The San Jose Grand Prix was an annual street circuit race in the Champ Car World Series in San Jose, California . The race had three different title sponsors over the course of its three-year existence, being known as the Taylor Woodrow Grand Prix of San Jose in 2005, Canary Foundation Grand Prix of San Jose Presented by Taylor Woodrow in 2006, and the San Jose Grand Prix at Redback Raceway in 2007.
61-532: Initially the track was designed to run near Downtown San Jose, California , circling around the SAP Center . However, due to higher than expected costs for street repairs and improvements, among other concerns, race organizers moved to a course running directly through downtown. The course began on Almaden Boulevard running northerly along the southbound lanes of the road crossing VTA light rail tracks at San Carlos St. Just before reaching Santa Clara Street
122-589: A Formula One test for the winner. From 2011 onwards BMW ceased to support the Pacific and Europe series, in favour of the Formula BMW Talent Cup . The Talent Cup, which was the final Formula BMW championship in existence, ended after the 2013 season . BMW has prior experience of junior formula racing , as a successful engine supplier in Formula Two and, more briefly, Formula Three in
183-503: A 60-second penalty for a driving infringement. This handed the title to Nico Hülkenberg . In the immediate aftermath of the incident in question, both drivers had been given 30-second penalties. The 2006 champion, Christian Vietoris , went on to dominate that year's World Final in Valencia, in which he secured pole position, finished in first place in all three qualification heats, and won the final itself. The German series merged with
244-734: A Licensing Course at one of the Racing Centres. BMW also provided an annual scholarship for five young drivers in each championship, between the ages of fifteen and eighteen, who were chosen through a selection process. It provides each driver with a budget of £35,000 in the UK, US$ 50,000 in Asia, and US$ 40,000 in the USA. The best drivers from each championship were invited to the Formula BMW World Final, which takes place at one of
305-442: A driver that competes in the championship. On-board data-loggers are used to monitor each team's on-track activity between race weekends, and illegal running is likely to incur a fine or suspension. Each chassis is subject to safety inspections by the scrutineers, and may be replaced only if it is deemed necessary due to irreparable accident damage. If this occurs after a qualifying session, that driver's times have to be annulled and
366-620: A few fairly large gingerbread or Italianate-style Victorians, Craftsman , Mission and California Bungalow architecture in the neighborhoods surrounding the downtown core. Downtown is home to many of the city's landmarks, including the San Jose Museum of Art , the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose , The Tech Interactive , the San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles , the San Jose Repertory Theatre ,
427-399: A minimum distance of 60 km (37.5 mi), with that figure determining the number of laps according to the length of the circuit. If the race duration exceeds 30 minutes, it will be stopped at the end of that lap. In the event of a race being stopped prematurely, full points are awarded if the race leader completed at least 75% of the distance, while half points are awarded if at least 50%
488-447: A race weekend on the original layout is 0:54.243, set by Sébastien Bourdais in a Lola B02/00 , during qualifying for the 2005 Taylor Woodrow Grand Prix of San Jose . The fastest outright all-time track record set during a race weekend on the modified layout is 0:48.678 seconds, set by Sebastien Bourdais in a Lola B02/00 , during qualifying for the 2006 Canary Foundation Grand Prix of San Jose . The fastest official race lap records at
549-501: A race. When Formula BMW UK was formed, it had to compete in a crowded marketplace with a number of series based on Formula Ford and Formula Renault regulations, together with smaller series such as Zip Formula. However, as with the other BMW championships, the UK series quickly proved to be a success. It attracted 25 entrants in its inaugural season in 2004, which increased to 28 the following season. Former Formula One and Indycar champion Nigel Mansell became involved as an ambassador for
610-564: A result of the poor quality of racing in 2005, organizers of the San Jose Grand Prix promised that the track would be improved in the future in order to keep the race. For the 2006 event, there were several changes made to the Downtown San Jose Circuit. The biggest change was a pit road/frontstretch swap which put the start finish line closer to the premium Gold seating section, which was obstructed in 2005 by
