Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit Explained

Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit
Time:CET (UTC+1)
CEST (DST)
Location:Tempelhof Airport, Berlin, Germany
Fiagrade:3E
Events:Current:
Formula E
Berlin ePrix (2015, 2017–present)
Former:
Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy (2019–2020)
Layout1:Formula E Circuit (2024)
Length Km:2.343
Length Mi:1.460
Turns:15
Record Time:1:02.972
Record Driver: Norman Nato
Record Car:Porsche 99X Electric
Record Year:2024
Record Class:F-E
Layout2:Formula E Circuit (2017–2023)
Length Km2:2.355
Length Mi2:1.463
Turns2:10
Record Time2:1:06.604
Record Driver2: Jake Dennis
Record Car2:Porsche 99X Electric
Record Year2:2023
Record Class2:F-E
Layout3:Reverse Formula E Circuit (2020–2022)
Length Km3:2.355
Length Mi3:1.463
Turns3:10
Record Time3:1:07.849
Record Driver3: Nick Cassidy
Record Car3:Audi e-Tron FE07
Record Year3:2022
Record Class3:F-E
Layout4:Extended Formula E Circuit (2020)
Length Km4:2.505
Length Mi4:1.557
Turns4:16
Record Time4:1:17.232
Record Driver4: Lucas di Grassi
Record Car4:Audi e-tron FE06
Record Year4:2020
Record Class4:F-E
Layout5:Original Formula E Circuit (2015)
Length Km5:2.469
Length Mi5:1.534
Turns5:17
Record Time5:1:24.435
Record Driver5: Nelson Piquet Jr.
Record Car5:Spark-Renault SRT 01E
Record Year5:2015
Record Class5:F-E

The Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit is a street circuit located at the former Berlin Tempelhof Airport in Germany. It is home to the Formula E Berlin ePrix. It hosted its first race as round 8 of the 2014–15 Formula E season. After not holding a race in 2016, the venue has been used again since 2017.[1]

History

Development

The anti-clockwise original track featured 17 turns and was designed by Rodrigo Nunes.[2] Venturi driver Nick Heidfeld described the circuit as follows: "It looks like it’s going to be a very twisty and challenging circuit with 17 turns in under 2.5 km, and I think the fans are going to have great visibility wherever they are. Many corners are just followed by the next which also partly shows that overtaking will not be easy, on the other hand, with so many corners followed by each other it’s easier to mess up and make a small mistake and then maybe the driver behind can capitalise on this. The two longer straights will be best for overtaking and using the FanBoost. It will be crucial to get into a good rhythm to get plenty of laps in and to learn the track quickly. It will also be interesting to see how the circuit is built up as normally on a street circuit there is no run-off so and no room for mistakes but in Berlin it could be more open allowing a little more margin for error."[2] The course runs under the canopy roof of the historic Tempelhof Airport terminal from turn 13 to turn 14 and then again during turn 17.

2015 Berlin ePrix

The circuit first took place on 23 May 2015. It was initially won by Lucas di Grassi. However, a technical infringement discovered in post-race checks led to his disqualification, with the win being awarded to Dragon Racing driver Jérôme d'Ambrosio.

Temporary absence

Owing to the Tempelhof airport building's usage as a temporary refugee shelter, the Berlin ePrix was moved to the Berlin Street Circuit, a layout created specifically for Formula E along the Karl-Marx-Allee to the west of Alexanderplatz.[3] The 2016-17 season calendar listed Berlin as a host city, but did not specify which circuit was to be used. In January 2017, it was confirmed that the race would return to Tempelhof.

2017 Berlin ePrix

In March 2017, it was announced that the circuit layout was completely revamped.[4] The circuit hosted the 2017 Berlin ePrix, which became a doubleheader round after the cancellation of the Brussels ePrix, which took place on the 10–11 June. The two races were won by Mahindra driver Felix Rosenqvist, his first in the series, and Renault-e.Dams driver Sébastien Buemi.

2020 Berlin ePrix

After the 2019-20 season was temporarily suspended and several rounds were cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,[5] the FIA announced that the season would conclude in early August with three double-header events in Tempelhof, using a different configuration of the circuit for each event. The first two races were held on August 5–6, 2020, on a reverse configuration of the track.[6] The next two races took place on August 8–9, with the normal circuit being used. The third and final double header was held on August 12–13, on an extended version of the track featuring several more turns.

Lap records

As of May 2024, the fastest official race lap records at the Tempelhof Airport Street Circuit are listed as:

CategoryTimeDriverVehicleEventCircuit Map
Formula E Circuit: 2.343 km (2024)
1:02.972[7]
Formula E Circuit: 2.355 km (2017–2023)
1:06.604[8]
1:24.551 2020 4th Berlin Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy round
Reverse Formula E Circuit: 2.355 km (2020–2022)
1:07.849[9]
1:24.367 2020 2nd Berlin Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy round
Extended Formula E Circuit: 2.505 km (2020)
1:17.232
1:35.107 2020 7th Berlin Jaguar I-Pace eTrophy round
Original Formula E Circuit: 2.469 km (2015)
1:24.435

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Formula E's Berlin round returning to Tempelhof Airport. autosport.com. 10 February 2017. 6 December 2017.
  2. Web site: Berlin Circuit. https://web.archive.org/web/20150713191455/http://www.fiaformulae.com/en/calendar/2016-berlin/berlin-circuit.aspx. fiaformulae.com. 13 July 2015. 13 July 2015. dead.
  3. Web site: Formula E finds alternative to Berlin refugee shelter venue. bbc.co.uk. 12 May 2016. 6 December 2017.
  4. Web site: Formula E reveals revised Berlin Tempelhof track layout . . 27 March 2017 . 23 April 2023.
  5. Web site: Formula E and FIA take decision to temporarily suspend season. 13 March 2020. 3 August 2020. FIA Formula E. en.
  6. Web site: FIA Formula E returns to racing with six races in a row in Berlin. 17 June 2020. 3 August 2020. Federation Internationale de l'Automobile. en.
  7. Web site: 2024 FIA Formula E World Championship Berlin ePrix/1 Race - Fastest Laps . 11 May 2024 . 11 May 2024.
  8. Web site: 2023 FIA Formula E World Championship Berlin ePrix/1 Race - Fastest Laps . 22 April 2023 . 23 April 2023.
  9. Web site: 2022 Berlin ePrix Race 2 Statistics . 15 May 2022 . 15 May 2022.