Shanghai, China

The Chinese Grand Prix is a round of the Formula One World Championship, held towards the end of the season in October. It is currently held at the Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai, designed by Hermann Tilke. It is the most expensive Formula One circuit facility, costing $240 million.

The vision of a Chinese Grand Prix started in the early 1990s. The Chinese government had originally planned for an F1 circuit to be located in the city of Zhuhai in Guangdong Province, southern China. The Zhuhai International Circuit was designed and built and was provisionally added to the 1999 F1 World Championship calendar, but the track failed to meet certain standards set by the FIA. However, the Chinese government did not give up and eventually, with assistance from the organisers of the Macau Grand Prix, held the first ever Formula One race in China in 2004.

In 2002, it was announced that the management of the Shanghai International Circuit had signed a 7 year contract with the Formula One Management to host the Chinese Grand Prix starting from the 2004 season until the 2011 season. The Chinese Grand Prix debuted on September 26, 2004, and was won by Ferrari‘s Rubens Barrichello. The following year, it hosted the final round of the Formula One championship, in which the newly crowned world champion Fernando Alonso won and claimed the constructor’s title for Renault F1. In 2006, the Chinese Grand Prix was won by Michael Schumacher – his last victory in Formula One before he retired at the end of the season.

Race information:

Laps				56
Circuit length			5.451 kilometre (3.387 mi)
Race length			305.066 km (189.568 mi)
First held			2004
Last held			2008
Most wins (drivers)	 	Rubens Barrichello /
 				Fernando Alonso /
 				Michael Schumacher /
 				Kimi Räikkönen /
 				Lewis Hamilton (1)
Most wins (constructors)	Ferrari (3)

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