Jerez de la Frontera, Andalusia · ES
The spiritual home of Spanish motorcycle racing. Jerez's sun-drenched circuit in Andalusia hosts the opening European round of MotoGP, where passionate fans create an atmosphere rivaled only by Mugello.
Set in Jerez de la Frontera, Andalusia, Circuito de Jerez is a permanent racing circuit. A lap covers 4.428 km (2.751 miles) and 13 corners, run clockwise.
The circuit opened in 1985 and holds FIA Grade 1 licensing. MotoGP races here. It holds roughly 125,000 spectators.
Ground was broken in 1984 and the circuit opened on 8 December 1985, hosting a round of the Spanish touring car championship before it was quite finished. Formula 1 arrived four months later, taking the Spanish Grand Prix from Jarama and returning the race to the calendar for the first time since 1981.
That first Grand Prix, on 13 April 1986, produced one of the closest finishes the sport has recorded. Ayrton Senna held off Nigel Mansell to the line by 0.014 seconds — a matter of centimetres after 72 laps. Formula 1 left in 1997, but Jerez became the centre of Spanish motorcycle racing instead, and the Andalusian round of MotoGP draws crowds large enough that the town effectively stops for it.
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