Circuit Mont-Tremblant is a road racing circuit located in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec, approximately north of Montreal, Canada. It is the second-oldest racing circuit in the country. Originally known as Circuit Mont-Tremblant–St-Jovite, the venue was renamed in the 1970s. Situated near the Mont-Tremblant ski resort, the circuit features a twisting fifteen-corner layout that follows the natural topography and elevation changes of the surrounding terrain.

History

The concept for Circuit Mont-Tremblant originated with local business owners and hoteliers seeking to extend tourism beyond the winter ski season. Construction was completed in two phases. The original layout opened in 1964, and the circuit was extended the following year to . thumb|left|The Control Tower and start-finish straight, looking west against the flow of the circuit, towards the Namerow corner.

The 1960s – 1970s

Circuit Mont-Tremblant hosted its inaugural race on 3 August 1964 on the original twelve-corner layout. By September of that year, construction of the bridge, pit stalls, and media and officials’ facilities had been completed, enabling the circuit to host sports car and prototype events.

The expanded circuit debuted in September 1965 with the Player's Quebec Sports Car Race. On 11 September 1966, the circuit hosted its first Canadian-American Challenge Cup (Can-Am) race. In 1967 and 1968, it hosted consecutive USAC Indy Car twin 100-mile double-header events.

The circuit hosted the Formula One Canadian Grand Prix on two occasions, in 1968 and 1970. The 1970 event was notable for marking the Formula One debut of Tyrrell Racing as a constructor.

Throughout the late 1960s and 1970s, Circuit Mont-Tremblant was a regular venue for major North American racing series, including Can-Am, Trans-Am, Formula 5000, and Formula Atlantic.

Notable drivers who competed at Circuit Mont-Tremblant during this period include Mario Andretti, Chris Amon, Alan Jones, A. J. Foyt, Gordon Johncock, Parnelli Jones, Jacky Ickx, Denny Hulme, Bruce McLaren, Mark Donohue, Dan Gurney, Roger Penske, Peter Revson, Jochen Rindt, Jackie Stewart, John Surtees, Al and Bobby Unser, and Gilles Villeneuve.

The 1980s – 1990s

During the 1980s and 1990s, Circuit Mont-Tremblant regularly hosted prominent Canadian national racing series, including the Rothmans Porsche (Turbo) Cup, Players GM Challenge Series, Honda-Michelin Series, Export A Formula 2000, and the Canadian Formula 1600 Championship. These series played a significant role in the development of Canadian racing talent, including Paul Tracy, Scott Goodyear, Ron Fellows, Greg Moore, Richard Spenard, Patrick Carpentier, and Alex Tagliani.

The Jim Russell Racing School

Circuit Mont-Tremblant is home to the Jim Russell Racing Driver School, established in 1969. The school has produced a number of internationally successful drivers, including Gilles Villeneuve, Jacques Villeneuve, Lance Stroll, and Nicholas Latifi.

A CIK-FIA–rated karting facility was added in 2010 to support driver development programs and has hosted Canadian national karting events.

The 2000s – present

In the 2000s, new ownership initiatives focused on upgrading the facility to improved FIA standards while preserving the circuit's original character. Improvements included track resurfacing and widening, pit lane expansion, and increased run-off areas. These upgrades enabled the return of major racing categories, including sports car racing, open-wheel events, superbike racing, and historic motorsport.

The circuit continues to be used extensively for club racing, corporate events, manufacturer programs, and vehicle launches. On 21 July 2022, the Circuit Mont-Tremblant complex was acquired by 11938053 Canada Inc., a company owned by Montreal businessman Gad Bitton of the Holand Automotive Group.

Events

; Current

  • May: Classique Printemps
  • July: Classique Été
  • September: Classique Automne

; Former

  • Atlantic Championship (1975–1976, 2007–2008)
  • Can-Am
  • Mont-Tremblant Can-Am (1966, 1969–1971, 1977–1978)
  • Canadian Superbike Championship (2003–2004, 2006–2007, 2012–2013)
  • Canadian Touring Car Championship (2012–2013)
  • Champ Car World Series
  • Mont-Tremblant Champ Car Grand Prix (2007)
  • Formula One
  • Canadian Grand Prix (1968, 1970)
  • Grand-Am Cup (1998, 2002–2004)
  • IMSA GT3 Cup Challenge Canada (2012, 2019)
  • Rolex Sports Car Series
  • 6 Hours of Mont-Tremblant (2002–2005)
  • SCCA Continental Championship (1967, 1969–1970)
  • Trans-Am Series
  • Trois Heures du Circuit (1968–1971, 1977–1978)
  • USAC Championship Car
  • Saint-Jovite 200 (1967–1968)
  • United States Road Racing Championship (1968)

