European Grand Prix The European Grand Prix is a special race in the Formula 1 championship series. Early on in the history of international auto racing, the Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus (AIACR), which is now known as the FIA (La Federation Internationale de l'Automobile), granted different grands prix the honorary title of the European Grand Prix each year.
Initially it wasn't a separate race but was a title given to one of the existing grand prixs. The first grand prix to receive the honour of staging the European Grand Prix was the Italian Grand Prix in 1923 followed by France a year later. This lasted until 1930 with the last title given to Belgium. The practice was discontinued with the onset of the two world wars.
When the European Grand Prix was revived in 1983 it was an independent race which replaced the New York race at the last minute. It was held at the Brands Hatch circuit in England and was won by Nelson Piquet. Such was the popularity of the European Grand Prix that fans lobbied for the event to continue which it did for just two more years before it was replaced with the Hungarian Grand Prix in 1986.
In 1993 the European Grand Prix was revived again with a view to it replacing cancelled grands prix. It was hosted by Spain, England and Germany. From 1999 the race was held annually at the Nürburgring in Germany until 2008 when Valencia in Spain became the new home of the race. It is scheduled to remain there until at least 2014 but with so many nations competing to host a grand prix it doesn't seem viable for one country to host two races during a season. The Spanish Formula One Grand Prix takes place at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona in May.
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