Snetterton Circuit

Snetterton was originally an RAF airfield, RAF Snetterton Heath, later used by the United States Army Air Force. The airfield opened in May 1943 and closed in November 1948. ==Racing history==

After its use as a USAF base, in 1948 Snetterton Heath was returned to the local landowner, Fred Riches. Oliver Sear and Dudley Coram of the Aston Martin Owners Club (AMOC) approached Riches in early 1951 to suggest using the defunct airbase roadways as a circuit for club racing. Riches agreed, but, being a local churchwarden, only on condition that there was no racing between 10:45 am and noon on Sundays, and that all racing stopped before Evensong started, to avoid disturbing church services. The AMOC held the first open meeting on 27 October 1951, for what were dubbed "speed trials", but were actually a series of one lap sprint races. The first meeting was described by Motor Sport magazine as "an excellent event over an interesting new course." Fastest time of the day was set by Ken Wharton, driving ERA R11B, who averaged . The circuit was first used for motorcycle racing in 1953, organised by the Snetterton Combine, an association of clubs in Norfolk and Suffolk. The track was used by both Team Lotus (Formula One) and Norfolk Racing Co (Le Mans) to test their racing cars. In the 1960s and early 1970s the circuit was in length. Sear corner was further from Riches corner and led onto the "Norwich Straight" clearly visible in satellite maps and currently used by a Sunday market. The straight ended in a hairpin bend leading to Home Straight, which joined the existing track at the Esses, and is now a main access road for the circuit. Russell bend was added in the 1960s and named after Jim Russell who ran a racing drivers school at the circuit. Initially added to improve safety by slowing vehicles as they approached the pits, Russell bend was the scene of many accidents and was later altered to its present configuration. Snetterton 300 Circuit corner names (2011–present) Layout history File:Snetterton 1963 annotated.svg|Grand Prix Circuit (1951–1964) File:Snetterton 1965 annotated.svg|Grand Prix Circuit (1965–1973) File:Snetterton 1974 annotated.svg|Club Circuit (1974) File:Snetterton 1977 annotated.svg|Club Circuit (1975–1979) & Grand Prix Circuit (1980–1989) File:Snetterton 2010 annotated.svg|Grand Prix Circuit (1990–2010) File:Snetterton 2011 300 versus 2010.svg|Comparison between 2010 and 2011 layouts File:Snetterton 2011 100 annotated.svg|Snetterton 100 Circuit (2011–present) File:Snetterton 2011 200 annotated.svg|Snetterton 200 Circuit (2011–present) File:Snetterton 2011 300 annotated.svg|Snetterton 300 Circuit (2011–present) ==Circuit developments==

Snetterton circuit was acquired by MotorSport Vision (MSV) along with Brands Hatch, Oulton Park, and Cadwell Park from The Interpublic Group of Companies subsidiary Octagon in January 2004. Octagon previously acquired prior owner Brands Hatch Leisure plc in November 1999. In October 2005, Jonathan Palmer of MSV, the owners of Snetterton Circuit, announced that the circuit would undergo extensive rebuilding work, in order to lengthen the circuit and improve its facilities. On 23 September 2010, MSV announced that construction of the new infield section and track improvements would be finished in time for the 2011 motorsport season. The main development was the addition of a new one-mile infield section, after Sear Corner, which was replaced and renamed Montreal, in deference to it being modelled on the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve hairpin. The final chicane before Senna Straight was also removed and replaced by an extension to Coram curve coupled with a new, tight, left-hand corner named Murrays. In addition to the track work, the redevelopment also improved spectator viewing and increased safety. Snetterton 300 Circuit . The 300 Circuit is long, Snetterton's longest layout and the second longest racing track in the country. In 2016, ahead of Justin Wilson's 38th birthday, the Montreal hairpin was renamed Wilson, in memory of the Yorkshire IndyCar driver killed at the 2015 Pocono 500. Snetterton 200 This layout is closest to the pre-2011 layout. The main differences between the original layout and the 200 layout are the re-profiled Justin Wilson, Coram, and Murray's corners, which have been designed to provide better opportunities for overtaking. This layout is mainly used for club and local racing. Snetterton 100 The 100 layout is made up solely of the new infield section and is mainly used for testing and as a race school. Both the 100 layout and the 200 layout can be used simultaneously. The first event which both events were used simultaneously was the BRSCC meeting held on the 29 and 30 May 2011. There was club racing on the outer circuit (VW Fun Cup, Saker Challenge, TVRs and Mighty Minis) and two rounds of the British Sprint Championship on the inner circuit. ==Events==

; Current • May: British Touring Car Championship, F4 British Championship, Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain, Britcar • June: British Superbike Championship, British Supersport Championship, Moto4 British Cup, Snetterton Classic • July: British GT Championship, GB4 Championship • August: Caterham Grand Prix • September: TCR UK Touring Car Championship, USA Snetterton 300 ; Former • British Formula 3 International Series (1977–2004, 2006–2012) • EuroBOSS Series (1997, 2007) • European Formula Two Championship (1967) • European Formula 5000 Championship (1969–1975) • European Touring Car Championship (1965–1968) • Formula Ford Festival (1972–1975) • GB3 Championship (2013–2023) • Lombank Trophy (1960–1963) ==Lap records==

Prior to the introduction of the 300 circuit in 2011, the official lap record stood at 0:56.095 () set by , during a BRSCC meeting in August 2007. During the qualifying of this meeting, he set an unofficial lap record of 0:54.687 (). The current 300 circuit lap record was set by Felipe Nasr from Brazil driving a Carlin prepared Dallara F308 in the 2nd race of the 2011 British F3 meeting. The lap was 1:39.933 at an average speed of . As of May 2026, the fastest official race lap records at Snetterton Circuit are listed as: ==Notes==