The Autódromo José Carlos Pace, better known as Interlagos, is a motorsport circuit located in the city of São Paulo, in the neighborhood of Interlagos. It was inaugurated on 12 May 1940, by the federal intervener Adhemar de Barros. The traditional name of the circuit and of the neighborhood itself comes from the fact that it is located in a region between two large artificial lakes, Guarapiranga and Billings, which were built in the beginning of the 20th century to supply the city with water and electricity. In 1985 the circuit was renamed to honor the Formula 1 driver José Carlos Pace, who died in a plane crash in 1977. Attached to its facilities there is a Kart circuit named after Ayrton Senna. The circuit runs counterclockwise. It is internationally known for hosting the Formula 1 Brazilian Grand Prix stage and the Lollapalooza music festival. It has hosted the Formula One Brazilian Grand Prix since 1973. It also hosted the Brazilian motorcycle Grand Prix in 1992, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft in 1996, the FIA GT1 World Championship in 2010, and the FIA World Endurance Championship from 2012 to 2014. As the major racetrack in the country it also hosted many previous and active national championships such as Stock Car Brasil, Campeonato Sudamericano de GT, Fórmula Truck, Copa Truck, Formula 3 Sudamericana, Brazilian Formula Three Championship, and Mil Milhas Brasil. In addition, the Prova Ciclística 9 de Julho road cycling race was held at the venue from 2002 to 2006 and from 2008 to 2013. History The land on which the circuit is located was originally bought in 1926 by property developers who wanted to build housing. Following difficulties partly due to the 1929 stock market crash, it was decided to build a racing circuit instead, construction started in 1938 and the track was inaugurated on 12 May 1940. The design was inspired by the tracks of Indianapolis Motor Speedway and Roosevelt Raceway (1937 layout) in the United States, Brooklands in England, and Montlhéry in France. The traditional name of the circuit (literally, "between lakes") comes from its location on the neighborhood of Interlagos, a region between two large artificial lakes, Guarapiranga and Billings, which were built in the early 20th century to supply the city with water and electric power. The name of this region was suggested by the French architect and urban planner Alfred Agache after the Interlaken region