nissan GT-R vs Porsche 911 Turbo in 2012 and a McLaren supercar group test in 2010 Template:Citation needed. Car Dealer magazine reviewed the BMW M5 at Rockingham and compared it with a Mercedes E63 AMG, a Lexus ISF, a Porsche Panamera and an Infiniti M35h Template:Citation needed. The circuit also features on the Pistonheads website with videos showing the Caterham SP300 R and the new Astra VXR. Chris Harris on Cars showcased the BAC Mono Template:Citation needed.
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
- Rockingham.co.uk – Rockingham official site
- Pickup Truck Racing
- Rockingham satellite image Google Maps
- MSN Circuit Rally Championship
- Middlesex County Auto Club
Template:British motor racing circuits Template:BTCC Circuits Template:British Superbike Championship circuits Template:BOSS GP circuits Template:Champ Car tracks Template:D1GP circuits Template:Use dmy dates