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2008 Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix Fast Facts


WHAT: The Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix, featuring the cars of the American Le Mans Series, the IndyCar Series and the SCCA SPEED World Challenge GT Championship. The weekend collectively is referred to as the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix. Saturday’s American Le Mans Series race is the Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch. Sunday’s IndyCar Series race is the Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone. The SPEED World Challenge GT Championship also races on Sunday.

Tony Kanaan - Turn 1WHEN: Labor Day weekend – August 29-31, 2008

WHERE: The Raceway at Belle Isle Park road course

TRACK SCHEDULE:

Friday, August 29, 2008:

  • IndyCar Series practice
  • American Le Mans Series practice and qualifying
  • SPEED World Challenge GT practice

Saturday, August 30, 2008:

  • IndyCar Series practice and qualifying
  • American Le Mans Series warm-up and the Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch
  • SPEED World Challenge GT practice

Sunday, August 31, 2008:

  • IndyCar Series warm-up and the Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone
  • SPEED World Challenge GT qualifying and race

BROADCAST COVERAGE:

Saturday, August 30, 2008 - 2:30 p.m. ET

  • Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch
  • Live national television coverage: SPEED Channel
  • National satellite radio coverage: Sunday, August 31, 2008 on XM Radio Channel 144 at 6:00 p.m.

Sunday, August 31, 2008 - 3:30 p.m. ET

  • Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone
  • Live national television coverage: ABC (seen locally on WXYZ Channel 7)
  • Live national satellite radio coverage: XM Radio Channel 144 and 145 beginning at 3:00 p.m.
  • SPEED World Challenge GT Championship
  • Tape-delayed television coverage: SPEED Channel
  • Friday, September 12, 2008 - 12 p.m. ET

TICKETS:

  • Tickets for the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix are on sale now through Ticketmaster.com , all Ticketmaster retail outlets and Charge by Phone at(248) 645-6666. Visit detroitgp.com or call the Grand Prix Box Office at 866.464.PRIX (7749) for more information
  • Reserved seat grandstand ticketholders will receive a special commemorative ticket to the event
  • Ticket prices, on average, remain virtually the same as they were over a decade ago for world-class auto racing in Detroit
  • Reserved seat grandstand tickets are discounted for children age 12 years and under
  • Children 12 and under are admitted free iof charge to general admission areas when accompanied by a ticket-bearing adult (Limit 2 children per adult)
  • The top row for all reserved grandstand seating during the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix will be labeled as Row 1, reflecting that the optimum sightlines for a race are at the top of the grandstand

ORGANIZATION & LEGACY:

  • The Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix is organized and promoted by a subsidiary of the Downtown Detroit Partnership, whose chairman is Roger Penske
  • The length of the current contract is four more years with a four-year option after 2011
  • A special charitable 501(c)(3) organization has been established that enables all net proceeds raised by the Grand Prix to continue to fund measures to preserve and improve Belle Isle
  • In 2008, the Grand Prix has also earmarked $125,000 in cash to a fund dedicated to the improvement and preservation of Belle Isle. This commitment began with a $100,000 contribution in 2007 and continues to grow incrementally over each year of the event’s five-year contract
  • The 2007 Grand Prix generated nearly $53 million in estimated economic impact for the Metro Detroit region
  • Since the Grand Prix announced its return in 2006, the event has spent over $5.5 million with Detroit-based and minority-owned businesses

Comfort StationBELLE ISLE IMPROVEMENTS

The Grand Prix has made the following lasting improvements to Belle Isle:

  • Installing over 150,000 square feet of new concrete for road improvements and other modifications for more exciting competition
  • Repairing damaged lighting and drainage systems
  • Renovation of Scott Fountain and the Belle Isle Casino
  • Installing over 460,000 square feet of concrete for paddock area and fan interaction to provide a cleaner and more comfortable race experience
  • Installing new pedestrian bridges and the Firestone Children’s Playscape
  • New concrete areas will also be used by park visitors for parking and community events and activities year round

BELLE ISLE RACE-WEEKEND FEATURES

  • “Best in class” chalets featuring premier hospitality service
  • A Park & Ride shuttle system with multiple satellite parking locations throughout metropolitan Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, Canada. A similar system was used at the 2007 Grand Prix and during Super Bowl XL in Detroit
  • Utilizing downtown public parking areas to create easy access to Belle Isle from downtown Detroit

HISTORY:

  • The 2007 event marked the first Grand Prix held in Detroit in six years
  • Formula One staged the first Grand Prix on the streets of downtown Detroit in 1982
  • The international F1 series raced on the streets of Detroit from 1982-88
  • Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) joined the Grand Prix in 1989 and continued to race at the downtown street course through 1991
  • The race venue shifted gears in 1992 to the picturesque Belle Isle road circuit and CART continued to race at the venue through 2001
  • There have been 21 Grand Prix events held in Detroit. The 2008 race marks 26 years since the event made its debut in the city

BY THE NUMBERS:

