Track tweaks at Spa ahead of race
The Belgian Grand Prix organisers have made some tweaks to the Spa-Francorchamps circuit ahead of this weekend’s F1 race.
The outside of the La Source hairpin – turn one – now has a longer strip of astroturf which has been increased to three metres wide. This may discourage drivers from going off the track there to gain an advantage, as happened on the first lap of last year’s race.
Drivers will be also discouraged from cutting the corner at Radillion – the left-hander at the top of the hill after Eau Rouge. A a new electronic ‘control loop’ has been installed there which will inform race control when all four of a cars’ wheels are off the track.
There are further changes at Les Combes, which was the scene of a multi-car collision on the first lap of last year’s race.
The inside of the corner now has asphalt run-off and small bumps to discourage corner-cutting, similar to those used at turn one at the Circuit de Catalunya.
More asphalt has been added on the outside of turn six in the same sequence.
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Dipak T said on 24th August 2010, 21:42
If the asphalt run off is there to improve the retardation of a car in crash, for safety reasons, then I wont argue that. However, there should be something to punish errors, which the run off doesnt do. Case and point is the run off at Maggots and Becketts. The grass therer was suffeciently safe and punished mistakes – so why put run off there that patenly was not needed?
A logical solution would be, in corners like Pouhon, to have a three metre wide grass verge immediently on the edge of the track, followed by the run off. Obviously at corners like Eau Rouge this wouldnt be workable or safe, but it would mean that error would be punished, and the run off is still there in the case of a major off.
Or maybe even use the TechPro barriers to compensate for the re-introduction of grass verges.
Daniil said on 24th August 2010, 22:50
It would have benn better to put gravel there : highly disuassive, and no room for driving errors
DGR-F1 said on 25th August 2010, 8:10
After watching the latest BTCC round from Silverstone I see that they have a different way of discouraging drivers from taking the wrong line through a corner (ie going outside the white lines) – they Black Flag them.
Not only that, but the officials warned all the teams and drivers before the start of the race that it was going to happen, and even told them which corners would be closely watched.
And I think it worked too……
sato113 said on 25th August 2010, 11:40
no one cuts Radillion or les Combes anyway…i’m confused. seems a bit pointless.
patrickl said on 25th August 2010, 12:08
Les Combes gets cut quite often. I posted the link above already, but see this example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9S8AYa8Jh0#t=0m38s
sato113 said on 25th August 2010, 16:59
yes but that is during first lap mayhem. It is never cut as an ‘escape’ apart from on the first lap.
graigchq said on 25th August 2010, 13:04
i think the main reason for introducing these changes especially at les Combes was first lap incident there last year. The rookies ploughed in and ruined the race for Button, Hamilton and many others, where because of this runoff now, those contenders would have been able to regoup and rejoin, albeit a few places down.
I agree with most sentiments here, and probably the best idea i have read was about La Source hairpin, why not have a raised kerb dividing the off-section and the track, as then anyone running wide would be forced to slow to rejoin the track, or risk damage or a spin if taking it flat out.
Mistakes, and over-runnign a corner should be punished, not by a crash or potential injury, but by a severe time penalty, i.e. no way of making that time up at all by holding the line. Rejoin immediately, or be forced to ride over big kerbs that will unsettle the car at anything over 10% throttle