Sentul International Circuit

Sentul International Circuit is a 50,000-capacity permanent motor racing circuit located at Sentul City, Babakan Madang, Bogor Regency, West Java, Indonesia, near the toll gate of Jakarta towards Bogor city and areas at the foot of Jonggol Mountains

Its pit facilities have easy access to the Jagorawi Toll Road. The current circuit is a truncated version of the original design. Approximately 40% shorter than the original, the circuit runs clockwise and is predominantly used for motorcycle racing and the Asian F3 series. Sentul is a relatively simple, smooth, broad track with large runoff areas, enabling non-bumpy and smooth driving at racing speeds. Sentul has a main straight that allows speeds of up to before slowing for the right-hand Turn 1. The only truly high-speed corner at Sentul is Turn 2. The fastest driver on four-wheel machines can do , and the fastest rider can do on two-wheel machines. They can take Turn 2 as a complex "S" bend when they get out from the tighter Turn 1 at around . The wide corners allow good passing with various racing lines.

Located in Bogor Regency, Sentul is a hilly area at the foot of the Jonggol Mountains and a bit cooler than the tropical city of Jakarta. However, the track can still get extremely hot under direct sunlight. It is also humid and wet as well. Such characteristics cause distress to European tuners, riders and drivers who are accustomed to cooler climates.

History

Sentul International Circuit (section) was designed to meet the Formula One motor racing standard and was the first serious attempt outside Japan to meet such a standard in Asia. The vision came to Indonesia around 1990 when Hutomo Mandala Putra, motor racing enthusiast and son of President Suharto, began promoting the construction of a track at Sentul. Racing had previously been held at the short, tight and relatively dangerous Jaya Ancol Circuit, on the Java Sea coast in North Jakarta. In August 1993, the circuit was officially inaugurated with the 1993 Indonesian Grand Prix for Formula Holden.

While Sentul International Circuit was intended to be Indonesia's Formula Two showcase to the world, its tight corners and shortened length rendered it unsuitable for Formula One. On 13 October 1996 the Pacific GP was to be held at the Sentul Circuit but it was cancelled for previous mentioned reason.David Hayhoe, Formula 1: The Knowledge – 2nd Edition, 2021, page 36 Sentul has been used for the Superbike World Championship between 1994 and 1997 and the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix in 1996 and 1997.

The 1997 Asian financial crisis worsened the situation and made motor racing an unaffordable luxury for many Indonesian enthusiasts who had been participating. The facility has also come to be overshadowed by the Sepang International Circuit, built in 1999, which possessed a superior track layout and facilities.

In the mid-2000s, the circuit held two rounds of the A1 Grand Prix of Nations, in the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons respectively. In 2008, the GP2 Asia Series raced at Sentul. A Superstars Series race was planned in 2012 and an Asian Le Mans Series race in 2013, but these ultimately were cancelled.

MotoGP was set to return to Indonesia in 2017, dependent on securing the 15 billion rupiah (approximately US$1.12 million) in funding required to get the circuit up to FIM Grade 1.Indonesia Resmi Jadi Tuan Rumah Moto GP 2017, Kompas TV, accessed 20 November 2015. Due to the rapid rise in popularity of Formula One in Indonesia following the debut of Rio Haryanto in 2016, Formula One Management was also looking into the viability of holding a race at Sentul provided the upgrades could be completed, however the plan never materialized. Dorna Sports eventually gave the hosting rights for the return of the Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix to the Mandalika Circuit in Lombok instead of Sentul, which was held in March 2022.

Sentul International Circuit continues to host various events but mostly motorbike racing with ISSOM events also held throughout the year. It also hosted the para-cycling road race for the 2018 Asian Para Games.

