The rain which hit the first two days’ running at the Hockenheimring could have a similar effect on this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix.
The EUMETSAT rainfall estimate shows the same large band of rain is heading towards Hungary at the moment. Given its size, speed and direction it could hit practice on Friday and possibly sessions after that as well.
The most recent image from the satellite is reproduced above with the approximate location of the Hungaroring marked in red. Click here to see an animation of the recent rainfall movement.
That is reflected in the forecasts for the next few days. Some of these predict showers on all three days of the race weekend. Others expect the rain to fall only on Friday.
Exactly what happens will depend on how the band of rain moves, so keep an eye on the radar links ahead of each session for up-to-date forecasts. The same links will be on the live comment pages during every session.
The weekend is expected to be warm with temperatures in the mid-to-high twenties.
Weather radars
Keep an eye on changes in the weather with these links:
- Hungarian Meterological Service (Orszagos Meterologiai Szolgalat) – Rainfall over the previous two hours. They also have a daily weather update in English
- Eumetsat Precipitation Estimate Easten Europe
Location of the Hungaroring
The Hungaroring lies in Mogyorod, to the north-east of Budapest.
View Hungaroring location in a larger map
If you’re in the area and can supply us with any information about the weather, please post it in the comments or let me know using Twitter.
2010 Hungarian Grand Prix
Image (C) EUMETSAT
Dianna
29th July 2010, 13:10
OK.RAIN and MORE RAIN.Here is a poll,for you all.
Who is the best “rainy day” driver???
Steezy
29th July 2010, 13:14
Sutil is one that always seems to stand out in the rain for me
sato113
29th July 2010, 13:19
stands out coz he’s not that great. remember hockenheim 2010 practice, china 2009.
Dan Thorn (@dan-thorn)
29th July 2010, 13:21
When the rain is really bucketing down Hamilton’s pretty handy; lighter rain conditions and Alonso can be quick. Button also knows his way around a wet track.
That said I think the car is a lot more of a factor in wet conditions than it used to be.
Ads21
29th July 2010, 13:40
Think Dan is right for example the 2008 McLaren was immense in the wet whilst the Ferrari that year was shocking.
Also I think the key to Buttons success in the wet is not just that he’s a good wet weather driver but frankly he’s has more racing inteligence than any other driver bar possibly Schumacher
wasiF1 (@wasif1)
29th July 2010, 13:43
I vote for Vettel but do think Hamilton is also good.
Patrickl
29th July 2010, 15:05
Yeah, it’s probably mostly the car.
For instance, remember that impressive performance of Vettel in Monza 2008. In qualifying there were 3 of those cars in the top 4 (Webber and even Bourdais were right up there too)
Polishboy808
29th July 2010, 18:34
Kubica is pretty impressive in the rain, as well as Sutil and Petrov scored his first points in the rain, and he had a very impressive start in Australia overtaking A LOT of cars very quickly.
flossyblossy
30th July 2010, 10:37
For me it has to be hamilton – think Silverstone 2008.
flossyblossy
30th July 2010, 10:38
oh, and Barrichellos pretty good in the rain too.
sato113
29th July 2010, 13:16
wow, that radar image looks great. makes the article look very high tech. bbc says heavy rain on sat night. this could lead to a wet track come sunday morning.
Mark Hitchcock (@mark-hitchcock)
29th July 2010, 13:28
Or, more significantly, a green track which will kill the soft tyres.
sato113
29th July 2010, 14:16
why do green tracks hurt super softs so much? more sliding?
luigismen
29th July 2010, 15:13
Less rubber in the track means more wear
sato113
29th July 2010, 16:47
yeah but why more wear?
Victor
29th July 2010, 22:24
The rubber through a race weekend builds up in the the spaces in the asphalt through out a race weekend so that the tires are rolling on a combination of rubber and asphalt lessening the friction/ wear on the tires. Rain washes away this build up, returning the track to it’s state before the race weekend began. Atleast that’s my understanding.
sato113
30th July 2010, 11:43
yes but why does less rubber (less grip) mean more tyre wear?
