Sokol International Racetrack

Sokol International Racetrack at a glance

Location

Mezhdurechenskoye, Almaty Region, Almaty Region

Type

road course

Length

4.495 km (2.793 mi)

Turns

13

Surface

asphalt

Owner

developed by Kazakh businessman Alijan Ibragimov

Capacity

74,000

Website

sokolracetrack.kz

Track map and layout

The Sokol International Racetrack is a Hermann Tilke-designed permanent circuit roughly 76 km northwest of Almaty, planned as a Grade 2-homologated venue with a main 4.495 km, 13-turn 'Big Ring' configuration alongside shorter Big Ring with Chicane, Small Ring and Small Ring with Chicane layouts to suit different categories of racing. Construction has stretched over more than a decade, with an accompanying go-kart track and drag strip opening in 2016 well ahead of the main circuit, whose principal structures were only completed around 2019-2020 and whose final asphalt layer was laid in September 2022. Despite the physical track being largely finished, the facility has never been fully homologated for a world championship event, and as of 2026 it has still never hosted an official international race.

Configurations

Events and race weekends

The Sokol International Racetrack has never hosted a world championship race. A Kazakhstan motorcycle Grand Prix was signed with MotoGP through a contract running to 2028, but the inaugural 2023 event was cancelled over incomplete homologation work, a rescheduled 2024 date was cancelled after severe flooding damaged the region around the circuit, and the race was left off the 2025 calendar entirely as construction remained unfinished. As of the 2026 calendar there is still no confirmed date for a Kazakhstan round.

Getting there and parking

The circuit sits around 76 km northwest of Almaty near the village of Mezhdurechenskoye, reached by road from the city; there is no dedicated public transport link, and since the venue has not yet hosted a major event there is no established visitor or spectator transport arrangement.

• Almaty International Airport (ALA) · about 90 min drive

Hotels and camping near Sokol International Racetrack

Visitors would base themselves in Almaty, Kazakhstan's largest city and about an hour and a half's drive from the circuit by road, which has the country's widest range of international hotels; there is no dedicated accommodation cluster near the track itself.

Where to look

Almaty city centre for the full range of international hotel options, roughly 76 km from the circuit.

Track days, driving experiences and lap records

There is no public track-day, driving-experience or spectator programme at the Sokol International Racetrack; the facility remains incompletely homologated and has never hosted an official race, so there is no established commercial access to the circuit for enthusiasts.

Spectator guide

There is no active spectator event at the Sokol International Racetrack, despite a listed grandstand capacity of 74,000 built in anticipation of hosting MotoGP; repeated cancellations mean the facility has never actually welcomed a paying race crowd.

Weather

• Year-round: continental climate; hot, dry summers and cold winters typical of the Almaty region

History of Sokol International Racetrack

An ambitious project a decade in the making

The Sokol International Racetrack was announced in July 2012 by Kazakh businessman Alijan Ibragimov, with a planned investment of around US$40 million to build a Hermann Tilke-designed, FIA Grade 2-standard circuit roughly 76 km northwest of Almaty. Construction began in 2014, and by 2016 an accompanying go-kart track and drag strip had opened, with motorcycling star Jorge Lorenzo involved in the early promotion of the project, well before the main circuit itself was finished.

Stalls, floods and repeated cancellations

Work on the main circuit's principal structures dragged on and was only substantially completed around 2019-2020, with the final layer of asphalt laid in September 2022. Shortly afterward, organisers announced a Kazakhstan motorcycle Grand Prix on the 2023 MotoGP calendar under a contract intended to run through 2028, but the race was cancelled before it could take place, with organisers citing unfinished homologation work. A rescheduled attempt for 2024 was cancelled after severe flooding across Central Asia damaged infrastructure in the region around the circuit, compounding the ongoing construction delays.

Still waiting for its first race

With homologation still incomplete, MotoGP left Kazakhstan off its 2025 calendar entirely for the first time since the race was originally scheduled, and as of the 2026 season there remains no confirmed date for a Kazakhstan round. Despite more than a decade of construction and a stated grandstand capacity of 74,000, the Sokol International Racetrack has yet to host a single official international motorsport event, making its future as an active venue uncertain.

Frequently asked questions