Music City Grand Prix

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Music City Grand Prix
Music City Grand Prix Logo.png
IndyCar Series
VenueNashville Street Circuit
First race2021
Last race2021
Laps80
Most wins (driver)Sweden Marcus Ericsson (1)
Most wins (team)Chip Ganassi Racing (1)
Most wins (manufacturer)Honda (1)
Circuit information
Length3.492 km (2.170 mi)
Turns11
Lap record1:16.3064 (United States Colton Herta, Dallara DW12, 2021, IndyCar)

The Music City Grand Prix, known as the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, is an IndyCar Series race held at the Nashville Street Circuit in Nashville, Tennessee. Marcus Ericsson won the inaugural event in 2021.

History[]

Background[]

On September 16, 2020 the IndyCar Series announced the addition of the Music City Grand Prix as a street circuit race in downtown Nashville for its 2021 schedule.[1][2] This announcement came after three years of discussion between Nashville sports and tourism officials and IndyCar executives, which had previously resulted in three failed proposals for a race in Nashville.[3][4] Two of the three failed attempts, which occurred in 2010 and 2015, respectively, were led by former Pocono Raceway president Joseph Mattioli III.[5][6] The Music City Grand Prix is privately funded and has a three-year contract for IndyCar Series races.[3][4] Nashville's successful hosting of the 2019 NFL Draft was one of the deciding factors in the race becoming a reality, according to Penske Entertainment Corporation President and CEO Mark Miles.[3][7] The Tennessee Titans serve as a host for the race.[4]

Two-time IndyCar Series champion and Nashville-area native Josef Newgarden called the race "the number-one destination outside of the Indy 500".[1] He further opined that "it is going to showcase the town of Nashville probably the best way possible."[4] Nashville mayor John Cooper called the race "a catalyst for our economic recovery".[7]

The Music City Grand Prix became the first new street circuit race for the IndyCar Series since the Grand Prix of Houston in 2013.[1][4] It also became Nashville's first IndyCar race since the Indy 200 was held at Nashville Superspeedway between 2001 and 2008.[3][8] The Music City Grand Prix was scheduled as the sixth street circuit race of the 2021 season, joining the doubleheader at Detroit along with races at Long Beach, St. Petersburg, and Toronto. All of these races have been run since at least 2012, however, and more recent events on street circuits have already become defunct, including races in Baltimore, Boston (which was never held), and Houston.[3]

Circuit design[]

The Nashville Street Circuit measures 2.17 miles (3.49 km) and includes 11 turns.[1][3][4] Running adjacent to Nissan Stadium, the circuit's most notable feature is its 3,578-foot (1,091 m) straightaway across the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge, which spans the Cumberland River.[1][4] The bridge layout makes the track the only one on the IndyCar circuit and one of the few in the world to cross a significant body of water.[3][4] Top speeds for the IndyCar race were expected to be around 200 miles per hour (320 km/h). The track varies in width from a minimum of 37 feet (11 m) to a maximum of 80 feet (24 m).[1] As at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, the Nashville Street Circuit uses a different location for starting the race (between turns 3 and 4) than the finish line.[9] Middle Tennessee State University's School of Concrete and Construction Management created concrete mixes for the track's barriers and pit row.[10] Music City Grand Prix CEO Matt Crews noted that the event organizers planned to "limit traffic interruptions as much as possible".[4] Track designer Tony Cotman intentionally avoided Nashville's major streets so as not to adversely affect tourism.[3] Discussing the design of the circuit, he called the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge "one of those landmarks where you see that bridge on TV or in photos and you’re going to know exactly where it is. It’s like seeing the Queen Mary in the background at Long Beach."[9] Cotman also noted that he expects turns 1, 2, and 7 to be the best passing locations on the circuit.[9]

Pundits and drivers, including former Formula One drivers Romain Grosjean and Marcus Ericsson, have compared the Nashville Street Circuit to the Baku City Circuit that hosts the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Nashville Street Circuit's downtown section and long straightaways on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge have been compared to the castle section and long straights at Baku.[11]

Race summaries[]

  • 2021: The inaugural Music City Grand Prix was held at 5:30 pm EDT on August 8, 2021.[12] During the August 6–8 race weekend, the GT America series, the Trans-Am Series TA2 class, and the Stadium Super Trucks also competed as support series.[13][14][15] Marcus Ericsson took victory in the inaugural event despite being involved in an early incident in which his car became airborne after running over the car of Sebastian Bourdais. Polesitter Colton Herta lead the most laps, but crashed while attempting to retake the lead from Ericsson. Scott Dixon and James Hinchcliffe completed the podium. The race was incident-filled, with nine caution periods resulting in a total of 33 of the event's 80 laps run under caution conditions and two race stoppages.[16]

