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Added on the 16/07/2020 09:02:28 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
"With Sochi another double trip begins. The Russian Grand Prix arrives this year at the fifth edition: but the approach march has been much longer. More than a hundred years ago, in 1913 - that is, even before the advent of the USSR - the first race was run. At the beginning of the 2000s the tests of Sergej Zlobin and the project, never taken off, go back to create a circuit on the island of Nagatino (which is not an island, but a neighborhood. Other ideas, still in the Muscovite area, were not followed. Until the time when it was decided to move all 1600 kilometers further south, on the shores of the Black Sea. The rest is chronicle. The Sochi slope - which is actually closer to Adler - winds through the buildings of the Winter Olympics. It is characterized by a particularly smooth asphalt, which goes well with the soft compounds (Soft, Ultrasoft and Hypersoft, at the debut here) selected for the weekend. Temperatures should remain at late summer levels. The track combines a very fast section with a sector of right-angled curves. The distance between the starting line and the first corner is just over 400 meters, but in reality the first breakaway arrives long after, so that the riders at the start can exploit the trail of those preceding them. The 3-4 curve, a long semicircle on the left, is actually practically covered in full. Consumption is high and mechanical adhesion is not excessive, also due to the need to balance the wing load for fast sections. With Russia opens another back-to-back, or two races in two weeks. For the Scuderia Ferrari, Monday after the race it will be time to transfer men and materials to Japan for the Suzuka classic."
The Blancpain GT Endurance Cup will be back on track next weekend with the 1000 km of Paul Ricard. The race starts at 5:45 pm CET and ends in the middle of the night. Its length and features make it an excellent dry run for the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.
"The doyen of all Grands Prix returns to the calendar after an absence of ten years. The first race to be called a Grand Prix was held in France, 112 years ago at Le Mans. Back then, the track was triangular and measured 103 kilometres, of which 12 laps were required to make up the race distance. It was won by the Hungarian, Ferenc Szisz in a Renault, at a respectable average speed of 101.19 km/h. Many years later, F1 as we know it began and the French GP moved around various circuits: Reims, Le Mans, Rouen, Clermont-Ferrand and Dijon. Then, before the Magny-Cours facility was built, the lion’s share of races took place at the Le Castellet Circuit, otherwise known as Paul Ricard. The last race was held there in 1990 and was won by Alain Prost driving a Ferrari 641. From then on, the track was used for testing, with facilities for watering the track, but with no permanent grandstands. So now, the race returns to Provence with a race that kicks off F1’s first ever triple-header, with three GPs- France, Austria, Great Britain – one weekend apart, followed by a weekend off before two back-to-backs at Hockenheim and the Hungaroring. It makes for a very demanding schedule in the run up to the August break. Planning for three events, with one of them at what is effectively a brand new venue, is no easy logistical task. However, after Sunday’s race, our cars and a good part of the personnel, will return to Maranello. This will be a weekend of discovery on the 5.861 km long track, where the tyres available will be the Soft, Supersoft and Ultrasoft, with a construction similar to that used in Spain a month ago."
What is part of the calendar, after a ten-year absence, is the dean of all the Grand Prix. The first race with this title took place in France, 112 years ago, in Le Mans. What then was a triangular track of the length of ..., 103 kilometers and broken, to be repeated twelve times. The Hungarian Ferenc Szisz, on Renault, won the respectable average of 101.19 km / h. Many years later, the F1 era began and the French GP migrated several times on various circuits: Reims, Le Mans, Rouen, Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon ... but before that, in 1991, the Magny plant was inaugurated -Cours, the lion's share for the presences had it the Circuit du Castellet, or the Paul Ricard. What, after the last GP in the 90s (and won by Prost on Ferrari 641), had become, for Formula 1, a test track, equipped with artificial irrigation systems and without fixed stands. Now we are back in Provence, with a race that opens the first real "triple header", or three Grand Prizes at a distance of one week from each other. France, Austria, Great Britain. Then a weekend break that will precede two other races in succession, in Hockenheim and Hungaroring. A particularly demanding championship phase before the August break. Planning three trips, one of which on a virtually new infrastructure circuit, is not an easy task for logistics. After Sunday's race, however, the cars and most of the staff will return to Maranello. The weekend will be all to be discovered, on the track of 5,861 Km you will use Soft, Super soft and Ultrasoft tires, with a tread similar to the one used a month ago in Spain.
"Summer’s not over yet, but the Formula 1 summer break of definitely is. Scuderia Ferrari went back to work in full swing this week and now its drivers, Seb Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, are preparing for the race weekend at Spa-Francorchamps, a track that everyone loves. Four-time Spa winner Kimi added: “I really like the layout of this circuit, driving here is great. I preferred the old part of the track , at the Bus stop chicane, but apart from that bit, the circuit hasn’t changed too much. This place always brings good racing, so it’s nice for us and also for the spectators. We’ll see what the weather holds; here it can change very quickly, it might rain in one place and the next corner it can be dry. We’ll need to adapt the best that we can. As any other race it’s a bit of an unknown where we are going to be against the others; we will find out over the weekend and especially on Sunday. We’ll keep doing the same job we have done so far and then we’ll see what the outcome is”. "
"As far as race fans are concerned, a race weekend ends on a Sunday night and another one starts on a Thursday morning. But for a Formula 1 team, the race never ends. Last Sunday night, the Scuderia Ferrari trucks set off on the tortuous roads that run down the hill from Paul Ricard, jammed with traffic, to get back to Maranello in time for the race cars and equipment to be overhauled. Meanwhile, part of the team headed straight for Austria to set up the garage and paddock facilities. The rest of the crew will arrive in Spielberg over the coming days. It’s now the height of summer and the race in Styria has always been one of the classic events of the holiday season, with the odd exception such as the ’97 race, which was held in late September. It’s yet another reason to expect a good crowd, in an area famous for its natural beauty and the welcome it provides. There’s enough accommodation in the area, but it’s mainly guest houses, so that the F1 folk are scattered all around the villages in the area. The track has been modified over the years: the original one made use of the local airfield and was only 3.2 km in length and all it had in common with the current format was the very short lap time. Last year in qualifying, cars were lapping in around the 1m 4s mark and one could speculate that this year, with the Soft, Supersoft and Ultrasoft compounds on offer, we will see them crack the one minute barrier: weather permitting of course because at the moment the forecast says there’s a chance of thunderstorms, at least up until Friday."
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