- 6,293
- Canada
I enjoy wasting time thinking about tracks, imagining "dream calanders", and I've often spent time thinking about who has the best tracks.
My approach to making this list is focused on the the ribbons of tarmac, and not on the facilities, amenities, proximity to an airport, etc. I look specifically at the challenge presented to the drivers, and the racing that the track creates.
I'm also going by current tracks in their current configurations.
U.S.A. - yes, they have an advantage due to size, population...they have more tracks, period. But in my opinion, it's not just the quantity of tracks that puts America at the top, rather it's the quality of the tracks, along with the quantity. Simply put, there are a lot of good race tracks in America. Road America, Road Atlanta, Watkins Glen, Sebring, Daytona, Lime Rock, Atlanta Motorsport Park, Barber, VIR, Mid Ohio, COTA, Leguna Seca, Sonoma, Miller Motorsport Park, Thunderhill, Willow Springs, Buttonwillow, Long Beach, and Pikes Peak as a wildcard.
U.K., Germany - for me it's a tie for second between these two. I think the UK has more quality tracks than Germany, but Germany has the Nordschlief, which is a ringer if there ever was one. But then again there's Isle of Mann, so maybe I give a slight edge to the UK.
Italy, Spain, France - again I can't seperate these three. Similar to above, I'd say Italy and Spain have an edge over France, but then there's Le Mans. Pau does a lot for the French cause in my opinion as well.
Australia - this one moves around for me. Some days I rank it as high as Italy or Spain, other days it's just a little behind. There really is a great selection of tracks in Australia, such as Sydney Motorsport Park, Philip Island, Albert Park, Surfer's, Adelaide, and of course mighty Bathurst.
Japan - I have a bit of a soft spot for the the Japanese tracks, so maybe I rate them a little higher than they really deserve...oh well. I'm a big fan of Sugo, Autopolis, Fuji, and of course Suzuka. Okayama and Motegi are also quite good. Tsukuba is a ringer for sure
Portugal, Belgium, Brazil, Netherlands, New Zealand - another five I can't seperate. Belgium is there because of Spa and Zolder, but I don't know too many other tracks from the small country. Portugal has a handful of good tracks, and has the Vila Real street circuit. Holland has Assen, Zandvoort, and a few others. Brazil obviously has Interlagos, but has quite a few other very raw but rather brilliant little race tracks. Sometimes I almost forget about NZ until I actually really think about it, but NZ has a good number of quality circuits: Hampton Downs, Highlands, Christchurch, Pukekohe, Taupo, and Teretonga.
Argentina - I really don't know too much about the tracks here, but the few I know of are quite good. If I did more legwork, I have a feeling Argentina might move up the list.
Canada - only really has three good tracks that I'm aware of, Gille Villeneuve, Mount Tremblant, Mosport (CTMP)....and Molson Indy Toronto, so four I guess. There's also a few others like Shannonville, Trois Rivière, and Mission Raceway, but they're nothing special.
Hungary, Czech Rep - these two only have one track each that I really know of, but I rank both the Hungaroring and Brno quite high in terms of being world class circuits.
Malaysia - I really like the GP track here, one of the few good "new tracks". Singapore is alright for a street circuit.
Russia, China - not many tracks that I know of.
Sweden, Finland - I know I should have these on here somewhere, but I don't know much about either of them
Qatar, Dubai, Thailand, Mexico - only one track from each of these that I know of. The track WTCC and Super GT used in Thailand seemed rather simple, but made for some good racing. I've lapped the Dubai circuit in pCARS, and if it weren't for the massive runnoff areas, this is actually a pretty damn challenging track. Only ever seen Moto GP from Qatar, but it seems alright. I like the old Hermano Rodriguez more, but the new one is still pretty decent. I'm curiois to see a wider variety of cars on it...WEC should be interesting.
Bahrain, Abu Dhabi - I don't think much of either of these tracks 👎
That's about all I can think of, I'm getting tired. I know I probably forgot something, or got something horribly wrong How do you guys rank the tracks of the world by country?
