Phoenix street circuit
Phoenix, USA · 3 races held
Race History
| Year | Grand Prix | Winner | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | United States Grand Prix | Ayrton Senna | McLaren |
| 1990 | United States Grand Prix | Ayrton Senna | McLaren |
| 1989 | United States Grand Prix | Alain Prost | McLaren |
About the Phoenix Street Circuit
The Phoenix street circuit was laid out among the office blocks and grid-pattern streets of downtown Phoenix, Arizona, and hosted the United States Grand Prix for three years from 1989 to 1991. It was the latest in a long line of American venues F1 tried in its repeated efforts to crack the US market, taking over from the previous street race in Detroit.
The races were run in the searing heat of the Arizona desert, and the combination of a featureless downtown backdrop, soaring temperatures and sparse crowds worked against the event. Attendance was poor — famously, an ostrich race held in the city around the same time was said to have drawn larger crowds — and after just three editions the United States Grand Prix dropped off the calendar entirely, not to return until Indianapolis in 2000.
Memorable Moments
- 1989: Alain Prost won the inaugural Phoenix race for McLaren after Ayrton Senna, who had dominated the early stages from pole, retired with an electrical problem.
- 1990: Jean Alesi, in the underdog Tyrrell, led the early laps and fought a thrilling wheel-to-wheel duel with Ayrton Senna, repassing him once before the McLaren's superior pace eventually told and Senna took the win.
- 1991: Senna won again in the final Phoenix Grand Prix, opening his championship-winning season with victory before the race vanished from the calendar.
Track Character
Phoenix was a tight, low-grip temporary circuit defined by 90-degree corners threading between the city's downtown blocks, with bumpy public-road surfaces and concrete walls leaving little margin for error. The stop-start nature of the layout made it hard on brakes and demanded precise placement, while the desert heat punished both drivers and machinery. Overtaking was difficult, putting a premium on qualifying and tyre management — yet the constraints produced at least one classic, the 1990 Alesi-Senna battle that lit up an otherwise sparsely attended weekend.