In early October, the F4 CEZ Championship and touring and sports car races will head to the brand new Hungarian circuit, Balaton Park. It will be the first true racing test for the track facility and the organizers.
“We had several events this year, including tests, but this will be the first racing weekend at the track. We are very pleased to be part of this historical moment,” said Adrienn Walterné Dancsó, the operational manager of the motorsport department at Balaton Park Circuit. She also works at Főnix Motorsport, which is taking care of the October event.
“There is a lot of work to prepare for the racing weekend. This time, we are also involving our local colleagues to learn and get prepared for future racing events at BPC,” Dancsó continued.
The track is 4,115 meters long and varies in width from 12 to 15 meters, with six right turns and ten left turns. “We had several test days and an open day, and everyone liked the layout. Although it looks easy, it is not easy to find the right ideal line and rhythm. Their general feedback is very promising,” added Dancsó.
“We can host FIA Grade 2 events, and starting from 2024, FIM Grade A motorcycle events. We have three large lounges above the pit garages with a direct view of the starting straight/pit lane. We have a very good local restaurant called Lavender, 48 pit garages, and approximately 40,000 m2 of asphalted paddock and parking spaces,” said Dancsó. The circuit also offers a large media center, a medical center, and two additional support paddock areas. A 145-room 4-star hotel with a direct view of the circuit is currently under construction.
The president of Balaton Park Circuit is Chanoch Nissany, a former Israeli-Hungarian driver who drove for Minardi F1 in free practice at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2005 at Hungaroring. The famous Formula 1 track in Budapest also hosts the ESET Cup and TCR Eastern Europe every year in April, but there is uncertainty about the next season, as Dancsó explains: “We are trying to organize the ESET Cup at Hungaroring, but due to planned reconstruction works, it is not possible to secure a guaranteed date in spring. So we will see, but we have also booked the same date at BPC just to be sure. We have to make a decision by the end of next month.”