Prince George Circuit is a race circuit in

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

Eastern Cape Province The Eastern Cape is one of the provinces of South Africa. Its capital is Bhisho, but its two largest cities are East London and Gqeberha. The second largest province in the country (at 168,966 km2) after Northern Cape, it was formed in 19 ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

. On this course the

South African Grand Prix The South African Grand Prix was first run as a Grand Prix motor racing handicap race in 1934 at the Prince George Circuit at East London, Cape Province. It drew top drivers from Europe including Bernd Rosemeyer, Richard "Dick" Seaman, Ric ...

was hosted in 1934, and 1936 to 1939 when racing was halted due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, and then in 1960–1966.

Course layout

The original circuit was long and was run on streets through different populated areas. The start and finish straight ran along the sea shore. After three fast corners the course followed a road – which is now called Molteno Drive – that would later also be part of the shorter new circuit. Moving further east the course entered the West Bank Village on Strand Street before turning north onto Bank Street and then west on Military Road. There the track moved through the areas Fort Glamorgan and Gately. Military Road changed into Settlers Way at the height of Woodbrook and Greenfields. After driving through what is now the

East London Airport King Phalo Airport ( af, Koning Phalo Internasionale Lughawe; formerly East London Airport ( af, Oos-Londen Lughawe) until 23 February 2021) is an airport serving East London, a city in the Eastern Cape province on the southeast coast of South ...

(not built at the time), the course turned south at the far west point onto Prince George Street and led with a relatively long series of twisty turns and one hairpin at the end back to the main straight. The circuit was shortened to in 1936. Instead of taking Molteno Drive east, the course followed Potters Pass north to get back onto the original circuit at the begin of Settlers Way. Modified to meet

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship ...

regulations in 1959, the track was built into a seaside

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

with a length of . It hosted three rounds of the F1

in the 1960s. It was later deemed too small for Formula One cars, and the race was moved to

Kyalami Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit (from ''Khaya lami'', ''My home'' in Zulu) is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng, South Africa, just north of Johannesburg. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix and Formula One races and has h ...

Layout history

File:Layout of all versions of the Prince George Circuit.png, Layout of all versions of the Prince George Circuit
Brown = 1934, Blue = 1936, Black = 1959 File:East London 1934.svg, Prince George Circuit (1934) File:Prince George Circuit 1936-1939.svg, Prince George Circuit (1936–1939) File:Prince George Circuit.svg, Prince George Circuit (1959–present)

References

External Links

www.kolumbus.fi – Prince George Circuit
{{Formula One circuits

Prince George Prince George may refer to: People British princes * George Plantagenet, Duke of Clarence (1449-1478), middle brother of Edward IV and Richard III. * Prince George Augustus, later George II of Great Britain (1683–1760) * Prince George Will ...

Formula One circuits South African Grand Prix Sports venues in the Eastern Cape Motorsport venues in South Africa East London, Eastern Cape