IndyCar has announced the return of street circuit racing in Houston starting with the 2013 Grand Prix of Houston. The race, which will be held October 4th – 6th of 2013, will be run in the parking lots and streets of Reliant Park in a similar fashion to the 2006 and 2007 Champ Car Grand Prix of Houston races.
Mike Lanigan of Mi-Jack Promotions and co-owner of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing will serve as the Chairman and CEO of what is officially branded the Shell and Pennzoil Grand Prix of Houston. Lanigan served as the Chairman of the 2006 and 2007 Grand Prix of Houston as well as the Grand Prix of Cleveland events. Lanigan stated “We are thrilled to be returning to Houston. The Grand Prix was very successful in 2006 and 2007 , with big crowds at Reliant Park witnessing an exciting three-day festival of speed. In 2013 it will be better than ever.”
IndyCar CEO, Randy Bernard, said that there were many factors that contributed to the decision to put Houston on the 2013 schedule. “When we look at growing our schedule, one of our top objectives is to showcase our racing in major U.S. cities, which in turn helps our sponsors, team owners and television package and is key to the success of our sport,” he said. “As the fourth-largest city in the country, Houston is a great fit for the IZOD IndyCar Series and Reliant Park will be a tremendous venue.”
The course will be a 1.7-mile, 10-turn street circuit which will run on the streets of the Reliant Park complex. Drivers in the 2006 and 2007 Grand Prix of Houston events criticized the course as being too rough and miserable to drive on. Event organizers are confident however that the 2013 event will fix the issues with the track and provide drivers with a fantastic surface to race on.
Ticket prices and support races of the three-day event have not been announced as of yet, but details will be made available at http://www.grandprixofhouston.com.
