In 2023, the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear returned to the Streets of Downtown Detroit. The new 1.7-mile, nine turn race course featured some of the most well-traveled roads in Detroit, along with some of the most iconic and popular attractions in the Motor City.
The Detroit Street Circuit included a fast and technical track along Jefferson Avenue, Bates Street, Atwater Street, St. Antoine, Franklin Street and Rivard. With elevation changes and a mix of slow and high-speed corners, the circuit featured plenty of action and passing opportunities.
The signature areas of the Downtown track included the long and speedy .7 of a mile frontstretch on Jefferson Ave., leading into a wide hairpin Turn 3 that delivered plenty of action. After heading back up Jefferson, the cars made a sharp right and went downhill toward the Detroit River on Bates. A sweeping lefthander took the competitiors onto Atwater for the backstretch next to the Detroit River. At Turn 8, the cars turned left on St. Antoine before visiting the unique double-sided pit lane to the right off of Franklin. Another lefthand turn awaited at the end of pit lane which took the cars uphill on Rivard for the most narrow part of the course. That set up a smooth entry going left on Jefferson down the long front stretch for another lap at the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear.
The new track incorporated some of the roads from the original Detroit Grand Prix Downtown circuit, which debuted with Formula One in 1982 and transitioned to CART/INDYCAR from 1989-1991. While the original Grand Prix street circuit measured 2.5 miles and ran through parts of Detroit's business district, the new track is shorter and does not run any further north than Jefferson Ave., to minimize the impact on traffic flow and local business operations in the City. The shorter track distance also means fans watching the action will get to see more of the cars and more racing over the course of each race during Grand Prix weekend.
With a history of great racing on the Belle Isle track over the last 30 plus years, the Detroit Grand Prix Downtown track proudly carries on the tradition of competition in the Motor City. The high-performance cars and world-class athletes of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES, the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, INDY NXT by Firestone and the Trans Am Series presented by Pirelli put the new circuit to the test, June 2-4 at the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear.
