Formula 1 legends immortalised as Hungaroring names every corner for 40th anniversary

All 14 turns have received official names as part of celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of the Hungarian Grand Prix. The final choices combine famous drivers, historic racing moments and locations connected to Hungary and the circuit.

Fans submitted suggestions during the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix before a panel of motorsport experts and journalists selected the winning names. Hamilton, Nigel Mansell and Jean Alesi have also left handprints which will be cast in concrete and installed permanently in the circuit’s run-off area.

Turn 2 will carry Hamilton’s name after his record-breaking performances at the Hungaroring. The seven-time World Champion is the circuit’s most successful driver, with eight Hungarian Grand Prix victories and nine pole positions.

Hamilton claimed his first Budapest victory for McLaren in 2007 and added another two before joining Mercedes. He then won five times for Mercedes, including three consecutive victories between 2018 and 2020.

Turn 1 has been named Piquet in recognition of Nelson Piquet, who won the first two Hungarian Grands Prix in 1986 and 1987. The opening corner was also the scene of one of Formula 1’s most celebrated overtakes when Piquet passed Ayrton Senna around the outside during the inaugural race.

Senna has been honoured separately at Turn 13. The Brazilian started the first Hungarian Grand Prix from pole position and later won at the circuit three times, in 1988, 1991 and 1992.

Turn 4 has been named Mansell, reflecting Nigel Mansell’s long and dramatic history at the Hungaroring. The Englishman  appeared set to win in 1987 before a loose right-rear wheel nut forced him to retire.

Two years later, he produced one of his greatest drives by charging from 12th on the grid to victory. The circuit then became the scene of his World Championship triumph in 1992, when second place secured the title with five races remaining.

Michael Schumacher’s name will be attached to Turn 12. The German won four Hungarian Grands Prix and delivered one of Ferrari’s most dominant weekends at the circuit in 2001.

Schumacher took pole position, victory and the fastest lap while securing his fourth Drivers’ Championship. Ferrari also sealed the Constructors’ Championship that weekend.

Turn 11 has officially become Alesi, formalising a name already commonly used by Hungarian Grand Prix supporters. The Frenchman crashed at that corner during practice in 1995 but escaped without serious injury.

The remaining corners recognise the geography and heritage surrounding the Hungaroring. Turn 3 is named Spring because the circuit sits in the Valley of the Three Springs. Turn 5 becomes Mogyorod, after the municipality in which the circuit is located and the nearby village closest to that section of the track.

The Turns 6 and 7 chicane has been named Driving Center, recognising Hungary’s first driver-training facility, which opened at the Hungaroring in 1998. Turns 8 and 9 become Buda and Pest, celebrating the circuit’s connection with Budapest and the two historic areas divided by the Danube.

Turn 10 is named Danube after the river running through the Hungarian capital. The final corner, Turn 14, has been named Szisz in honour of Hungarian-born engineer Ferenc Szisz. He worked as the head of Renault’s testing department and won the first event recognised as a Grand Prix, held in France in June 1906.

The Hungaroring hosted Formula 1 for the first time in 1986, becoming the championship’s first venue behind the Iron Curtain. Four decades later, its newly named corners provide a permanent record of the drivers, moments and Hungarian heritage that shaped its Formula 1 story.