THE HISTORY OF SACHSENRING

The Sachsenring was founded by Sepp Wagner and Paul Berger in the 1920s when they wanted to build on the motorcycle races that had already been held in the Hohenstein-Ernstthal area. Although their plan met with the disapproval of many locals, it was still successful, and in 1927, the first race was held on the new track.

The variant then measured 8.618 kilometres long. The circuit had something of everything - very fast passages, slow hairpins and frequent elevation changes. Although the circuit was popular, it was often the scene of accidents. The 1928 edition brought several injuries and even a fatality. For this reason, local officials decided to stop the race.

Fans had to wait until 1934 for the next race. In this case, the race was held as the German Grand Prix and was part of the European Championship.In the very first year after the track was returned to service, it was once again shown how dangerous it was. Accidents there killed Erik Haps, as well as European champions Gunnar Kalén and Pol Demeuter. In 1937, Jimmie Guthrie, another European champion, lost his life here. It was from the 1937 season onwards that the circuit started to use the name Sachsenring. 

After the war, the first races were held in 1949, and in 1961 the Sachsenring was even included in the World Championship calendar. There it became the venue for the East German Grand Prix, which ran until 1972. 

The foundation stones of the new era of the Sachsenring were laid in 1995 when a driver training centre was built south of the original route, which sparked the desire to return to the Sachsenring to race on the newly created variant. And this actually happened in 1996. The circuit still included sections of the original variant, but only to a lesserextent. It also started to be raced in the opposite direction to before. After the modifications, the circuit was only 3.517 kilometres long.

In 1998, itfinally returned to the World Championship and replaced the Nürburgring as host of the German Grand Prix.