671-626: A small independent family-run team. Robert Wickens began the 2006 season with Apex Racing USA, before switching to EuroInternational. In 2005, a special Formula BMW invitational event was held as part of the Race of Champions at the Stade de France in Paris . BMW invited one driver from each of the four championships: Robert Wickens from the USA series; Nico Hülkenberg from the German series; Dean Smith from
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#1732790341108732-477: Is achieved by the wingless Formula Ford cars and comparable to Formula Renault , and provides drivers with valuable first-time experience of the unique characteristics of aerodynamic downforce. Formula BMW was strictly a "control" formula. This term describes a formula in which every major aspect of equipment and suppliers is restricted. Control formulae normally have only one chassis specification, one engine, and single suppliers of tires and fuel. Modifications to
793-646: Is completed. If a race is stopped prior to half-distance, it will be restarted where possible. Full points are awarded as follows: The UK championship is composed of ten rounds, with two races per round. The German championship previously ran for ten rounds, but was reduced to nine in 2006. The US championship has only seven rounds, each with two races. The Asian championship is a little different: it used to run seven rounds with two races per weekend, but now has six rounds with four races per weekend at all bar one round. Having fewer events, but with more races at each, helps to reduce transport and travel costs without reducing
854-683: Is headquartered on St. James Park. Downtown San Jose has a large concentration of hotels and hospitality services in San Jose, including The Westin San Jose , the Hilton San Jose, Marriott San Jose, Sheraton San Jose, largely concentrated near the San Jose Convention Center . In February 2018, San Jose's city council approved a stage of a sale of downtown property to Google for $ 67 million. However, in April 2023, it
915-682: Is part of the growth in popularity of organised single seater motorsport in east Asia, and it forms the start of a career ladder below the Asian Formula 3 Pacific Series and Formula V6 Asia . Events have been held at Sepang in Malaysia ; Bira in Thailand ; Sentul in Indonesia ; and Shanghai , Zhuhai , Beijing in China , Macau and Singapore . It has appeared on the support bill at
976-541: The Library Journal's prestigious 2004 Library of the Year award, the publication's highest honor. The library first opened its doors in 2003. 37°19′55″N 121°53′24″W / 37.332°N 121.890°W / 37.332; -121.890 Formula BMW Formula BMW was a junior racing formula for single seater cars. It was positioned at the bottom of the motorsport career ladder alongside
1037-541: The Malaysian , Chinese , Bahrain , Macau and Singapore Grand Prix. It was renamed Formula BMW Pacific for the 2008 season. Founded in 2004 and originally known as Formula BMW USA, the series changed its name to Formula BMW Americas starting with the 2008 season. The series was sanctioned by IMSA , and it has appeared on the support bill for ALMS , Champ Car , Grand-Am , Indy Racing League and Formula One events. In its first four years of existence (2004–2007),
1098-1282: The United Kingdom and the United States were launched the following year. The UK and German championships merged into a new pan-European series in 2008. Competitors benefited from BMW Motorsport's Education and Coaching Program, which is based at two Formula BMW Racing Centres at the Circuit de Valencia in Spain and the Bahrain International Circuit at Sakhir , Bahrain . The centres provided courses in race driving, chassis setup, fitness and nutrition, media management, and sponsorship searching. To be eligible to compete in Formula BMW, drivers had to be at least fifteen years old, and must not have competed in any international racing series other than karting. They must have held an International racing license no higher than Grade C. (FIA International racing licenses are graded from A to D, with an additional super-license above Grade A.) Competitors must take part in
1159-695: The United States Touring Car Championship , and the Historic Stock Car Racing Series . The weekend also featured the Formula D Drift racing competition. On race weekend, many critics, including several drivers, criticized the track for being too narrow, too bumpy and dangerous. Some drivers even jokingly compared the track to a motocross track, and somewhat-seriously complained of headaches after several laps. Several modifications were made to
