Formula One News

Location: Kuala Lumpur Race Date: 10th April 2011 Circuit Length: 5.543 km Number of Laps: 56 Race Distance: 310.408 km 2011 Pole Sitter: S.Vettel 2011 Race Winner: S.Vettel Grands Prix Held: 13 Circuit Website: Sepang Circuit Website Circuit Diagram Produced By: Adrian Dean

Brief History

The Sepang International Circuit was built in a record fourteen months, by German architect Hermann Tilke and his company. The circuit was designed on 260 hectares of oil plantation, with nine cubic meters of earth being removed, and 5,000 palm trees planted to help retain the natural beauty of the surrounding area.

The circuit is situated 85 km from Kuala Lumpur city centre, and was officially opened on the 9th March 1999 by the Prime Minister Dato’ Seri Dr Mahathir Mohanad.

The main circuit is generally raced in a clockwise direction, with the sweeping corners and wide straights being its main features. In all, the track has fifteen corners, eight straights, and plenty of overtaking areas. Sepang is one of the most technical circuits in F1.

The first Formula One Grand Prix took place at the circuit in 1999 and was won by Eddie Irvine in a Ferrari. Irvine completed the race in 1 hour, 36 minutes, 38.494 seconds, with his team mate Michael Schumacher finishing just 0.01 seconds behind him.