Igora Drive (russian: Игора Драйв, Igora Drayv) is a motorsport complex in the resort of

Igora Igora is a year-round resort in the Leningrad Oblast, Russia. There's a multifunctional area for outdoor activities and spa complex. The resort is located on the 54th kilometer of the Priozersky highway, in the Priozersky District of Leningrad Ob ...

near

Novozhilovo Novozhilovo (russian: Новожилово) is the name of three different rural localities in Russia: * Novozhilovo, Leningrad Oblast, a village in Sosnovskoye Rural Settlement of Priozersky District, Leningrad Oblast * Novozhilovo, Perm Krai, a ...

Leningrad Oblast Leningrad Oblast ( rus, Ленинградская область, Leningradskaya oblast’, lʲɪnʲɪnˈgratskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ, , ) is a federal subject of Russia (an oblast). It was established on 1 August 1927, although it was not until 1 ...

, Russia. It is located approximately north of

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

. On 26 June 2021, a contract was announced with the intention of moving the

Russian Grand Prix The Russian Grand Prix (russian: Гран-при России, Gran-pri Rossii) was an annual motor racing event held at Sochi Autodrom – a permanent circuit built around the Olympic Park in Sochi – as part of the Formula One World Champ ...

from

Sochi Autodrom The Sochi Autodrom (russian: Сочи Автодром, Sochi Avtodrom), previously known as the Sochi International Street Circuit and the Sochi Olympic Park Circuit, is a permanent race track in the settlement of Sirius next to the Black Sea r ...

to Igora starting on

2023 Events Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1927 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ** Croatia will adopt the eu ...

onwards. Due to

Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

, the contract for the Grand Prix was terminated on 3 March.

Characteristics

The complex includes ten professional tracks for

oval track racing Oval track racing is a form of closed-circuit motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of tra ...

drifting Drifting may refer to: *Drifting (motorsport) *Pipe drift or drifting, measuring a pipe's inner roundness Film * ''Drifting'' (1923 film), a film directed by Tod Browning * ''Drifting'' (1982 film), the first Israeli gay-themed film * ''Drifting'' ...

, rally-cross and

motocross Motocross is a form of off-road motorcycle racing held on enclosed off-road circuits. The sport evolved from motorcycle trials competitions held in the United Kingdom. History Motocross first evolved in Britain from motorcycle trials competi ...

, and

karting Kart racing or karting is a road racing variant of motorsport with open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on fu ...

, as well a center for emergency management. The largest grandstand of the main circuit racing will accommodate five thousand people, and the total capacity of the circuit is fifty thousand people. The circuit itself was long and wide. In 2022, the circuit length was increased to by featuring of elevation changes instead of .

Competition

In 2019, the complex signed an agreement with the

Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters The Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM, German Touring Car Masters) is a grand touring car series sanctioned by ITR e.V. who have been affiliated to the DMSB- FIA since 1984. The series is based in Germany, with rounds elsewhere in Europe. The s ...

series. The contract runs for three years, with the option of a two-year extension. The first race was to be held from 29 to 31 May 2020 with W Series in support, but both races were cancelled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Russia. An agreement was also signed with organisers of the FIA World Rallycross Championship to host the World RX of Russia in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...

. However, it was later removed from the schedule due to contractual issues. Igora Drive hosted the second round of the

2020 Russian Circuit Racing Series The 2020 SMP Russian Circuit Racing Series was the seventh season of the Russian Circuit Racing Series, organized by SMP Racing. It was the sixth season with TCR class cars. In 2020, the GT4 and CN classes were added to the main Touring, Touring ...

on 25 and 26 July. From 2023, the Formula One

was initially set to be held at this track. For the Formula One race, the circuit was extended from to at the end of lap, resulting in 20 turns overall from the current 15, with both of the straights extended. However, in the wake of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the

contract was terminated and all future races cancelled.

Events

; Current * July: Russian Circuit Racing Series * August: Russian Endurance Challenge

Lap records

The official fastest race lap records at the Igora Drive are listed as:

References

External links

* * {{Russian Circuit Racing Series circuits Sport in Leningrad Oblast Motorsport venues in Russia Racing circuits designed by Hermann Tilke