Its F1 in the US of A week and here’s another good article I’ve found on my travels from Sportscardigest.com (abridged)
A Grand Prize?
If asked (outside the USA) what is the world’s foremost racing car series, most people would answer Formula 1. In its present format the series series consists of a yearly Grand Prix (French for Grand Prize) in each participating country though occasionally a countru has had 2 with the second being called ‘the Grand Prix of Europe’ or ‘Asia’. The Formula 1 series as one organised under the governance of the Federation Internationala de l’Automobile (FIA) only began in 1950.
However, the first Grand Prix – being country’s premier motorsport event – began long before that. The first one was held in 1906 near the city of Le Mans in France while the first U.S. GP was in 1908. A number of cities proposed hosting the first event, among them Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Atlanta. Even though Indianapolis offered considerable up-front money, the beautiful and picturesque Savannah, Georgia was selected by the Automobile Club of America (ACA).