New Donington Park layout revealed

The £100 million revamp of Donington Park was revealed this weekend and includes a 200mph straight into a dead-stop hairpin, a plunging downhill left-hander that drops away steeper than the infamous Craner Curve and a dramatic uphill drive into a tight right-hander.

Donington Park CEO Simon Gillett explained: “I’ve always thought of Donington as a 3D race track, it’s got so many undulations. We’re retaining the character of the circuit that people love so much and getting rid of the bit that people complain about.

• See the full plans for Donington Park 2010

The new spectator grandstand opposite the new section of track will offer spectators a view of 60% of the new course. It will be the best viewing spot in the world.”

The 3.0 mile course, that will be built primarily to host the F1 British Grand Prix in 2010 but will also be used for major motorcycle races, will feature a 200mph start/finish straight that will start at the exit of Coppice and run all the way down to the current Melbourne Loop, eliminating the Foggy Esses.

• Get the full details on the Donington redesign and see exactly what it means for racing fans and motorcycle racing in the UK, in the September 10 edition of MCN

The new-look Donington will feature several other different configurations, including a 1.3-mile course incorporating the old Schwantz curve and the new F1 car pits/paddock and a 1.1-mile version incorporating the old Craner Curve with the new 12% rise and the old pits/paddock.

These two configurations are independent and can operate simultaneously. It will also be possible to use the old 2.5mile MotoGP course and shorter 1.95 mile national course.

In addition to the new race track, there’s an entire new paddock facility that’s double the exisitng paddock size, to be built on the inside of the course between Coppice and Foggy Esses.