Autódromo José Carlos Pace - Interlagos

Surface: Asphalt
Circuit Length: 4,309 km (2,677 mi)
Turns:15
Lap Record: 1:11.473 (Juan Pablo Montoya, BMW Williams, 2004)

The land on which the circuit is located was originally bought in 1926 by property developers who wanted to build accommodations. Following difficulties partly due to the 1929 stock market crash, it was decided to build a racing circuit instead, construction started in 1938 and the track was inaugurated in May 1940.

Formula One started racing there in 1972, the first year being a non-championship race, won by Argentinean Carlos Reutemann. The first World Championship Brazilian Grand Prix was held at Interlagos in 1973, the race won by defending Formula One World Champion and São Paulo local Emerson Fittipaldi.

Race start is in the "Tribunas" section and features a pretty long straight section, then comes "S do Senna" ("Senna's S") [Turns 1 & 2], a series of turns (left, right, then left again) that are considered extremely difficult because each of them has a different angle, a different radius, a different length, a different inclination (inward or outward) and a different shape (besides the terrain goes down and then up again)."Senna's S" connects with "Curva do Sol" ("Sun Turn"), a round-shaped large-radius left-turn that leads to "Reta Oposta" ("Opposite Straight", a reference to the disused longer back straight of the pre-1990 circuit, to which it runs parallel), the track's longest (but not the fastest) straight. Reta Oposta is succeeded by a pair of downhill left turns that are called "Descida do Lago" ("Lake Descent") [4 & 5] into a short straight sector that goes down again.This is followed by a slow and difficult section, with small, kart-like turns and elevation changes. These turns are "Ferradura" ("Horseshoe") downhill and right into "Laranjinha" ("Little Orange"), another right (the slowest point of the circuit); then the right-hand Turn 8 leads into "Pinheirinho" ("Small Pine Tree"), left on a plain field; "Bico de Pato" ("Duck Bill") a right-hand turn complex (first, an easy right kink into the tighter-radius near-hairpin give the distinctive turn its shape and name); and then "Mergulho" ("Dive"), a constant-radius left-hand turn that slings the driver straight into a harder left at "Junção" ("Junction").Turn 13, a left up-hill kink, marks the start of the long, thrilling and dangerous top-speed section. Rising up through "Subida dos Boxes" ("Up to the Pits"), the driver encounters a long left turn that sometimes seems straight and sometimes bends in more clearly. As the name implies, Subida dos Boxes is uphill (quite steep, indeed) and demands a lot of power from the cars. At the end of it, Arquibancadas ("Bleachers") forms the end of what was once called "Cotovelo" ("Elbow"). At this point the track seems inclined inwards (or somewhat crooked) as the cars approach top speed back through the "Tribunas" straight. The series of left turns from the exit of Junção all the way to Turn 1 into Senna's S is typically taken at full throttle and treated as a long straight. (This section is known as one of the longest full-throttle stretches on the Formula 1 calendar, and thus demanding of the engine's reliability at sustained high RPM and torque. Other notable stretches of this nature are the "Rettifilo Tribune" straight atAutodromo Nazionale di Monza and the Kemmel Straight at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.)

Interlagos race videos

Onboard with Michael Schumacher during his goodbye lap at Interlagos 2012