  • 2.07: Length, in miles, of the Raceway at Belle Isle Park
  • 5: Other road courses, in addition to the Raceway at Belle Isle Park, that the IndyCar Series races on – The Edmonton City Centre Airport road course, Infineon Raceway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, the streets of St. Petersburg and Watkins Glen International Raceway
  • 9: Race number for the Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch on the 11-race American Le Mans Series schedule
  • 14: Number of turns on the Raceway at Belle Isle circuit – nine right-handed turns and five left-handed turns
  • 16: Race number for the Detroit Indy Grand Prix presented by Firestone on the current 17-race IndyCar Series schedule, meaning the race will once again have significant championship implications
  • 27: Miles of safety cable around the race circuit
  • 1,200: Approximate number of volunteers that will work the event
  • 2,000: Concrete barriers temporarily installed on Belle Isle
  • 12,000: Tires that make up the temporary barrier walls on the circuit
  • 30,000: Approximate number of seats along the Raceway at Belle Isle Park
  • 50,000: Feet of fencing temporarily installed on Belle Isle
  • 17 million: Combined poundage of the 2,000 temporary concrete barriers installed at the Belle Isle course

SERIES INFORMATION:

  • American Le Mans Series: Conceived by entrepreneur Don Panoz and based on the format and rules of the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans race, the American Le Mans Series has become the world’s premier sports car series in just 10 short years. The American Le Mans Series, like the classic 24 Hours of Le Mans race, has four classes of cars racing on the track at the same time, making for exciting passing and confrontations throughout the race. The majority of the races – including the Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch – are “timed” races of two hours, 45 minutes and not based on laps completed. The car leading at the 2:45 mark wins. The American Le Mans Series features exotic sports cars with such well-known marques as Acura, Aston Martin, Audi, Corvette, Dodge, Ferrari, Mazda, Panoz and Porsche
  • IndyCar Series: The IndyCar Series is the country’s premier open-wheel racing circuit, after recently joining forces with Champ Car to create one unified North American series. The IndyCar Series is sanctioned by the Indy Racing League and currently competes at 17 races on a mixture of both road courses and oval tracks. Indy cars are the same cars that race at the Indianapolis 500 and the series features such recognizable drivers as Danica Patrick, Helio Castroneves, Marco Andretti, Tony Kanaan, Dan Wheldon, Graham Rahal and Scott Dixon. IndyCars use Honda engines and Firestone tires exclusively while running either a Dallara Automobili or a Panoz chassis
  • SPEED World Challenge GT Championship: New to the Grand Prix lineup in 2008 and featuring such top production-based cars as the Cadillac CTS-V, Chevrolet Corvette, Dodge Viper, Ford Mustang Cobra and Porsche 911 GT3, SPEED GT includes coupes and sedans ranging in horsepower from 425-550 hp. A field between 22-25 cars is expected to race wheel-to-wheel at the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix

ENTERTAINMENT:

  • The Meijer Family Fun Zone, an interactive family-friendly experience featured throughout the weekend
  • Both national and local musical acts are expected to perform on the XM Radio Stage at Belle Isle during the course of race weekend

Picnic TableGRAND PRIX ‘GREEN’ INITIATIVES:

Key Grand Prix Ecologically-Friendly Programs in 2008:

  • The American Le Mans Series has established itself as the “Global Leader” in green racing. In a unique partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Energy as well as the Society of Automotive Engineers International announced at Detroit in January, the ALMS has set the standard for the use of alternative fuels in racing. All of the exotic sport cars in the series compete on either diesel fuel or E10 or E85 ethanol blends. In addition, the series will host a Green Racing Challenge among its competitors later this year rewarding teams on overall performance as well as fuel efficiency and ecological impact
  • In 2007, the IndyCar Series became the first motorsports series in the world to utilize 100% fuel-grade ethanol in competition. At the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix and throughout the 2008 season, all of the high-powered open-wheel cars of the IndyCar Series will once again compete on 100% fuel-grade ethanol
  • Bosch, the presenting sponsor of the American Le Mans Series race at the Grand Prix – the Detroit Sports Car Challenge presented by Bosch – is using its partnership with the event to promote and showcase its unique clean diesel power technology for the second consecutive year. Bosch’s clean diesel fuel system is a key innovation that’s race-proven on the Audi R10 diesel-powered cars driven by the championship-winning Audi Sport North America team in American Le Mans Series competition
  • The Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix continues its primary goal of improving its home on Belle Isle Park in 2008. The Grand Prix will make further enhancements to the island this year including planting trees and numerous other landscape and beautification projects, while continuing to work with the Clean Downtown initiative to keep Belle Isle clean
  • The Grand Prix does its part to conserve fuel and cut down on fuel emissions throughout race weekend encouraging all fans to take advantage of the public transportation to Belle Isle. Through its park-and-ride locations in the suburbs to its thousands of parking spaces in downtown Detroit, the Grand Prix provides shuttle service to the island for event attendees, helping the environment in the process
  • The Ethanol Promotion and Information Council (EPIC) utilizes the Grand Prix to highlight the benefits of ethanol. Through its unique “Pump Tour” promotions at local filling stations with both American Le Mans Series and IndyCar Series drivers, EPIC promotes the use of alternative fuels. A tour stop is planned in Detroit during race week at the Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix
  • The Motorsport Industry Association will host a Sustainable Motorsport Conference at the Detroit Yacht Club on Belle Isle just prior to the Grand Prix. Featuring motorsport companies, racing leagues, automakers and technology suppliers, the August 28, 2008 conference will focus on energy efficient technologies and innovations

KEY WEBSITES: