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Added on the 12/06/2018 14:11:00 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
Dodge Europe made its debut as WorldSBK Official Car at Catalunya GP, kick-starting its partnership for the 2024 season in one of the most exciting sporting weekends to date.The collaboration aligns perfectly with the strong and bold essence that has always defined the American brand, marking its inaugural entry into the realm of WorldSBK through an exclusive partnership, alongside other top Brands in the motorsport arena.For the 2024 collaboration, Dodge Europe provides a fleet of five high-performance and iconic model vehicles featuring a unique 'WorldSBK' total look livery specially designed for the partnership, which carry out different functions. Two Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, equipped with the iconic 6.2L HEMI V8 engine producing 717 Hp, will take on the role of Official Safety Cars of the competition; one Dodge Durango SRT, with 6.4-litre HEMI V8 engine producing 475 hp, and one Dodge Durango Hellcat SUV, with 6.2-litre HEMI V8 engine producing 710 hp, will instead serve as the Race Direction and FIM Safety Officer official cars.All models are production cars, with no special mods, ready to face all the complex and stressful track operations that normally undergo in a such a packed weekend of world-class racing competition.Furthermore, the American brand took the spotlight also during the exciting award ceremonies after each race, through three visibility sources: the Dodge Brand displayed on the top podium step, “product on track” billboards, and with a third Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye as a static Expo Car alongside the podium.
The Barcelona-Catalunya circuit returns to the layout used up until 2006, doing away with the chicane in the third sector, as it hosts the seventh round of the season, the Spanish Grand Prix. It is Carlos Sainz’s home race, at which he finished fourth last year, his best ever home result in Spain.
Barcelona, Jun 4 (EFE) .- (Camera: EFE) When Marc Márquez gets on his bike, he is mentally prepared but physically he’s not quite there yet, he tells Efe in an interview. FOOTAGE OF THE INTERVIEW WITH MARQUEZTRANSLATIONThe six-times MotoGP champion is still recovering from a fractured humerus he suffered during the 2020 Spanish Grand Prix in Jerez, which has required three surgeries.Speaking ahead of the Catalan GP, he explains that his results on the track have taken a back seat for now and that he is more focused on regaining his mental composure on the Honda. The Spaniard does not rule out gunning for a podium position, or even a race win, in the latter part of the season. “When I got back on the motorbike for the first time in Portimao, I was excited, to believe that things would go well. I felt the same in Jerez. But that excitement meant frustration. Being hopeful is one thing, reality is another,” he says. “You can have hope, but you also need to be clear about how far you can go. You should approach things with optimism while being realistic.”At first he thought his recovery would be smooth but it has been something of a rollercoaster.“There are irritations, pains. First one arises, then another. An inflammation here, and inflammation there. “It’s forced me to put my excitement to one side and concentrate on the moment, accept what I’m going through and draw different motivations from it.”Rather than focusing on results on the circuit, he is taking motivation from noticing improvements in how he feels and what he is capable of doing on the bike. “Driving the bike, my head is one space but my body doesn’t follow.“The best psychological treatment for me is to be surrounded by my loved ones and to keep clear objectives,” he adds.“I don’t hit the majority of my objectives because I set them too high. But I get around to them later. At the moment, the only thing I need is my surroundings, my team and my family.“You need to remember where you came from, because you quickly forget that, as well as be clear on where you want to end up. It’s a difficult change to accept because you give it your all every weekend and almost all the other drivers are going faster than me. It’s something I need to accept if I’m going to get to where I want to be.”Márquez says he wants to reach the same level he was at before the accident.“No more, no less. That’s what we’re working towards. In life, we have the law of gravity. It takes a lot of effort to climb something, but dropping down is quick. All of a sudden you go down with no effort at all.”Nine months is a long recovery process, and in that time he says everything has gone through his mind, including fears that he might not be able to return to his normal top level of racing. There were moments he was unable to eat with his right hand, and times when he couldn’t move it at all, he explains. But after the third operation, things have started to improve. “When it comes to strength, right now I’m not at all bad in the gym, but when I get on the bike I get discomforts that cause me pain and inhibit my strength. “I asked for an opinion from my doctor, and he was clear: ‘do not forget that we told you the recovery period would be from six months to a year. You’ve just reached six months. You’ve got back on the bike early because the bone healed and we said you were ready, but be aware that your discomfort will remain for the rest of the year’.”
Just one week on from the Portuguese Grand Prix, on a track that has only hosted two Formula 1 races, the World Championship now moves to the Barcelona-Catalunya Circuit in Montmeló, 25 kilometres from the Catalan capital, which has featured on the calendar every year since 1991. It also used to be the usual venue for pre-season testing, but this year, because of the pandemic, that was moved to Bahrain.The track layout, featuring high, medium and low speed corners, direction changes, undulations and a long start-finish straight, is a demanding test-bench of a car’s abilities. It is also one of the most difficult tracks for overtaking. Being close to the coast means that changes in wind direction are one of the factors to deal with, because it has a significant impact on the balance of the cars that run in a medium-high downforce configuration. There are two DRS zones, one on the main straight leading to the first chicane and another after turn 9 on the back straight that leads to turn 10, where it will make less of a difference under braking, but it will not be impossible to try a textbook overtaking move around the outside, relying on entry speed going into the turn. During the winter, major changes were actually made to turn 10, a very heavy braking point where it was easy to lock up
The hardest braking point on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is in front of turn 10. The driver has to slow down around 222 km/h over just 58 meters. The calculated brake energy involved is 1,962 kW. The driver is subjected to 5.2 g, while he pushes with 148 kg onto the brake.
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