Moosehead Grand Prix

Moosehead Grand Prix
AIS, British F2, IMSA GT
LocationCitadel Hill (Fort George), Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
44°38′56″N 63°34′48″W / 44.64889°N 63.58000°W / 44.64889; -63.58000
Corporate sponsorMoosehead Breweries
First race1990
Last race1995
Circuit information
SurfaceAsphalt
Length1.85 km (1.15 mi)
Turns8
Lap record0:45.357 (Italy Andrea Montermini, Reynard 91D, 1993, Formula 3000)

The Moosehead Grand Prix was an annual auto race held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The race took place on a 1.15 mile (1.851 km) street circuit next to Citadel Hill from 1990 until 1993. The race moved to a 1.45 mile (2.333 km) circuit on the runways of Canadian Forces Base Shearwater for 1994 and 1995.[1]

History

Following the success of the Labatt sponsored Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal, the Molson sponsored IndyCar races in Toronto and Vancouver and the Grand Prix of Trois-Rivières, Moosehead Breweries wanted a high profile city street race in Atlantic Canada to promote their brand.

The Moosehead Grand Prix was launched in 1990 with an American Indycar Series race on the streets next to Citadel Hill in downtown Halifax attracting 30,000 fans the first year. The American IndyCar Series was replaced with the British Formula 2 Championship as the headliner in 1993 and 1994, with the IMSA GT Championship headlining the final year in 1995.[2]

Other support series races included the Player’s Toyota Atlantic Championship, Rothmans Porsche Turbo Cup, Player’s GM Motorsport Series and the Canadian Formula Ford Championship.

Lap records

The fastest official race lap records at the Moosehead Grand Prix are listed as:

Category Time Driver Vehicle Event
Grand Prix Circuit: 1.850 km (1990–1995)
Formula 3000 0:45.357[3] Andrea Montermini Reynard 91D 1993 Moosehead Grand Prix
Formula Atlantic 0:47.625[4] Mark Dismore Swift DB4 1993 Mooshead Grand Prix at Halifax
WSC 1:05.269[5] Wayne Taylor Ferrari 333 SP 1995 Halifax 3 Hours
IMSA GTS-1 1:09.654[5] Irv Hoerr Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme 1995 Halifax 3 Hours
IMSA GTS-2 1:14.005[5] Bill Auberlen Porsche 911 1995 Halifax 3 Hours
Porsche Turbo Cup 1:16.306[6] Bill Adam Porsche 944 1990 Moosehead Grand Prix

Winners

American Indycar Series

Year Date Driver
1990 Aug 10 United States Bill Tempero [7]
1991 Sept 15 United States Jimmy Santos [8]
1992 Sept 13 United States Ken Petrie [9]

British F2 Championship

Season Date Laps Winning Driver Team Chassis/Engine
1993 July 11 70 Italy Andrea Montermini Junior Team Reynard 91D-Cosworth [10]
1994 July 10 60 Mexico Gianfranco Cane Fred Goddard Racing Reynard 90D-Cosworth [11]

IMSA Exxon World Sports Car Championship and Supreme GT Series

Year Date Laps WSC Winning Team GTS-1 Winning Team GTS-2 Winning Team
WSC Winning Drivers GTS-1 Winning Drivers GTS-2 Winning Drivers
1995 May 21 158 Laps United States #3 Scandia Racing Team
Ferrari 333 SP 		United States #75 Cunningham Racing
Nissan 300ZX V8 		Costa Rica #55 Jorge Trejos
Porsche 911 Carrera RSR 		[12]
Spain Fermín Vélez
Italy Mauro Baldi 		United States Johnny O'Connell Costa Rica Jorge Trejos
United States Danny Aase

Player's Toyota Atlantic Championship

Year Date Laps Driver Car
1993 July 11 60 Canada Trevor Seibert Swift DB-4/Toyota [13]

Rothmans Porsche Turbo Cup

Year Date Laps Driver Car
1990 Oct 7 19 Canada David Tennyson Porsche 944 Turbo Cup [14]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Halifax IMSA Circuit (1995)". theracingline.net. Retrieved 2013-04-24.
  2. ^ Charters, David A. (2007). The Chequered Past: Sports Car Racing & Rallying in Canada, 1951-1991. University of Toronto Press. pp. 239–241. ISBN 978-0-8020-9394-3.
  3. ^ "1993 Mooshead Grand Prix". Motor Sport Magazine. 11 July 1993. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Halifax, Moosehead Grand Prix at Halifax, July 11 Juillet 1993". 11 July 1993. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b c "Halifax 3 Hours 1995". 21 May 1995. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Halifax Moosehead Grand Prix of Halifax, October 7 Octobre 1990". 7 October 1990. Retrieved 28 January 2023.
  7. ^ "A Record of the American IndyCar Series United States Speedway Series 1988 - 2012" (PDF). wegcircuits.nl. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
  8. ^ "A Record of the American IndyCar Series United States Speedway Series 1988 - 2012" (PDF). wegcircuits.nl. Retrieved 2013-11-22.
  9. ^ "Moosehead Grand Prix American IndyCar Series race". ultimateracinghistory.com. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
  10. ^ "Moosehead Grand Prix, Halifax (CDN), July 11th 1993". Unofficial F3000. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
  11. ^ "Moosehead Grand Prix, Halifax (CDN), July 10th 1994". Unofficial F3000. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
  12. ^ "Moosehead Grand Prix". ultimateracinghistory.com. Retrieved 2013-11-20.
  13. ^ "1993 Player's Toyota Atlantic Championship". champcarstats.com. Retrieved 2013-11-21.
  14. ^ "1990 Rothmans Porsche Turbo Cup". autocourse.ca. Retrieved 2013-11-21.