F1: FIA Unveils '12 Calendar, Austin GP Set For June 17

Formula 1

F1: FIA Unveils ‘12 Calendar, Austin GP Set For June 17

The United States Grand Prix in Austin is set for June 17, 2012...

Jared Turner | Posted June 03, 2011 Charlotte, NC

Austin Formula One CEO Bruce Knox (Left) and construction official Buddy Reed (Right) look over plans at the F1 site in Austin, Texas. (Photo: Mike Hembree, SPEED.com)

The inaugural United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, has been given a date of June 17, the FIA announced on Friday in revealing the entire 2012 Formula One schedule.

The announcement, one of several key decisions coming from a meeting of the World Motor Sport Council in Barcelona, Spain, should quiet any speculation that the Austin track — formally known as Circuit of the Americas — might not be ready in time to host Formula One next year.

Bahrain, which had its season-opening GP postponed in 2011 but has been rescheduled for Oct. 30, is set to open the 2012 season on March 11.

Twenty-one races make up the 2012 calendar, but Turkey's date of May 6 is provisional and subject to confirmation.

As originally planned for 2011 — before the rescheduling of Bahrain bumped India to the finale, the 2012 season will conclude in Brazil, with the final race set for Nov. 25.

Korea is moving up on the calendar and going back-to-back with China, although there's a break between the Chinese GP on April 8 and the Korean GP on April 22.

The Austin race, to be held a week after the Canadian Grand Prix, will be the first US Grand Prix since the 2007 race at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

The 3.4-mile, 20-turn Austin circuit was awarded the race on a 10-year contract, as F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone and event promoter Full Throttle Productions agreed to a deal beginning in 2012.

The 350-acre Texas site will accommodate an estimated race attendance of 120,000 guests. The total project, which comes with a price tag of $250 million, will employ some 1,300 Texans before its completion next year.

The Austin race will be the first F1 event held in Texas since the one-off race at Dallas in 1984.

The ownership group for the new facility consists of Texas businessman Red McCombs, race promoter Hellmund and Texas businessman Bobby Epstein.

The 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar is confirmed as follows:

3/11 Bahrain
3/18 Australia
4/1 Malaysia
4/8 China
4/22 Korea
5/6 Turkey *
5/20 Spain
5/27 Monaco
6/10 Canada
6/17 United States
7/1 Valencia, Spain
7/15 Great Britain
7/29 Germany
8/5 Hungary
9/2 Belgium
9/9 Italy
9/30 Singapore
10/14 Japan
10/28 India
11/11 Abu Dhabi
11/25 Brazil

* Subject to confirmation

Jared Turner is an Associate Editor for SPEED.com, covering NASCAR and Formula One, and is an Editor for TruckSeries.com. His professional motorsports writing career began in 2005.