Time and Location

31 July, 6:00 am – 8:00 am GMT-7

Hungaroring, Mogyoród, Hungaroring utca 10, 2146 Hungary

​

General Information

The Hungarian Grand Prix is a motor racing event held annually in Mogyoród. Since 1986, the race has been a round of the FIA Formula One World Championship.

The first Hungarian Grand Prix was held on 21 June 1936 over a 5-kilometre (3.1-mile) track laid out in Népliget a park in Budapest. The Mercedes-Benz, Auto Union, and the Alfa Romeo-equipped Ferrari teams all sent three cars and the event drew a very large crowd. However, politics and the ensuing war meant the end of Grand Prix motor racing in the country for fifty years.

A major coup by Bernie Ecclestone, the 1986 Hungarian Grand Prix was the first Formula One race to take place behind the Iron Curtain. Held at the twisty Hungaroring in Mogyoród near Budapest, the race has been a mainstay of the racing calendar ever since. It was the only current Grand Prix venue that had never seen a wet race up until the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix. The first Grand Prix saw 200,000 people spectating, although tickets were expensive at the time. Today, the support is still very enthusiastic, particularly from Finns.

Due to the nature of the track, narrow, twisty, and often dusty because of under-use, the Hungarian Grand Prix is associated with processional races, with sometimes many cars following one another, unable to pass. Thierry Boutsen demonstrated this in 1990, keeping his slower Williams car in front of championship leader Ayrton Senna, unable to find a way by. Pit strategy is often crucial; in 1998, Michael Schumacher's Ferrari team changed his strategy mid-race before Schumacher built up a winning margin after all the stops had been made. Passing is a rarity here, although the 1989 race saw a bullish performance from Nigel Mansell in the Ferrari, who started from 12th on the grid and passed car after car, finally taking the lead when Ayrton Senna was balked by a slower runner. The circuit was modified slightly in 2003 in an attempt to allow more passing.

Other notable occasions in Budapest include the first Grand Prix wins for Damon Hill (in 1993), Fernando Alonso (in 2003, the first Grand Prix winner from Spain, and the youngest ever Grand Prix winner at the time), Jenson Button (in an incident-packed race in 2006), Heikki Kovalainen (in 2008, who also became the 100th winner of a World Championship race), and Esteban Ocon (in 2021). In 1997, Damon Hill came close to winning in the technically inferior Arrows-Yamaha, but his car lost drive on the last lap causing him to coast in second place. In 2014, Lewis Hamilton finished third, six seconds behind winner Daniel Ricciardo, despite starting the race from the pit lane.

In 2001, Michael Schumacher equaled Alain Prost's then-record 51 Grand Prix wins at the Hungaroring, in the drive which also secured his fourth Drivers' Championship which also matched Prost's career tally.

​

Most Successful Driver

Lewis Hamilton (8 wins)

​

Latest Winner

Esteban Ocon (2021)

​

​