Adelaide Street Circuit
Temporary street circuit in Adelaide's East Parklands.
The Adelaide Street Circuit, also called the Adelaide Parklands Circuit, is a temporary track built in the East Parklands next to Adelaide’s central business district in South Australia. The 3.780 km (2.349 mi) "Grand Prix" layout held the Formula One Australian Grand Prix eleven times, from 1985 to 1995. It also staged the Race of a Thousand Years, a non-championship sports car race, in 2000. From 1999 to 2020, and again starting in 2022, a shorter 3.219 km (2.000 mi) version has been used for the Adelaide 500 touring car race. The circuit is also home to the Adelaide Motorsport Festival, and a modified version of the original track is scheduled to host the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix from 2027.
**Formula One**
After Adelaide secured a round of the 1985 Formula One World Championship in October 1984, Macmahon Holdings built the circuit. The first race took place in 1985 as the season finale. The final Formula One event there was held in 1995, after which the rights moved to Melbourne, and the race shifted to the Albert Park Street Circuit.
**Supercars**
While Adelaide hosted the Australian Grand Prix, the circuit held annual non-championship races for Group A and later Group 3A touring cars. From 1999 until 2020, the track ran the Adelaide 500 for Supercars, typically as two 250 km races on the shorter 3.219 km (2.000 mi) layout. This event became one of the most celebrated on the Supercars calendar and is the only one inducted into the Supercars Hall of Fame. The race returned in 2022, but as the final event of the year, whereas it had usually been the season opener.
**MotoGP**
In 2027, a MotoGP championship round will take place when the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix moves from Phillip Island. It will use a heavily modified version of the Formula One circuit. On 19 February 2026, South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas announced that an annual motorcycling carnival, the MotoGP, would be held in Adelaide’s eastern Park Lands from late 2027. He stated publicly that about 45 trees would be destroyed and that the century-old Glover East Playspace would need to be relocated to make way for the track. However, a later analysis by the Adelaide Parklands Association argued this significantly understated the likely impact.
Quick Facts
- Former Names
- Adelaide Parklands Circuit
- Location
- Adelaide, South Australia
- Owner
- Adelaide City Council
- Opened
- 31 October 1985 / Re-opened in · 1999 · 04 · 08
- Closed
- 12 November 1995
- Fia Grade
- 3
- Track Map Caption
- Layout used by Formula One from 1985 to 1995 and ALMS in 2000
- Layout
- Supercars Circuit (1999–2026)
- Length Km
- 3.219
- Length Mi
- 2.001
- Turns
- 14
- Record Time
- 1:16.0357
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Following Adelaide being awarded a round of the 1985 Formula One World Championship in October 1984, construction of the circuit by Macmahon Holdings began. The first event was held in 1985 as the final event of the season. The last Formula One race at the circuit was held in 1995 after which the rights were lost to Melbourne and the event moved to the Albert Park Street Circuit. During Adelaide's era hosting the Australian Grand Prix, the circuit hosted annual non-championship races for Group A and later Group 3A touring cars. From 1999 until 2020, the track hosted the Adelaide 500 for Supercars on a shorter variant, becoming one of the most celebrated events on the calendar. Notably, the main straight along Dequetteville Terrace was renamed Brabham Straight during the Formula One era, honouring Sir Jack Brabham. For the Adelaide 500, that same stretch is known as Brock Straight, paying tribute to Peter Brock. The Race of a Thousand Years, held in 2000, was a non-championship sports car race, not an official American Le Mans Series round.
Reader's Guide
The Adelaide Street Circuit is significant as a temporary street circuit that hosted eleven Formula One Australian Grands Prix from 1985 to 1995, establishing Adelaide as a key venue in the Formula One calendar. Its fast, high-speed layout, particularly the long Brabham Straight where turbo-era cars exceeded 200 mph, made it the fastest street circuit of its time compared to tighter circuits like Monaco, Detroit, and Phoenix. After losing the Formula One rights to Melbourne, the circuit adapted to host the Adelaide 500 for Supercars from 1999 onward, becoming a celebrated event in that series. The circuit's legacy includes its role in the Race of a Thousand Years American Le Mans Series race in 2000 and its future hosting of the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix from 2027, though this has sparked environmental controversy over tree removal and impact on the vulnerable chequered copper butterfly colony in adjacent parklands. The circuit's design has evolved, including modifications for the O-Bahn Busway in 2017, and it continues to be used for the Adelaide Motorsport Festival.
Did You Know?
- The circuit's Senna Chicane was named after Ayrton Senna following his death at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix.
- The Dequetteville Terrace straight was named after Jack Brabham for Formula One and Peter Brock for the Adelaide 500.
- The small copper butterfly was rediscovered in 2011 in Adelaide's Victoria Park after 60 years of absence on the Adelaide plains.
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