1220-589: The Williams Formula One team in 2006 and the 2004 champion Sebastian Vettel became a test driver for the BMW Sauber team later the same year. Vettel has since graduated to a full-time Formula One race driver, setting several drivers' records and becoming the youngest Formula One champion in history after the 2010 Formula One Championship season. The 2005 championship was decided in an appeal court, which penalised Switzerland's Sebastian Buemi with
1281-453: The "Redback Raceway". The event was known as the San Jose Grand Prix at Redback Raceway. Prior to the race on July 24, Ryan Dalziel , driver of the #28 DP01 for Pacific Coast Motorsports suffered a broken collarbone while training on his bicycle Tuesday morning. As a result of the injury, Dalziel missed the San Jose Grand Prix at Redback Raceway. Dalziel consulted with Dr. Terry Trammell in order to determine his eligibility for round ten of
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#17327903411081342-516: The 1970s. Its European F2 Championship program, which ran from 1973 to 1981, contributed to six drivers' titles in partnership with March . The company ended its participation prior to its first entry into Formula One in the 1980s. BMW returned to the junior categories in Germany in 1991, as the engine supplier to the Formula ADAC championship. The first champion was Christian Abt . It
1403-648: The 1980s, mayor Tom McEnery , whose family owned several buildings in downtown, initiated significant gentrification in the area. The San Jose Redevelopment Agency , the largest such group in the state, would eventually become a key player in revitalizing the downtown area and, to a lesser extent, surrounding neighborhoods. In some cases, historic downtown buildings were bulldozed in order to make room for new hotels, office space, condominiums, museums, theaters and parks; to widen or re-align streets, and to build parking lots and garages. As part of its apparent effort to stimulate economic growth and increase tax revenue within
1464-570: The Champ Car World Series at Road America. Mario Domínguez was announced the next day as his replacement for San Jose. Race events were held from July 27–29. On course the 2007 event featured races run by the Historic Stock Car Racing Series , Formula D drift competitions, Formula BMW , Atlantic Championship and the marquee running of the Champ Car World Series . Friday and Saturday featured qualifying for
1525-623: The Champ Car World Series was the main event, a number of other races were also held. Additionally, a week of fairs, music, charity events and promotional activities also supported the Grand Prix. The title event of the inaugural Grand Prix was held at 2:00 pm PST on July 31, 2005. It was race #8 of the 2005 Champ Car World Series . Other races included the Trans-Am Series , the Toyota Atlantic Championship ,
1586-575: The Champ Car race, with Sebastien Bourdais winning the provisional pole on Friday. However the 2007 San Jose Grand Prix pole sitter for the Champ Car race was Justin Wilson from the UK with a run of 49.039 on Saturday. The race was won by Champ Car rookie driver Robert Doornbos from the Netherlands. The Champ Car Atlantic race was won by Jonathan Bomarito . Final attendance figures released for
1647-628: The Formula BMW Racing Centres in December of each year. The 2006 event was held at Valencia. It was composed of a series of elimination heats followed by a final race. The winner was awarded a Formula One test with BMW-Sauber . Formula BMW was what is sometimes referred to as a "slicks and wings" formula, which describes the use of slick tires and downforce -generating wings at the front and rear. The addition of wings results in cornering speeds that are faster than that which
1708-596: The Formula BMW USA series supported both the Canadian and United States Formula One Grands Prix. The 2007 BMW USA champion was the previous season's Rookie of the Year, Daniel Morad of Canada , who secured the title with six wins. Mexico 's Esteban Gutiérrez took over the Rookie title. The Americas championship was disbanded at the conclusion of the 2009 season which saw only 13 drivers participate in
1769-479: The Grand Prix of San Jose are listed as: Downtown San Jose Downtown San Jose is the central business district of San Jose , California , United States. Downtown is one of the largest tech clusters in Silicon Valley , as well as the cultural and political center of San Jose. The town was first settled in 1777. The area that now makes up downtown was first settled twenty years later, when
1830-411: The Grand Prix showed mixed results when compared to 2006. 3-Day paid attendance was down slightly as was attendance on Saturday to 81,538. However overall attendance was equal to 2006 with about 120,000 people visiting the race over the course of the race weekend. And Sunday race day attendance was actually up slightly from 2006 according to race organizers. The 2008 San Jose Grand Prix at Redback Raceway
