TRACK GUIDE: Get up to speed with the UK’s historic Donington Park Circuit
Check out the most critical areas of the circuit with Garett Gerloff as he breaks down what makes this venue special to him
The MOTUL FIM Superbike World Championship grid gets set to get the second half of the season rolling. For Round 7, the historic track hallowed in WorldSBK history, Donington Park Circuit, awaits. By Sunday evening after Race 2, the circuit will re-tie Misano for having hosted the third-most WorldSBK races of any venue ever, only behind Philipp Island and Assen. Donington was the site of the first-ever WorldSBK round back in 1988, and since then, Ducati has established itself as the manufacturer with the most podiums, 62, just six ahead of Kawasaki with 56.
Donington features five right-handed and seven left-handed turns, beloved by riders and fans alike for its distinctive layout. American rider Garrett Gerloff (Kawasaki WorldSBK Team) loves a ride at Donington, having earned one of his career-best results here back in 2021, earning P2.
On the track, Gerloff said: “Donington is unique to me because it has so much elevation, it feels pretty tight in some places. It gives me kind of an American feel, which is funny because it’s definitely a British-style track, but also lots of the tracks in America are like that. I remember enjoying the track from the first time I raced there, and now with the new asphalt, it’s even better.”
KEY SECTORS: All the Donington overtaking hotspots
The track opens up with a long straight leading into the T1 ‘Redgate’ heavy braking corner, where you put a knee down and flow to the right. This stretch of track is the #31’s favourite, as he puts it: “My favourite part of the track has to be that Turn 2 down to Turn 3 section, the drop before the ‘Old Hairpin’. When you get that section right, it feels great, but it's very difficult to do well. My favourite memory here was probably my P2 finish with Toprak.”
From T4’s heavy braking zone, the track glides into two long left-handed turns before coming back on the brakes and turning the bike over for the right-handed T7 ‘McLean’s’ corner. Turn 8 requires a good line to be taken as it spits riders out onto the long ‘Dunlop Straight’. One of the heaviest braking zones on the track, the T9 ‘Fogarty Esses’ slows riders down and creates overtaking windows as they navigate the turn and continue onto the final stretch of track. The T10 ‘Melbourne Hairpin’ and ‘Goddard’s’ T11 form a low-speed switchback which gives two final overtaking areas ahead of the sprint to the line to complete the loop.
Tune in to see Gerloff and the rest of the field take on Donington this weekend! Live or on-demand, race action is on your terms with the WorldSBK VideoPass! now 50% off!