Mark Hitchcock (@mark-hitchcock)
29th July 2010, 13:28
*super-soft tyres
damonsmedley
31st July 2010, 9:34
I suppose more rubber makes for a more even surface. If there is lots of rubber laid down before a session, the racing line should have all the little dimples between the tiny gaps in the tarmac filled in, meaning it isn’t as abrasive on the tyres. When it is green the imperfections aren’t filled in and the surface is more abrasive. But this is basically what Victor said.
Todfod
29th July 2010, 13:17
That is good news. I was beginning to miss wet races again.
Kevin
29th July 2010, 13:17
Hurrah. Lets celebrate
Ned Flanders (@ned-flanders)
29th July 2010, 13:34
It had better rain. From what was looking like being one of the wettest season in years after the fly aways, 2010 suddenly dried up.
Also, by my reckoning there hasn’t been a proper wet race in Europe for almost 2 years now, since Monza 2008
Daniel
29th July 2010, 13:39
Has there ever been a wet Hungarian GP? I can’t think of one.
Ads21
29th July 2010, 13:42
2006 was a Wet/dry race
Dev
29th July 2010, 14:26
i think Button won here for honda, it was a wet race… don’t remember which year..
Lord Stig
29th July 2010, 22:20
Button won the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix. It was a wet/dry race.
STRFerrari4Ever
29th July 2010, 13:36
Yeah let it rain :) That’s the only way I see the race being interesting, here’s hoping for a race like 06!
wasiF1 (@wasif1)
29th July 2010, 13:45
If it rains on Sunday then we may have a very exciting race as we have seen in 2006 that a wet race on this track can end up to be one of the best of the season.
SoLiDG (@solidg)
29th July 2010, 13:49
Yes, let’s do a raindance on sunday. Could make things very interesting. It might be McLaren’s best shot at a good result this weekend.
DaveW
29th July 2010, 14:57
Key factor: no or less of a “dirty side” at the start.
Also, lets remember how Alonso stuffed it in the rain there in 2007. He doesn’t walk on water.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th July 2010, 14:59
It rained at the Hungarian Grand Prix in 2006, and Alonso was leading until a wheel nut worked loose after a pit stop.
He drove one of the best laps I’ve ever seen during that race.
RobR (@robr)
29th July 2010, 15:19
It’s all coming back to me, that was a truly epic race. The first ever wet race at the Hungaroring. Schumacher and Alonso both got grid penalties for silly incidents in free practice, that’s why they started 14th and 15th, and then Schumacher had to retire because he broke something on the car while banging wheels with Heidfeld in the last few laps of the race.
And don’t forget, Kimi was leading before he vaulted onto the back of Liuzzi!
Steph90 (@steph90)
29th July 2010, 16:57
For me, I’d actually say that was the best first lap ever and quite probably the best lap ever. That was such a good race too.
BasCB (@bascb)
29th July 2010, 17:43
That was a great race with Alonso literaly driving the wheels of the car (i was upset about that at the time), but it enabled Button to finally win a race.
BasCB (@bascb)
29th July 2010, 17:46
a shame really that the link to Alonso’s lap has been pulled down by FOM.
Steph90 (@steph90)
30th July 2010, 12:09
I’ve found the lap and then a little bit after (just ignore the stupid music, I wish they wouldn’t ruin the sound of the cars)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqF38t46vyU
Icthyes (@icthyes)
29th July 2010, 15:54
No, no, no. Dry practice, then rain, please!
US_Peter
29th July 2010, 20:31
Sounds like that could be just what we get:
http://www.planet-f1.com/news/3213/6284928/Rain-forecast-for-the-Hungarian-GP
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th July 2010, 20:41
If Planet F1 are saying it’ll rain you can take it as read an umbrella won’t be needed.
US_Peter
29th July 2010, 22:13
Yeah, looks like you’re right. http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?hourly=1&query=zmw:00000.35.12839&yday=212&weekday=Sunday
Most chance of rain is Friday and Saturday, and even then only a bout a 20% chance. 0% chance on Sunday apparently.
