Pedro Oliveira
One of the charms of Formula 1 is the great quantity and variety of destinations it has during the season, not only talking about the cities in charge of hosting the Grand Prix, but everything the circuit represents: its history, difficulty, prestige, and the atmosphere it carries with it during the race.
And those tracks that have been maintained since the beginning of motorsport are considered the most complicated and hard-fought every time. Therefore, we bring you this list of the 5 oldest Formula 1 Grand Prix that are still active to this day, and will still be present once the 2022 season kicks off.
Notice: in this ranking, we are taking into consideration the longevity that these Grand Prix have in Formula 1, not necessarily the age of the circuit in general.
5.- Spanish Grand Prix
Making its debut in elite competition for the first time in 1951 during the second official season of Formula 1, the circuit not only went through several track changes, but had an inconsistent presence in the early years of the tournament, appearing only in 1954 again until 1967 when it would become an almost permanent part of the annual tour (with exceptions from 1982 to 1985).
Currently, the track of choice is Catalunya, and has been since 1991. It is slowly becoming one of the classic circuits in the new era of motorsport. The top winner at the circuit is tied between Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton with 6 wins, while Ferrari is the most successful team with 13 victories.
4.- Italian Grand Prix
Technically, the traditional circuit held at Monza is the oldest in motorsport, but it was the last stop on the tour of the first Formula 1 season in 1950, and it is one of the classics of the tournament that has only received track changes a couple of times, apart from being the only grand prix that has never missed in any campaña (with 71 races contested so far).
Another of the great attractions of this location is the obvious locality of the Ferrari team, having one of the most passionate and demanding fans in the whole industry: Monza is the best place in Italy to carry out Formula 1.
Of course, Ferrari itself is the most successful team at this circuit, with 20 victories, and again, Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher share the podium of the drivers with the most wins, splitting 5 each.
3.- Belgian Grand Prix
Considered by many drivers and fans as the most complicated circuit and likely to give the most exciting races. There are several factors that attribute these titles to Spa-Francorchamps: the irregular weather conditions, a challenging course for any driver and it remains to this day, the longest circuit in all of Formula 1.
The Belgian prize has been around since the first automobile season in 1950, and has hosted 54 races in total. Michael Schumacher has been the driver who has conquered the Belgian grasslands the most times, with 6 first place finishes in total, while Ferrari also leads this circuit among teams, with 18 titles.
It is also considered one of the most picturesque and visually pleasing routes to witness.
2.- Monaco Grand Prix
In terms of popularity, there is no location or circuit like Monaco, which is treated as a tradition that should never be absent from a Formula 1 tournament.
The classic of the Monaco Grand Prix is how well preserved its history is since the beginning of its motorsport activity, with one of the most complicated tracks in the entire tournament due to the fact that they are authentic urban streets of the country where the drivers compete. This forces the competitors to reduce their speed drastically to adapt to the narrowness of the track, and initial positioning is of utmost importance.
It is one of the few races that are still held on the streets of the Grand Prix venue, although there are now several other Grand Prix that also use it on their circuits (Singapore, Montreal, Melbourne and Sochi are a few examples). Also, it is the shortest course among all the other tracks in the tournament, without even meeting the standards imposed by the FIA.
Monaco was the second race in the first season of Formula 1 in 1950, and has hosted a total of 67 editions. The track’s top winner is Brazil’s Ayrton Senna, with 6 victories, while McLaren is the most successful team with 15 victories.
1.- British Grand Prix
The first circuit to officially kick off the Formula 1 tournament in 1950, Silverstone is home to one of the most classic and competitive venues on the annual motorsport tour. Being a flat terrain (which used to be a military airfield for the United Kingdom during World War II, it is one of the fastest and most challenging curves to compensate for its simple structure.
Along with the Italian Grand Prix, they are the only two races that have never missed a season of the competition, although the Silverstone track has only hosted 54 races in its existence, and has been the fixed destination of the award since 1987 without exception.
It is recognized as one of the places with more culture and tradition within the guild, since the United Kingdom has a great influence in the world of racing and many of the teams within the Formula 1 itself are originally from the same country.
The top winner of the Grand Prix is none other than a local driver, Lewis Hamilton, who has eight career victories at Silverstone, while Ferrari once again leads the way among the teams with 16 wins.