1891-960: The San Jose Stage Company, the historic De Anza Hotel , the Fairmont Hotel , the Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph , the campus of San Jose State University and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library . The SAP Center , just west of Guadalupe Parkway, is also normally considered to be part of the downtown community. Downtown San Jose is a major tech cluster of Silicon Valley . It is home to Adobe World Headquarters , Zoom HQ, BEA Systems HQ, and numerous facilities and offices of major tech companies, including Amazon Lab126 and Google . The San Francisco Bay Area 's largest news organization, The Mercury News ,
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1952-468: The South University, Naglee Park , Hensley Historic District, Reed Historic District and Vendome neighborhoods. The downtown area was typical of a small, agriculture-based city of under 100,000 residents until city manager A. P. Hamann spearheaded aggressive expansion during the 1950s and '60s. As the city rapidly expanded into outlying areas, the downtown area entered a period of decline. In
2013-467: The UK series to form the BMW Europe series in 2008. The series raced for three years before being axed at the end of the 2010 season, in favour of the new Formula BMW Talent Cup, which started in 2011. Formula BMW Asia was the second championship to be created. It was inaugurated in 2003 under the management of Motorsport Asia Limited, and functioned as a replacement for Formula Asia . Its creation
2074-547: The car in cooperation with the French chassis constructor Mygale , which was responsible for production. The result, designated "FB02", was a compact design, with a carbon-fibre composite tub constructed to the safety standards of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (motorsport's world governing body). The bodywork is made from a kevlar composite. At 3.975 m (13.041 ft) in length, it
2135-406: The chassis, bodywork and engine are not permitted and this is strictly enforced through scrutineering . In the case of Formula BMW, tuning is restricted to basic adjustment of the gear ratios , suspension , brake balance , and wing angles. The engines are sealed to prevent illegal modifications and are serviced by Schnitzer Motorsport . DesignworksUSA , a subsidiary of BMW, led the design of
2196-518: The course reached turn one, an abrupt hairpin that caused the drivers to double back in the southbound direction along Almaden Blvd again in the opposite direction of normal traffic. The course then turned east along Park Avenue at turn two. Turn 3 took the drivers on to Market Street passing Plaza de César Chávez through the shallow chicane of turns four and five again crossing the VTA light rail track. The course then turned right on to Balbach at turn 6. At
2257-625: The downtown community, the San Jose Redevelopment Agency began encouraging builders to construct high-rise residential towers, and the agency offered subsidies and lifted the requirement to provide affordable units that were characteristic of other redevelopment projects throughout the city. The agency's master plan has incorporated high-rise condominiums since 1980. In 2008, the city's first high-rise project began selling units. Construction or planning has begun on at least seven additional high-rise projects. The agency states
2318-436: The driver must start at the back of the grid. Spare cars (second cars for use in the event of a problem with the first car) are not permitted. At the end of each session or race, the cars have to be submitted to the scrutineers under Parc fermé conditions. The use of treaded rain tires in place of the normal slick tires is permitted only when the race director deems it necessary in any given session or race, and he reserves
2379-400: The drivers must maintain position and not perform dangerous actions such as brake-testing, excessive weaving, and practice starts. Each weekend begins with a 40-minute free practice session, except at events that support a Formula One Grand Prix, where the schedule is subject to change. Each race is preceded by a 20-minute qualifying session, in which competitors must set a time within 130% of
2440-400: The effort to tightly control costs, Formula BMW follows the lead set by most junior single seater formulae by strictly limiting testing. During the season, teams and drivers are primarily limited to a small number of official test days, the cost of which is reimbursed by the series organisers. The teams are allowed to test at circuits that do not host championship events, provided they do not use