Dianna
29th July 2010, 17:49
I think this could be a good trial for many of the younger drivers who have excelled this year in the dry.~~~~~~~so hopefully rain for Saturday and more rain for the race on Sunday.A double whammy :).
charles fox
29th July 2010, 18:26
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qImZVI2-umE
Got some silly but a little funny Quake (computer game) noises all over it. I’d forgot about this, and what the hell happened with Kimi and whoever it was?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkjhiGNr7hA&feature=related
BasCB (@bascb)
29th July 2010, 20:39
thanks for posting those, i would love to to have the same podium again, only Heidfeld replaced by Nico (one of them)!
A Singh
29th July 2010, 21:03
Vettel’s probably the most consistent in the wet I reckon
BBT
29th July 2010, 21:22
The current Red Bull has been rubbish in the rain though, I honestly think that RBR would struggle to be top 5 in the wet, maybe because they can’t get on the power in the wet the EBD doesn’t work and they don’t get anywhere as much downforce as normal (all their eggs in one basket) unless they’ve fix that little issue now. Although it could be something else.
US_Peter
29th July 2010, 22:22
They certainly had no trouble qualifying in the wet in Malaysia. Their race went sideways in China mainly due to a terrible call on tires that caused two more pit stops than the podium finishers… I think on the whole the RB6 should be good in the wet, as mechanical grip disappears and aero becomes even more important.
Joel
29th July 2010, 21:28
Flew in from Sweden to Budapest yesterday for my first GP weekend, so I can try to update you guys on the weather whenever I can.
Today (Thursday) has been mostly sunny, with patches of clouds moving in. As time wore on, clouds started moving in. Our first bit of actual rain started falling just a few minutes ago. This is exactly the weather most forecasts were predicting for today, so the weather seems to be behaving as expected. Rain is projected for tomorrow’s FP, and morning/mid day for Saturday’s Quali.
Looks like it could be fun, but as always, a race in the rain isn’t as fun as a race that has rain happen to it half way through. We’ll see what happens, but I’m sure I’ll get wet regardless.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
29th July 2010, 21:32
Thanks Joel, have a great time and do keep us updated!
US_Peter
29th July 2010, 22:26
Yeah thanks, and have a blast!
Lord Stig
29th July 2010, 22:36
Hopefully the race won’t be too much of a parade, if it does not rain. In any case have a great time. If you are interested and have a smartphone with full HTML browser, you can join the Live Blogs. With the iPhone there is a app or you can go to: http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php Though do enjoy watching the race, and not get distracted with our constant flow messages!
Joel
29th July 2010, 23:00
I’m on a HTC powered Android phone, so the app is a no go, but the website looks fine. Will join in on the blogging, assuming I can figure out data traffic without having to deal with data roaming charges bordering on extortion.
On that note, any reason for why my phone (Android OS 2.2 “Froyo”) can’t post comments to this site? The browser handles JavaScript and cookies just fine, but this site says it isn’t enabled whenever I try to post.
SoLiDG (@solidg)
29th July 2010, 21:58
Gascoyne said they expect rain on friday and saturday but a dry sunday.
Joel
30th July 2010, 8:48
Overcast with little chance of rain today. It looks gray and dull, but I honestly don’t think it’s going to rain. Perhaps some later tonight, but of little bearing on F1.
Looking at the weather forecasts however, the prediction of rain for Saturday has been upgraded from what looked like showers to complete monsoon season. Heavy showers all day, maybe clearing up a little at night.
Sunday is still looking like a sun day.
sato113
30th July 2010, 16:55
any update on friday evening?
Joel
30th July 2010, 19:04
A few droplets of rain have fallen today, but nothing at all severe enough to affect the racing. Rain is set to start falling tonight. I don’t doubt it for even a second.
Tomorrow morning’s FP3 will most likely be wet. We’ll just have to see if it holds on into Q1 and beyond.
Younger Hamilton
31st July 2010, 2:19
When Rain comes in F1 this season,Red Bull Faulter and McLaren Shine.
Joel
31st July 2010, 6:52
Heavy rain and thunder last night, but now it’s drying up. Some weather services suggest that was it, others that a flood of Biblical proportions is just around the corner. Right now, honestly, I have no idea who is right.
Regardless, now it’s off to the track, umbrella by my side