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Added on the 30/10/2019 07:10:24 - Copyright : Auto Moto EN
Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc talks about the key sections of the Circuit of the Americas, ahead of the 2019 United States Grand Prix: “I really like being in the United States and the city of Austin is amazing. It is just a great location and the atmosphere around the whole event is special, different to what we usually have. The circuit itself is also quite unique. Inspired by parts of some of the most iconic race tracks around the world, it gives us drivers a really nice challenge. With a long straight and a lot of different types of corners, you have to make sure to find the right balance for the car. It is also one of the few tracks to run counter-clockwise, so that mixes things up for us in the cockpit, too.” – Scuderia Ferrari Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc said.
After the race in Japan, the Formula 1 cars move on America for the 18th competition in the 2019 World Championship being held October 25-27 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.The track is named for the Rodriguez brothers, Ricardo and Pedro, both Formula 1 drivers who lost their lives prematurely in track accidents. Although the circuit is located 2,229 meters (7,313 feet) above sea level, the altitude doesn't cause any problems for the braking system.What does put the system to the test are the velocity spikes: last year Kimi Raikkonen’s Ferrari car reached 362 km/h (225 mph).Besides speed, the temperature of the tarmac can have a big influence on the temperature of the discs and calipers.During qualifying of two years ago, these got up to 44°C (111°F). Also, the increase in grip on the tarmac during the race weekend typically leads to a rise in the amount of braking torque discharged to the ground.According to Brembo technicians, who have ranked the 21 World Champion circuits, the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez is very demanding on the brakes. On a scale of 1 to 5, it earned a 5 on the difficulty index.
The hardest braking point on the Circuit of The Americas is in front of turn 1. The driver has to slow down around 233 km/h over just 140 meters. The calculated brake energy involved is 1,934 kW. The driver is subjected to 4.7 g, while he pushes with 115 kg onto the brake.
The 21st and last race of the Formula 1 World Championship is scheduled for November 29th to December 1st at Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The track is on the man-made island of the same name, next to Ferrari World, in the area north-west of the capital of the United Arab Emirates. Even though there are 21 corners, the drivers only use their brakes 11 times each lap.Only the city track in Singapore has more braking points: 15.The brakes are used for a total of almost 18.5 seconds each lap, which equals 17 minutes over the course of the whole race, 19% of the GP. The average peak deceleration per lap is 3.7 G, but taking into account just the first 11 corners, the average exceeds 4.6 G, a figure never approached in the remaining turns.The energy dissipated during braking in the whole GP from each single-seater is 242 kWh, which is quite similar to the Hungarian GP. From the starting line to the checkered flag, each driver exerts a total load of 53.5 tons on the brake pedal.On the single lap though, the load exceeds 970 kg.
Built in 1940, the circuit has been modified throughout the course of the years, most recently in 1990.The cars drive counterclockwise and the straights are fairly short: As a consequence, there is only one occasion when braking is used to drop the speed by more than 200 km/h (124 mph). The track is very drivable with frequent changes in direction, but it also has high-speed turns that don't require use of the brakes. Every lap, the brakes are used barely seven times, but it is not the negative record for the World Championship: in Hockenheim are used five times, in Monza and Montreal six.Overall, during one lap at Interlagos, the brakes are used for almost 12 seconds which comes to 19% of the duration of the race.The presence of few hard braking points results in the average peak deceleration per lap of 3.6 G.Even the energy dissipated in braking by each single-seater during the entire GP is contained: 206 kWh.From the starting line to the checkered flag, each driver exerts a total load of 40 tons and a half on the brake pedal, which is almost identical to the Russian GP.
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