Uruguay's illustrious motorsport history
It was in 2014 that the beautiful Punta del Este, also nicknamed as the ‘Monaco of South America’ was placed for the first time on the electric racing world stage, when it played host to the then fledgling series - Formula E.
Jewel in the crown, Punta del Este is situated just north of capital city Montevideo – and Colonia del Sacramento. Over the years, this renowned street circuit has also hosted a number of championships on various layouts including Formula 2 and Formula 3 which have both raced around the 3.4km seaside resort, as has the famous Argentinean TC 2000 touring car championship and World Touring Car Championship.
Two current Extreme E protagonists ABT and Andretti Autosports, who also field teams within Formula E, have had first-hand experience of the Uruguayan circuit, although the terrain could not be more different this time for their off-road ODYSSEY 21s!
But let’s also take a look back at Uruguay’s remarkable motorsport past.
Back as far as 1913, this relatively small nation hosted its first race, but it was not until the 1950s when the country made a real impact on the world motor racing stage.
With the formation of the Formula One World Championship at the beginning of the ‘50s’, which included a round in neighbouring Argentina, Uruguayan racing stars of that time, the likes of Alberto Uria and Oscar González, used this race to demonstrate their skills to the European teams and drivers.
In the 1960s, resourceful Uruguayan drivers took advantage of the lack of import duty on touring cars in their country to acquire faster machines than those driven by their Argentinean and Brazilian rivals. Using these cars, Uruguayan drivers notched up a number of class wins in the multiple stage, open road Gran Premio Internacional de Turismo races for touring cars that were held in Argentina between 1957 and 1975.
In the single-seater world at the same time, Uruguay’s brightest hope was Alberto Passadore – a driver on the rise in junior formula championships in South America. Tragically he was killed in 1964 at the first round of the Argentine Temporada for Formula Junior cars.
Gonzalo Rodriguez – although in the end sadly ill-fated - was arguably Uruguay’s most famous and successful racing driver. Rodriguez raced for three seasons in Formula 3000 between 1997 and 1999 where he scored three victories at the famous Spa-Franchorchamps, Nürburgring and Monaco circuits. Rodriguez finished in third place in the Formula 3000 standings in consecutive seasons in 1998 and 1999, and in the latter year he was attempting to forge a successful career in open-wheel racing in North America.
After finishing 12th on his CART debut for Team Penske in Detroit, Gonzalo was killed during practice for his next race at Laguna Seca.
The Uruguayans also have a passion for off-road motorsport and still celebrate one of their most successful rally stars, Gustavo Trelles. Trelles competed actively in the World Rally Championsip from 1988 to 1993 predominantly with a Lancia Delta Integrale and from 1996 to 2002 in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution.
Fast forward to the present day, Uruguay is also proud to strongly advocate female participation in motorsport. Hopeful 19-year-old racer, Maite Cáceres might well be the future of motorsport here.
She comes from a line of industry professionals – her father, Fernando was a rally driver whilst her brother Juan, raced in ChampCar and Italian Formula 3000 and remains the only Uruguayan to ever test a Formula 1 car when he sampled a Minardi in 2005.
Maite's first taste of success came in San Jose during the Uruguayan National Karting Championship, where she achieved her first podium. She then made her debut in Uruguayan Formula 4 in October 2021. Cáceres demonstrated her worth with a podium finish in El Pinar, after an intense wet race where she initially qualified last. She then also tested for female-only championship, W Series early in 2022 with 15 prospective other young hopefuls at Inde Motorsports Ranch in Arizona.
In addition to its drivers, Uruguay also boasts impressive racing venues, on and off-road. The Rally del Atlántico-Minas is an international rally racing event held in the Lavalleja Department of Uruguay and based out of the department capital, Minas. The event features on the Codasur South American Rally Championship and the Uruguayan Rally Championship.
Circuit-wise, the long abandoned Piriápolis Autodrome famously hosted a two-round series of races in 1952 that featured several top-tier drivers including Juan Manuel Fangio, José Froilan González, Maurice Trintignant and Prince Bira in contemporary Formula One machinery.
Fast forward to the present day, and the Extreme E course in Punta del Este will host the latest chapter in Uruguay’s motorsport history.