Former series and major race winners

FIA Formula One World Championship

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"

|-

! Year

! Race

! Driver

! Constructor

! Report

|-

! 1968

| rowspan="2"|Player's Canadian Grand Prix

| Denny Hulme

| McLaren-Ford

| Report

|-

! 1970

| Jacky Ickx

| Ferrari

| Report

|}

Champ Car World Series

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Race

! Driver

! Team

! Chassis

! Engine

! Report

|-

! 2007

| Mont-Tremblant Champ Car Grand Prix

| Robert Doornbos

| Minardi Team USA

| Panoz DP01

| Cosworth

| Report

|-

|}

USAC Championship Car (IndyCar)

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Race

! Driver

! Team

! Chassis

! Engine

|-

! 1967

| Labatt Indy

| Mario Andretti

| Dean Racing Enterprises

| Brawner Hawk

| Ford

|-

! 1968

| Saint-Jovite 200

| Mario Andretti

| Andretti Racing Enterprises

| Brawner Hawk

| Ford

|-

|}

SCCA Can-Am Series

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Race

! Driver

! Team

|-

! 1966

| Sept 11

| Player's 200

| John Surtees

| #3 Team Surtees

|-

! 1969

| June 15

| Labatt's 50

| Denny Hulme

| #5 McLaren Cars

|-

! 1970

| June 28

| Mont-Tremblant 50

| Dan Gurney

| #48 Bruce McLaren Motor Racing

|-

! 1971

| June 27

| Mont-Tremblant 50

| Jackie Stewart

| #1 Carl Haas Racing

|-

! 1977

| June 12

|

| Tom Klausler

| Schkee Cars

|-

! 1978

| June 25

|

| George Follmer

| U.S. Racing

|}

SCCA Trans-Am Series

{| class="sortable wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Race

! Drivers

! Car

! Distance/Duration

|

|-

! 1968

| July 21

| Les Trois Heures du Circuit

| Mark Donohue

| Chevrolet Camaro

| 3 Hours / 96 Laps <br />

|

|-

! 1969

| Aug 3

| Les Trois Heures du Circuit

| Mark Donohue

| Chevrolet Camaro

| 3 Hours / 97 Laps <br />

|

|-

! 1970

| Aug 2

| Le Circuit Trans-Am

| Mark Donohue

| AMC Javelin

| 70 Laps <br />

|

|-

! 1970

| Aug 2

| Le Circuit Trans-Am

| Mark Donohue

| AMC Javelin

| 70 Laps <br />

|

|-

! 1977

| Sept 11

| Molson Trans-Am

| Peter Gregg

| Porsche 934

| 38 Laps <br />

|

|-

! 1978

| June 25

| Molson Trans-Am

| Monte Shelton

| Porsche 935

| 38 Laps <br />

|

|}

SCCA United States Road Racing Championship

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Race

! Over 2.0 Winning Driver

! Over 2.0 Winning Team

! Under 2.0 Winning Driver

! Under 2.0 Winning Team

|

|-

! 1968

| June 2

| Championnat Nord-Americain

| Mark Donohue

| #6 Roger Penske Racing

| Horst Kroll

| #37 Altona Motors

|

|}

SCCA Formula 5000

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Race

! Driver

! Chassis

! Engine

|

|-

! 1967

| Sept 17

| St Jovite Grand Prix

| Fred Ashplant

| Brabham BT21

| Ford

|

|-

! 1969

| Sept 7

| Le Circuit Continental

| David Hobbs

| Surtees TS5

| Chevrolet

|

|-

! 1970

| Aug 1

| Le Circuit Continental

| George Follmer

| Lotus 70

| Ford

|

|-

|}

Atlantic Championship

{| class="sortable wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Driver

|

|-

! 1975

| July 6

| Elliott Forbes-Robinson

|

|-

! 1976

| July 11

| Gilles Villeneuve

|

|-

! 2007

| July 1

| Franck Perera

|

|-

! 2008

| June 29

| Junior Strous

|

|}

Grand American Road Racing Championship

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Race

! Driver

! Team

! Chassis

! Engine

|

|-

! 2002

| Sept 15

| rowspan="4"|6 Heures du Circuit Mont-Tremblant

| Didier Theys<br> Fredy Lienhard Sr.<br> Fredy Lienhard Jr.