Track description Track length: Width: Longest straight: 50 pit garages 2 covered grandstands Other facilities include: Motocross, Autocross and Go-Karts Circuits Three-star International Hotel Bungalows / Guest House International Golf Course Restaurant Recreation Centre

Lap records

As of October 2018, the fastest official race lap records at the Sentul International Circuit are listed as:

Category Time Driver Vehicle Event Grand Prix Circuit (1993–present): GP2 Asia 1:15.686 Bruno Senna Dallara GP2/05 2008 Sentul GP2 Asia Series round A1GP 1:18.110 Robbie Kerr Lola A1GP 2006 2nd Sentul A1GP round Formula Renault 3.5 1:22.824 Matthew Halliday Tatuus FRV6 2006 Sentul Formula V6 Asia round Formula Three 1:24.594 Tyson Sy Dallara F304 2005 2nd Sentul Asian F3 round 500cc 1:26.141 Tadayuki Okada Honda NSR500 (NV0X) 1997 Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix World SBK 1:27.151 John Kocinski Honda RVF750 RC45 1997 Sentul World SBK round 250cc 1:28.256 Max Biaggi Honda NSR250 1997 Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix Porsche Carrera Cup 1:29.786 Rodolfo Ávila Porsche 911 (997) GT3 S 2009 Sentul Porsche Carrera Cup Asia round Supersport 1:30.131 Ahmad Yudhistira Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R 2016 Sentul ARRC round Formula BMW 1:32.040 Rio Haryanto Mygale FB02 2009 Sentul Formula BMW Pacific round Stock car racing 1:32.316 Ananda Mikola Speedcar V8 2008 Sentul Speedcar round World SSP 1:32.803 Vittoriano Guareschi Yamaha YZF600R 1997 Sentul Supersport World Series round 125cc 1:34.044 Valentino Rossi Aprilia RS125 1997 Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix Asia Production 250 1:42.350 Rheza Danica Ahrens Honda CBR250RR 2018 Sentul ARRC round Asia Underbone 150 1:49.304 Muhammad Agung Fachrul Yamaha T-150 2018 Sentul ARRC round

Events

Current

April: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport May: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport July: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport August: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport October: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport November: Indonesia Sentul Series of Motorsport

Former

A1 Grand Prix (2 times in 2006) Asia Road Racing Championship (1996–2000, 2002–2018) Asia Talent Cup (2014) Asian Formula Three Championship (2004–2005, 2007) Asian Touring Car Championship (2006–2009, 2011) Formula 4 South East Asia Championship (2016) Formula Asia (1996–1997) Formula BMW Asia (2006–2009, 2011) Formula V6 Asia (2006–2008) GP2 Asia Series (2008) Grand Prix motorcycle racing Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix (1996–1997) Indonesian Grand Prix (1993) Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia (2014–2015) Oneprix (2007) Pertamina 6 Hours Endurance (2024) Porsche Carrera Cup Asia (2006–2009) Speedcar Series (2008) Superbike World Championship (1994–1997) Supersport World Series (1997)

Events winners

Indonesian motorcycle Grand Prix

Season Winner 500cc Winner 250cc Winner 125cc Report 1996 Mick Doohan Tetsuya Harada Masaki Tokudome Report 1997 Tadayuki Okada Max Biaggi Valentino Rossi Report

Superbike World Championship

Season Race 1 Race 2 Report 1994 Jamie Whitham Carl Fogarty Report 1995 Carl Fogarty Aaron Slight Report 1996 John Kocinski John Kocinski Report 1997 John Kocinski Carl Fogarty Report

A1 Grand Prix

Season Sprint Race Winner Feature Race Winner Report 2005–06 Nicolas Lapierre Sean McIntosh Report 2006–07 Jonny Reid Jonny Reid Report

GP2 Asia

Season Race 1 Winner Race 2 Winner Report 2008 Sébastien Buemi Fairuz Fauzy Report

Speedcar Series

Season Race 1 Winner Race 2 Winner Report 2008 Jean Alesi Uwe Alzen Report

Asian Formula 3

Series 2005 Round Race winner Fastest lap 10 Tyson Sy Tyson Sy (1'24.594) 9 Tyson Sy Tyson Sy (1'24.791) 8 Ananda Mikola John O'Hara (1'25.092) 7 John O'Hara John O'Hara (1'25.221)

Series 2006 Round Race winner Fastest lap 15 Cancelled Cancelled 14 James Winslow Alistair Jackson (1'25.929) 13 James Winslow James Winslow (1'26.011) 12 James Winslow James Winslow (1'26.447) 11 James Winslow James Winslow (1'26.179) 10 James Winslow James Winslow (1'26.167)

Fatalities

Iqbal Hakeem - 2019 Private Test. Kevin Safaruddin Madria - 2022 Idemitsu bLU CRu Yamaha Sunday Race.

Sentul International Circuit

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