Surfers Paradise Street Circuit
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| Location | Surfers Paradise, Queensland |
|---|---|
| Time zone | UTC+10 |
| Coordinates | 27°59′23″S 153°25′40″E / 27.98972°S 153.42778°ECoordinates: 27°59′23″S 153°25′40″E / 27.98972°S 153.42778°E |
| Opened | 15 March 1991 |
| Major events |
Supercars Champ Car World Series |
| Supercars | |
| Length | 2.98 km (1.85 mi) |
| Turns | 15 |
| Lap record | 1:10.0851 ( Will Davison, Ford FG Falcon, 2011, V8 Supercars) |
| Champ Car/IndyCar | |
| Length | 4.47 km (2.77 mi) |
| Turns | 20 |
| Lap record | 1:31.093 ( Graham Rahal, Panoz DP01 Cosworth, 2007, Champ Car) |
The Surfers Paradise Street Circuit is a temporary street circuit on the Surfers Paradise, in Queensland, Australia. The 2.98-kilometre (1.85 mi) beach-side track has several fast sections and two chicanes, having been shortened from an original 4.47-kilometre (2.78 mi) length in 2010. It is the third of three motor racing circuits that have existed in the Gold Coast region, after the Southport Street Circuit (1954) and Surfers Paradise International Raceway (1966–1987).
From 1991 to 2008, the circuit hosted an American Championship car racing event, the Gold Coast Indy 300. The circuit has also hosted touring car races since 1994, with the Supercars Championship currently contesting the annual Gold Coast 600 at the circuit.
Ron Dickson, the president of D3 Motorsport Development held the rights for CART internationally in the 1980s. Following lobbying from prominent Queensland businessmen, and a brief meeting with State Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen, the event was confirmed for Queensland, and Surfers Paradise was chosen over Brisbane, the state capital. The original circuit layout was designed by Ron Dickson of D3 Motorsport Development, and was the fourth concept put forward for the Surfers Paradise area. Preliminary work was carried out in 1988, and the circuit was opened on 15 March 1991 for the 1991 Gold Coast IndyCar Grand Prix.
The construction of the circuit has been acclaimed internationally and is used as a benchmark for new temporary street circuits world-wide. Over a full 12-month period plans are laid and then implemented to transform a bustling residential, commercial and holiday destination into a temporary street circuit capable of facilitating high-speed motor races and hundreds of thousands of people. The circuit construction since 2009 has been project managed by local Gold Coast firm iEDM who specialise in motorsport venue engineering and delivery.
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