| #27 Doran Lista Racing

| Dallara LMP

| Judd

|

|-

! 2003

| Sept 21

| David Donohue<br> Mike Borkowski<br>Sascha Maassen

| #58 Brumos Racing

| Fabcar FDSC/03

| Porsche

|

|-

! 2004

| May 23

| Scott Pruett<br> Max Papis

| #01 CompUSA Chip Ganassi with Felix Sabates

| Riley MkXI

| Lexus

|

|-

! 2005

| May 21

| Milka Duno <br> Andy Wallace<br> Jan Lammers

| #2 CITGO Howard-Boss Motorsports

| Crawford DP03

| Pontiac

|

|-

|}

Canadian Superbike Championship

{| class="sortable wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;"

|-

! Year

! Date

! Driver

! Motorcycle

|

|-

! 2003

| August 17

| Tom Kipp

| Kawasaki ZX-7RR

|

|-

! 2004

| August 22

| Jordan Szoke

| Honda CBR1000RR

|

|-

! 2006

| June 4

| Jordan Szoke

| Kawasaki ZX-10RR

|

|-

! 2007

| June 3

| Jordan Szoke

| Kawasaki ZX-10RR

|

|-

! 2012

| August 12

| Jordan Szoke

| BMW S1000RR

|

|-

! 2013

| August 25

| Jordan Szoke

| BMW S1000RR

|

|-

|}

Lap records

As of September 2019, the fastest official race lap records at Circuit Mont-Tremblant (St. Jovite) are listed as:

{| class="wikitable"

!Category!!Time!!Driver!!Vehicle!!Event

|-

! colspan=5 | Road Course (2004–present):

|-

| Champ Car || 1:17.327 || Sébastien Bourdais || Panoz DP01 || Champ Car Mont-Tremblant 07

|-

| Formula Atlantic || 1:21.157 || Carl Skerlong || Swift 016.a || 2007 Mont-Tremblant Formula Atlantic round

|-

| Daytona Prototype || 1:29.308 || Max Angelelli || Riley MkXI || 2004 6 Hours of Mont-Tremblant

|-

| GT1 (GTS) || 1:31.856 || Tommy Riggins || Ford Mustang || 2003 6 Hours of Mont-Tremblant

|-

| GT || 1:35.910 || Parker Thompson || Porsche 911 (991 II) GT3 Cup || 2019 Mont-Tremblant Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge round

|-

| Superbike || 1:39.711 || Jordan Szoke || BMW S1000RR || 2013 Mont-Tremblant CSBK round

|-

| Supersport || 1:42.080 || Francis Martin || Suzuki GSX-R600 || 2007 Mont-Tremblant CSBK round

|-

| SGS || 1:42.301 || Michel Bonnet || Vector MG95 || 2011 Mont-Tremblant Canadian F1600 round

|-

| ST || 1:46.847 || Mathieu Audette || Acura RSX Type S || 2013 Mont-Tremblant CTCC round

|-

! colspan=5 | North Road Course: (2004–present): || Jordan Szoke || Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R || 2008 Mont-Tremblant CSBK round

|-

| Supersport || 1:23.482 || Chris Peris || Suzuki GSX-R600 || 2008 Mont-Tremblant CSBK round

|-

! colspan=5 | Road Course (1965–2003): || Fredy Lienhard, Jr. || Dallara SP1 || 2002 6 Hours of Mont-Tremblant

|-

| DP || 1:31.176 || Alan Jones || Lola T333CS || 1978 Mont-Tremblant Can-Am round

|-

| Formula Atlantic || 1:35.033 || Gilles Villeneuve || March 76B || 1976 Mont-Tremblant Formula Atlantic round

|-

| American GT || 1:35.233 || George Follmer || Lotus 70 || 1970 Mont-Tremblant F5000 round

|-

| Trans-Am || 1:41.513 || Ludwig Heimrath || Porsche 934/5 || 1977 Mont-Tremblant Trans-Am round

|-

| Group 7 || 1:44.900 || Bruce McLaren || McLaren-Elva Mk.IIB Chevrolet || 1966 Labatt 50

|-

| Group 4 || 1:46.200 || John Surtees || Lola T70 Mk.2 || 1965 Player's Québec Mont-Tremblant

|-

| Porsche Carrera Cup || 1:46.932 || Sam Posey || Chevrolet Camaro || 1968 Mont-Tremblant 3 Hours

|-

| Group 3 || 1:56.700 || Jean-Paul Ostiguy || AC Cobra || 1967 St. Jean 67, U.S.A.M. Mont-Tremblant

|-

! colspan=5 | Original North Road Course (1964–2003): || Jim Hall || Chaparral 2A || 1965 La Course Labatt 50

|-

| Prototype || 1:16.600 || Pedro Rodríguez<br />Ludwig Heimrath || Ferrari 275 P<br />Cooper T61 || 1964 Player's Québec Trophy

|-

| Formula Junior || 1:20.800 || Walt Mackay<br />Norm Evenden || Lotus 18<br />Cooper-Chevrolet || 1964 Regional Mont-Tremblant (Invitational)<br />1964 Regional Mont-Tremblant (Trophy)

|-

| Group 3 || 1:21.700 || Jean Ouellet || AC Cobra || 1964 Regional Mont-Tremblant (Main)

|-

|}

See also

  • List of auto racing tracks in Canada
  • Other Montreal area race tracks
  • Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
  • Circuit ICAR
  • Sanair Super Speedway

Notes

References

  • The Chequered Past: Sports Car Racing and Rallying in Canada, 1951–1991 By David A. Charters
  • Official site