Budweiser Grand Prix of Cleveland
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| Location |
Burke Lakefront Airport, Cleveland, Ohio, United States 41°31′2″N 81°40′59″W / 41.51722°N 81.68306°WCoordinates: 41°31′2″N 81°40′59″W / 41.51722°N 81.68306°W |
|---|---|
| First race | 1982 |
| Last race | 2007 |
| Most wins (driver) |
Danny Sullivan (3) Emerson Fittipaldi (3) Paul Tracy (3) |
| Most wins (team) | Penske Racing (6) |
| Most wins (manufacturer) |
Lola (8) Reynard (8) |
| Surface | Concrete |
| Length | 2.106 mi (3.389 km) |
| Turns | 10 |
The Grand Prix of Cleveland was an Indy car event in the CART series, held annually at Burke Lakefront Airport in Cleveland, Ohio. The race celebrated its milestone 25th anniversary in 2006. The race was most recently held in 2007. After the 2008 open wheel unification, the 2008 race had to be cancelled. Attempts to revive the race have not yet come to fruition.
Normally a fully functioning airport year-round, Burke Lakefront Airport was shut down for the week leading up to the event each year, requiring careful maintenance of the runways in order to keep them safe for cars at high speeds. Even so, drivers regularly note the race was one of the toughest to drive in the Champ Car series as the track, designed for aircraft and not lightweight race cars, makes for a bumpy ride where grip is paramount. The first turn was often the trickiest and most accident prone parts of the race. Many drivers have been eliminated from the race due to this turn.
Throughout its history, the race was very popular amongst fans, as the long, wide, runways (much wider and longer than typical natural road courses and other temporary circuits) allowed for side-by-side racing, fast speeds, and superb passing zones. The layout and overall flatness of the circuit also allowed a view of nearly the entire course from the grandstands.
No other active airport in the United States hosted such an event at the time, which made the Grand Prix of Cleveland unique in all forms of American motorsport.
Originally known as the Budweiser Cleveland 500, it was first held on July 4, 1982 as part of the CART series. Kevin Cogan started from pole position, however to the delight of the Cleveland crowd, local rookie driver Bobby Rahal (from nearby Medina) won the race.
From 1982 to 1989, the race was held on a 2.48-mile layout. In 1990, the track configuration was abruptly changed. After practice, several cars were experiencing problems in a bumpy section in turns one and two. Prior to the start of the race, the track was slightly reconfigured, eliminating the left-right combination of turns one and two. The main straight was extended towards the location of what was turn three, which then became turn one. The new layout measured 2.369 miles, and the segment eliminated became instead an extended exit to the pit road. The new layout was then adopted permanently. In 1997 the track length was remeasured to 2.106 miles without visible changes on the layout. The current layout is known for its turn 1 "vortex" at the start of races - after the green flag dropped, drivers would fan out on the wide concrete to gain position and then arrive at the corner sometimes five or six cars abreast, and all at once be "sucked" into the apex of the corner, frequently resulting in multi-car crashes at or just past the corner and leading to cars retiring before completing a single lap of the race.
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