The Grand Prix of America was a failed

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, ...

World Championship race proposal. In 2011, plans were revealed for the race for target planned entry into the

2013 Formula One World Championship The 2013 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 64th Formula One World Championship, recognised by the sport's governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racin ...

. The plan was to hold the race on the proposed

Port Imperial Street Circuit The Port Imperial Street Circuit was a 2011 plan for a motor racing circuit in Weehawken and West New York, New Jersey, in the United States, to be constructed on the Hudson Waterfront around Weehawken Port Imperial. History It was first announ ...

through the

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

towns of

West New York West New York is a town in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, situated upon the New Jersey Palisades. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 52,912. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates ...

and

Weehawken Weehawken is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located largely on the Hudson Palisades overlooking the Hudson River. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 17,197.

near

Weehawken Port Imperial Port Imperial is an intermodal transit hub on the Weehawken, New Jersey, waterfront of the Hudson River across from Midtown Manhattan, served by New York Waterway ferries and buses, Hudson–Bergen Light Rail, and NJT buses. The district lies ...

, with the

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as a panoramic backdrop, with only the Hudson River separating the track from New York City. The Grand Prix of America had planned to have its first event on June 16, 2013, but was not run in 2013. In late 2013, Formula One President and CEO

Bernie Ecclestone Bernard Charles Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is an English business magnate. He is the former chief executive of the Formula One Group, which manages Formula One motor racing and controls the commercial rights to the sport, and part-owns ...

stated that the promoters were in breach of contract and that new proposals from other parties would be welcome. The race was repeatedly added then removed from future Formula One provisional calendars, and dropped completely from even the provisional calendar by 2016.

History

A Grand Prix in the

New York metropolitan area The New York metropolitan area, also commonly referred to as the Tri-State area, is the largest metropolitan area in the world by urban area, urban landmass, at , and one of the list of most populous metropolitan areas, most populous urban agg ...

was announced for the 1983 season, to be held either at the Meadowlands Sports Complex in New Jersey, Meadow Lake in

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in Queens, or

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Hempstead, Long Island The Town of Hempstead (also known historically as South Hempstead) is the largest of the three Administrative divisions of New York#Town, towns in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County (alongside North Hempstead, New York, North Hempstead and Oys ...

(on the same site as the 1936 and 1937

Vanderbilt Cup The Vanderbilt Cup was the first major trophy in American auto racing. History An international event, it was founded by William Kissam Vanderbilt II in 1904 and first held on October 8 on a course set out in Nassau County, New York, Nassa ...

s). However, the race was first postponed and then canceled. It was also scheduled for and , but never managed to get off the ground.

CART A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people. It is different from the flatbed tr ...

then started their own race at the Meadowlands. In May 2010, Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone announced plans to bring a Formula One race to New York City for the season. Ecclestone was quoted as saying the race would take place across the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

in New Jersey, with the

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

skyline overlooking the circuit. Later that month, plans emerged for a circuit to be built in

Jersey City Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Liberty State Park, but those plans were abandoned shortly thereafter. While searching for a venue for the race,

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, Floyd Bennett Field and Meadowlands were all explored, but none were considered viable. In August 2011, ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' reported on a proposal for a street circuit in Weehawken and West New York, New Jersey, putting forward 2013 as a potential start date. Two months later, in October, ''The Wall Street Journal'' further reported that the race would be going ahead in June 2013. Other sources were much more cautious, claiming that the race still needed approval from Hudson County officials before the race could go ahead. Later that month, a revised proposal was put forward, tracing a street circuit that ran through Port Imperial, climbing the Hudson Palisades to Boulevard East before descending the Palisades to rejoin Port Imperial Boulevard. On October 25, 2011, it was officially confirmed that New Jersey would host the Grand Prix of America from 2013 onwards on a 3.2-mile (5.2-km) street circuit. The event was originally on a ten-year contract, starting in June 2013 so as not to clash with the November running of the United States Grand Prix in Austin. It was to be "paired" – held within one week in the interests of cutting down on the costs of logistics – with the

Canadian Grand Prix The Canadian Grand Prix (french: Grand Prix du Canada) is an annual motor racing event held since 1961. It has been part of the Formula One World Championship since 1967. It was first staged at Mosport Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, as a sports ...

