The Durban street circuit was a temporary

street circuit A street circuit is a motorsport racing circuit composed of temporarily closed-off public roads of a city, town or village, used in motor races. Airport runways and taxiways are also sometimes part of street circuits. Facilities such as the p ...

located in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

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 countri ...

which was from Durban's North Beach and from Durban's CBD. The circuit and infrastructure was designed by D3 Motorsport Development which also oversaw the construction of the circuit each year. It was used for the

A1 Grand Prix A1 Grand Prix (A1GP) was a "single-make" open-wheel auto racing series that ran from 2005 until 2009. It was unique in its field in that competitors solely represented their nation as opposed to themselves or a team, the usual format in most for ...

from

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

. The

race held on this circuit was the first international open-wheel

automobile race Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...

held in the country since the

1993 South African Grand Prix The 1993 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami on 14 March 1993. The race, contested over 72 laps, was the first race of the 1993 FIA Formula One World Championship and was won from pole position by Alain Prost, ...

. The 2006 event attracted more than 105,000 spectators. The event was voted the best round of the 2005–06 A1 Grand Prix season. It was also one of the biggest sports events in Durban's history. Rumors claimed that a future

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, ...

Grand Prix Grand Prix ( , meaning ''Grand Prize''; plural Grands Prix), is a name sometimes used for competitions or sport events, alluding to the winner receiving a prize, trophy or honour Grand Prix or grand prix may refer to: Arts and entertainment ...

would possibly be raced in the street circuit. However, there are no official sources confirmed that any future

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, Richa ...

in the

Streets. It was announced on 21 July 2008 that

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 ho ...

would host the

n round of the 2008–09 A1 Grand Prix season instead of the

street circuit. In 2010 the Durban street circuit was to host a round of the new

FIA GT1 World Championship The FIA GT1 World Championship was a world championship sports car racing series, developed by the SRO Group and regulated by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), that was held from 2010 to 2012. It featured multiple grand to ...

. However, following delays in completing alterations to the Durban street circuit due to construction for the

2010 FIFA World Cup , image = 2010 FIFA World Cup.svg , size = 200px , caption = ''Ke Nako. (Tswana and Sotho for "It's time") Celebrate Africa's Humanity'It's time. Celebrate Africa's Humanity'' (English)''Dis tyd. Vier Afrika se mensd ...

, the South African round was postponed until 2011. A Spanish event at the brand new

Circuito de Navarra Circuito de Navarra is a motorsport race track that opened in June 2010 near Los Arcos in the Navarre region of Northern Spain. It is a permanent road course that hosted the Superleague Formula series and the FIA GT1 World Championship. Histo ...

was proposed as a replacement for Durban on the calendar, and was confirmed at the

FIA World Motor Sport Council The World Motor Sport Council (WMSC) is a major organ within the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile's governance structure. Its primary role is amending current regulations and drafting new regulations for all of international motor spor ...

meeting of 24 October.

The circuit

The temporary street circuit incorporated long fast straights along NMR Ave, and Suncoast Boulevard, a slow hairpin on Snell Parade and three challenging chicanes. The street circuit and event infrastructure was designed and project managed by D3 Motorsport Development, famous for the Surfers Paradise street circuit in Australia.

References

{{Navboxes , list = {{A1 Grand Prix circuits Motorsport venues in South Africa A1 Grand Prix circuits Sports venues in Durban 2006 establishments in South Africa