Everything you need to know about the International Automobile Circuit Moulay El Hassan !
By : Saidi Sanaa
The Circuit International Automobile Moulay El Hassan, is asemi- endless circuit in the Agdal quarter of Marrakesh, a numerous beats from the medina. Originally a fast and furious temporary road circuit, it has been tempered kindly by its partial conversion to an endless installation, with the area around the recesses and paddock now a tone- contained circuit in its own right. international events use an extended layout which spills out onto the expressways of Marrakech’s modern hotel quarter.
It has been hosting the African round of the FIA WTCC/ WTCR since 2009. It also hosted the Auto GP crown from 2012 to 2014. originally an unusual high- speed blast through the modern hotel quarter of the municipality, it nestles alongside the centuries-old Marrakech Wall, just a numerous beats from the medina and the souks. The first track was designed by D3 Motorsports, creators of a number of other notable circuits, including the Cyber Surfers Paradise, Australia and Durban, South Africa road courses. The construction involved placement of further also, 500 concrete impact blocks, excelled with the D3- designed debris walls to ensure the safety of both drivers and spectators during on- track spectacle. Semi-permanent hole installations of brand and glass have drawn praise from drivers and armies likewise. Simple on paper, with a series of chicane- refocused straights joined by a large compass wind at one end and a tight hairpin at the other, the circuit in reality presented fairly a challenge for drivers. Maintaining speed while kerb hopping across the chicanes was a commodity of an art form, with unyielding concrete walls in detention for anyone who pushed the limits too far. Ricardo Teixeira set up out the hard way during the 2010 F2 race, when he was caught out by drivers braking ahead of him into the first chicane on the rear straight. His bus was launched airborne, flying completely over the chicane and three other motorcars, before crashing into the retaining wall and a fellow contender. Incredibly, no- bone was injured. Upgrades were made to the circuit in 2010 after assimilating feedback from the original event and in drug for the Formula 2 series. These included the widening of some turns by moving retaining walls further back, the stretching of runoff areas andre- re-asphalting. Financial difficulties led to the cancellation of the 2011 race, but it was reinstated in 2012 and the organizers signed a multi- time agreement with the WTCC promoters. This was contingent on the organizers turning the track into asemi- endless installation suggestive of Melbourne’s Albert Park, with new hole and paddock structures part of the deal. The revised circuit- penned this time by Hermann Tilke- ready on time for the 2016 WTCC race.
The new FIA Grade 2 layout is described as semi- endless’ and uses a short section of purpose erected track running through what was previously the paddock. It runs in anti-clockwise direction but retains the same hole complex. One end of the new layout is to offer original amateurs a new venue to race on time- round in an effort to boost the sport locally. The FIA Formula E Championship added Marrakech to its canon from the 2016- 17 season onwards, using the full circuit configuration, which is truly important in keeping with its other road races.