Race results[]

NTT IndyCar Series[]

Season Date Driver Team Chassis Engine Race Distance Race Time Average Speed
(mph) 		Report
Laps Miles (km)
2021 August 8 Sweden Marcus Ericsson Chip Ganassi Racing Dallara Honda 80 173.6 miles (279.4 km) 2:18:50 99.074 Report

Support events[]

GT America Series[]

Season Date Winning Driver
2021 August 7 United States James Sofronas
August 8 United States Bret Curtis

Trans-Am Series TA2[]

Season Date Winning Driver
2021 August 7 United States Mike Skeen

Stadium Super Trucks[]

Season Date Winning Driver
2021 August 7 United States Robby Gordon
August 8 United States

Lap Records[]

The official race lap records at the Music City Grand Prix are listed as:

Category Time Driver Vehicle Date
GP Circuit: 3.492 km (2021–present)
IndyCar 1:16.3064[17] Colton Herta Dallara DW12 2021 Big Machine Music City Grand Prix
GT3 1:30.752[18] Bret Curtis Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020 2021 Nashville GT America round
Trans-Am TA2 1:32.160[19] Adam Andretti Ford Mustang Trans-Am 2021 Nashville Trans-Am round
GT4 1:35.936[18] Mercedes-AMG GT4 2021 Nashville GT America round

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Ryan, Nate (September 16, 2020). "IndyCar adds Nashville to its 2021 schedule with Music City GP Aug. 6-8". NBCSN. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. ^ Blackstock, Elizabeth (September 19, 2020). "Take A Lap Around IndyCar's Music City Grand Prix Circuit In Nashville". Jalopnik. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Brown, Nathan (September 16, 2020). "IndyCar announces 'a heck of a party' in return to Nashville for 2021 Music City Grand Prix". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Organ, Mike (September 16, 2020). "IndyCar Series Grand Prix coming to Nashville in 2021 with a unique track". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ Estes, Gentry (August 8, 2021). "Music City Grand Prix wasn't a race but a party, and Nashville does those well". The Tennessean. Retrieved August 11, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. ^ Martin, Bruce (November 9, 2017). "Nashville group wants to bring major racing series to downtown Music City". Autoweek. Retrieved August 11, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  7. ^ a b Davis, Chris; Bowles, Laken (September 15, 2020). "IndyCar announces Music City Grand Prix race for 2021". WTVF. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ^ Organ, Mike (August 28, 2020). "Roger Penske, other IndyCar executives' visit brings Grand Prix closer to Nashville streets". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ a b c Malsher-Lopez, David (September 17, 2020). "IndyCar's new Nashville street course: the track designer's guide". Motorsport.com. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ "Tennessee university tapped to help Music City Grand Prix". Associated Press. November 16, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ^ Smith, Fred (August 6, 2021). "IndyCar's New Nashville Circuit Looks Tight, A Little Sketchy". Road & Track. Retrieved August 28, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ "Streets of Nashville". IndyCar Series. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  13. ^ "Trans-Am's TA2 Class Added To Music City Grand Prix". Speed Sport. November 21, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  14. ^ "GT America Added To Music City Grand Prix". Speed Sport. November 19, 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2021.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  15. ^ "Rev Up Nashville – 30 Days Until Green Flag for Big Machine Music City Grand Prix NTT IndyCar Series Race". Music City Grand Prix (Press release). July 8, 2021. Retrieved July 9, 2021.
  16. ^ Pruett, Marshall (August 8, 2021). "Ericsson rebounds from early crash to win wild inaugural Music City GP". Racer. Retrieved August 9, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  17. ^ "2021 IndyCar Music City Session Facts". Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  18. ^ a b "2021 GT America Music City Grand Prix Race 1 Results". Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  19. ^ "August 6 - 7 2021 Nashville Tennessee TA2 Round 8 Official Race Results" (PDF). Retrieved 11 August 2021.

External links[]

Preceded by
Indy 200 at Mid-Ohio 		IndyCar Series
Music City Grand Prix 		Succeeded by
Big Machine Spiked Coolers Grand Prix
Retrieved from ""