My approach to making this list is focused on the the ribbons of tarmac, and not on the facilities, amenities, proximity to an airport, etc. I look specifically at the challenge presented to the drivers, and the racing that the track creates.
I'm also going by current tracks in their current configurations.
U.S.A. - yes, they have an advantage due to size, population...they have more tracks, period. But in my opinion, it's not just the quantity of tracks that puts America at the top, rather it's the quality of the tracks, along with the quantity. Simply put, there are a lot of good race tracks in America. Road America, Road Atlanta, Watkins Glen, Sebring, Daytona, Lime Rock, Atlanta Motorsport Park, Barber, VIR, Mid Ohio, COTA, Leguna Seca, Sonoma, Miller Motorsport Park, Thunderhill, Willow Springs, Buttonwillow, Long Beach, and Pikes Peak as a wildcard.
U.K., Germany - for me it's a tie for second between these two. I think the UK has more quality tracks than Germany, but Germany has the Nordschlief, which is a ringer if there ever was one. But then again there's Isle of Mann, so maybe I give a slight edge to the UK.
Italy, Spain, France - again I can't seperate these three. Similar to above, I'd say Italy and Spain have an edge over France, but then there's Le Mans. Pau does a lot for the French cause in my opinion as well.
Australia - this one moves around for me. Some days I rank it as high as Italy or Spain, other days it's just a little behind. There really is a great selection of tracks in Australia, such as Sydney Motorsport Park, Philip Island, Albert Park, Surfer's, Adelaide, and of course mighty Bathurst.
Japan - I have a bit of a soft spot for the the Japanese tracks, so maybe I rate them a little higher than they really deserve...oh well. I'm a big fan of Sugo, Autopolis, Fuji, and of course Suzuka. Okayama and Motegi are also quite good. Tsukuba is a ringer for sure
Portugal, Belgium, Brazil, Netherlands, New Zealand - another five I can't seperate. Belgium is there because of Spa and Zolder, but I don't know too many other tracks from the small country. Portugal has a handful of good tracks, and has the Vila Real street circuit. Holland has Assen, Zandvoort, and a few others. Brazil obviously has Interlagos, but has quite a few other very raw but rather brilliant little race tracks. Sometimes I almost forget about NZ until I actually really think about it, but NZ has a good number of quality circuits: Hampton Downs, Highlands, Christchurch, Pukekohe, Taupo, and Teretonga.
Argentina - I really don't know too much about the tracks here, but the few I know of are quite good. If I did more legwork, I have a feeling Argentina might move up the list.
Canada - only really has three good tracks that I'm aware of, Gille Villeneuve, Mount Tremblant, Mosport (CTMP)....and Molson Indy Toronto, so four I guess. There's also a few others like Shannonville, Trois Rivière, and Mission Raceway, but they're nothing special.
Hungary, Czech Rep - these two only have one track each that I really know of, but I rank both the Hungaroring and Brno quite high in terms of being world class circuits.
Malaysia - I really like the GP track here, one of the few good "new tracks". Singapore is alright for a street circuit.
Russia, China - not many tracks that I know of.
Sweden, Finland - I know I should have these on here somewhere, but I don't know much about either of them
Qatar, Dubai, Thailand, Mexico - only one track from each of these that I know of. The track WTCC and Super GT used in Thailand seemed rather simple, but made for some good racing. I've lapped the Dubai circuit in pCARS, and if it weren't for the massive runnoff areas, this is actually a pretty damn challenging track. Only ever seen Moto GP from Qatar, but it seems alright. I like the old Hermano Rodriguez more, but the new one is still pretty decent. I'm curiois to see a wider variety of cars on it...WEC should be interesting.
Bahrain, Abu Dhabi - I don't think much of either of these tracks 👎
That's about all I can think of, I'm getting tired. I know I probably forgot something, or got something horribly wrong How do you guys rank the tracks of the world by country?
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