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. Long-time

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promoter Humpy Wheeler was a consultant to the race, which had been expected to provide over US$100 million annually to the economy of the New York/New Jersey area. Leo Hindery, Jr. was the race promoter and director, with Dennis Robinson as the COO. Tom Cotter stepped down as president on August 20, 2012. Christian Epp of Tilke America described the intended layout as a street circuit with elevation changes similar to the Monaco Street Circuit, but with a higher average lap speed unique among street circuits.

Postponement

In July 2012, Bernie Ecclestone confirmed that New Jersey had been included on the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) 2013 Grand Prix schedule on its 2013 calendar as the Grand Prix of Jersey (New York) and in September of the same year, the race was given a provisional date of June 16, 2013. The future of the race was however cast in doubt when a few days later Ecclestone announced that the contract for the race had been annulled. In September 2012, Ecclestone announced that the circuit's contract had been annulled since the organizers had not complied with the terms and conditions of the contract. However, the race was provisionally included on the official 2013 Formula One calendar, with its status listed as 'to be confirmed'. That schedule was finalized in December 2012. On October 18, 2012, the mayor of Weehawken announced that the race would be postponed until 2014. When asked about the reasons behind the postponement, Ecclestone replied that the organizers could not have everything necessary to host the race arranged in time for 2013. In March 2013, race promoter Hindery Jr. said that the Grand Prix of America was back on track and that critical pavement work would start around September when the weather was most conducive to do such work. Hindery's organization was beset with financial difficulties and it remained unclear how the race would be funded, with New Jersey Governor Chris Christie saying that there had been no discussion of the state subsidizing it, as is common for other such events. In May 2013, speculation in the media suggested that Bernie Ecclestone was attempting to return Formula One to the Long Beach circuit as an alternative to the race in New Jersey, though Ecclestone expressed hope the stalled talks with Hindery could be renewed, adding that the sport's administrators had invested in the race to pay off the organisers' debts and expedite the construction process. Chris Pook, who originally established the

United States Grand Prix West The United States Grand Prix West was a race held at Long Beach, California, as a Formula 5000 race in 1975 and a Formula One World Championship event from 1976 to 1983 held in the same location throughout those years. History There had been a ...

in Long Beach, but switched it to a

race in 1984, was also enlisted as a consultant to the Grand Prix of America. In June 2013, it was announced that race organizer Leo Hindery had signed a new, 15-year contract with F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone after all permits had been secured. Work on the permanent 24-car paddock area was near completion, while paving on the road course could begin "as early as next week," well ahead of the earlier planned September 2013 start date. On August 23, 2013, Ecclestone announced that the 2014 Grand Prix of America was canceled because the promoters could not raise the $100 million required for the event planning. The race was not included on the provisional 2014 calendar, with race promoters claiming an administrative error. During the telecast of the

2013 Singapore Grand Prix The 2013 Singapore Grand Prix (formally known as the 2013 Formula 1 SingTel Singapore Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race that was held on Sunday, 22 September 2013 at 20:00 SST by the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Marina Bay, Singapore. Th ...

on September 22, 2013, it was announced on-air that Leo Hindery, Jr and promoters had submitted all necessary entry fees for inclusion on the 2014 calendar, with a provisional date of June 1, 2014 (between the Monaco and Canadian Grands Prix). The Grand Prix was later confirmed on the provisional calendar. The FIA released the official 2014 Formula One season calendar on December 4, 2013, and the Grand Prix did not appear on the schedule. At the same time, the FIA announced that the race had been postponed due to a number of long-term financial problems. Ecclestone apparently had not given up on the race itself; stating that he had "no doubt" that the race would take place in 2015. Organizers were working on financial restructuring and were also optimistic. In December 2013, Ecclestone said the organizers were in breach of contract and that he would entertain proposals from other parties. There had not been much news regarding the race in 2014, until an article in ''

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'' written in July revealed that Hindery had found investors to fund the race, but they dropped out at the last minute, and Ecclestone revealed that he was not willing to put the race on a Formula One calendar until 2016. There have been no further updates, and all mention of running the race has been dropped since the racing season. According to a March 2014 report in ''

'',

Formula E Formula E, officially the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship, is a single-seater motorsport championship for electric cars. The series was conceived in 2011 in Paris by FIA president Jean Todt and Spanish businessman Alejandro Agag, who is ...

chief executive Alejandro Agag revealed that he had been working with promoters to bring the series to the New York area, but that he was waiting to see how the financial situation surrounding the Grand Prix was resolved before he could commit to bringing the Formula E series to the city.

References

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External links

Interview with Bob Varsha on the Grand Prix of America

America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

Motorsport in New Jersey Sports in Hudson County, New Jersey