2501-415: The fastest time in order to qualify for the race. The time set in the qualifying session determines the driver's starting position for the race. If only one qualifying session can take place, each driver's second best time will determine his grid position for the second race. If no qualifying sessions can take place, the current championship standings will decide the grid for both races. Each race must cover
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2562-509: The final turn 7 the course again turned right back on to Almaden Blvd. The entrance to the pit lane was also at turn 7. The course was the shortest and tightest track on the Champ Car schedule the three years the San Jose Grand Prix was run. The inaugural event was held July 29–31 in 2005. As the newest addition to the world series, the San Jose race was expected to raise interest in racing in Northern California . Although
2623-481: The high-rises will contribute to the creation of a more vibrant and well-to-do downtown culture. Many of the 19th century buildings in central downtown appear on the National Register of Historic Places , in particular the area surrounding St. James Park, such as Trinity Episcopal Cathedral . Downtown San Jose's early 20th century housing is diverse and includes many smaller Victorian homes along with
2684-468: The longer established Formula Ford category. Like Formula Ford, it was intended to function as the young kart racing graduate's first experience of car racing. The new formula was created by BMW Motorsport in 2001, with the first of its championships being inaugurated in Germany in 2002. Selected competitors from each series meet in the World Final at the end of each season, with the promise of
2745-445: The main "gold" level seating grandstand at the start/finish line on Almaden Blvd, to track level on the inside of the course on Park Avenue. Also additional general admission seating was added to the course along Almaden Blvd. On March 9, 2007 San José Grand Prix President Dale Jantzen announced that Redback Networks , an Ericsson company, would be the title sponsor of the 1.443 mile, seven-turn downtown temporary street circuit in 2007,
2806-673: The number of races. Formula BMW ADAC is sanctioned by the Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club e.V. , Europe's largest automobile association. It was immediately popular with teams and drivers alike, attracting 32 entries in its first season. Since 2004, the ADAC championship has included a support event for the European Grand Prix at the Nürburgring . 2002 champion Nico Rosberg joined
2867-564: The oldest public university on the west coast of the United States. SJSU enrolls approximately 33,000 students. The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library , shared by the city of San Jose and San Jose State University, is located on the campus of San Jose State University in downtown San Jose. The King Library represents the first collaboration of its kind between a university and a major U.S. city, and has won numerous awards including
2928-401: The original Formula BMW ADAC in 1999 and continued into the all-new championship. The team took Rosberg's son, Nico , to the 2002 championship title in his rookie year. By 2006, Nico Rosberg had progressed to Formula One. Formula BMW then expanded to encompass four championships across three continents. The German series was followed by a south-east Asian championship in 2003, and series in
2989-573: The palm trees on the Almaden Boulevard median. The swap also removed the chicane placed just before the rail crossing, making the stretch from Balbach to the Toyota Hairpin a straight shot. The proceeding left turn onto Park Avenue was widened to allow for more passing. The track at the second rail crossing along Market Avenue was leveled so that there would be no issue of cars 'taking off' again. The right turn from Market onto Balbach
3050-564: The public areas of downtown San Jose are covered by a public, free, Wi-Fi network, including the areas surrounding Plaza de César Chávez and San Pedro Square . Downtown is also the hub of the VTA light rail system, and the home of the main campus of San Jose State University . Downtown San Jose is home to the campus of San José State University . SJSU is the founding campus of the California State University system and
3111-408: The rest of their budget on off-course attractions to further increase attendance. Their efforts were not successful, as revised attendance figures indicated a paid attendance of 83,248, a substantial decrease from 2005. For the 2007 event no on-course changes were made to the track other than general upkeep. However off the course some changes were made which included moving the luxury boxes from atop
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#17327903411083172-492: The right to mandate their use when conditions are severe. For safety reasons, the pitlane is subject to a 60-km/h (37.5-mph) speed limit, violation of which will result in a drive-through penalty. Drivers must wear FIA -specification helmets and use the Head And Neck Support (HANS) restraint system. Each race begins with a formation lap behind the safety car , prior to the start itself. During this lap,
3233-763: The series after his sons, Leo and Greg , began their single seater careers in the championship in 2006. He also works as a mentor with the BMW Education and Coaching Programme. 2007 was the last year for Formula BMW UK and the series merged with the German series to form the Europe series. Formula Lista Junior is a feeder series to the main Formula BMW series. It has run since 2000 across mainland Europe and since 2008 has used Formula BMW FB02 chassis and engines to run its single-seaters. Former champions include Neel Jani and Romain Grosjean . Tim Bridgman competed in
3294-470: The starting field failed to finish the race, most due to crashing on narrow portions of the track, or mechanical problems caused by the bumpy rail crossings. There was also little on-track passing in the Champ Car race, although many of the support races did see quite a bit of on track passing. In the end, the event was still considered a success, as official attendance reports showed over 60,000 fans on race day, and total 3-day attendance exceeded 150,000. As
3355-502: The town of San Jose moved somewhat inland from its original location on the banks of the Guadalupe River. In 1850, San Jose incorporated to become California's first city and the location of California's first state capitol. Despite widespread destruction caused by the 1906 San Francisco earthquake , a number of neighborhoods around Downtown San Jose still retain their original, pre-1906 housing stock. These neighborhoods include
3416-484: The track following initial practice and qualifying sessions, including adding a chicane to the front stretch and moving a grandstand to make room for a bigger run-off area. Still, the crossing of the VTA 's light rail tracks on the course actually caused the Champ Cars to bounce and become slightly airborne in a high-speed area of the track. On race day, the Champ Car race was largely a battle of survival, as half
3477-676: Was also widened to create another passing opportunity. The San Jose Grand Prix organizers also had to deal with the decision of the owners of the CCWS to not renew their marketing agreement with the Trans-Am Series and the failure to attract the return of the United States Touring Car Championship. Once the Grand Prix had secured an appearance by the Formula BMW USA series, organizers focused
3538-615: Was going to be held on July 25–27, 2008. However, on September 11, 2007 it was announced that the race was canceled and the Northern California Champ Car race would be moving back to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca . That event was later canceled in February 2008 when Champ Car World Series ceased operations and was merged into the Indy Racing League . The fastest outright all-time track record set during
3599-408: Was in 2001 that BMW decided to significantly increase its involvement in the series; ADAC remained the sanctioning body, but BMW Motorsport devised the package of regulations and commissioned the new chassis. The new formula made its debut at Hockenheim in April 2002. Among the series' more notable teams was Team Rosberg , founded by former Formula One world champion Keke Rosberg , which entered
3660-492: Was larger than a Formula Ford 1600, and slightly smaller than a Formula Renault 2000. The engine was sourced from BMW's motorcycle division: it is a near-standard K1200RS motorcycle engine, in an inline four-cylinder configuration, with a capacity of 1171 cc, and a power output of 140 hp (100 kW). Drive is through a single-plate clutch and a six-speed sequential gearbox , produced by Hewland . The complete car weighs 455 kg without fuel and driver. As part of
3721-531: Was reported that Google paused on its West San Jose construction projects due to an economic slowdown. Downtown also is home to several important network service providers and Internet service providers , many of them located in Market Post Tower . Although the cost of office and technical space is relatively high downtown, this is offset by the low cost of peering and internetworking , an effect of proximity to other networking companies. Many of
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