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F1 (Round 14): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Turkish Grand Prix

Race starts at 1:10 pm in Istanbul | 6:10 pm in Malaysia

This weekend sees a Formula 1 race taking place in Turkey, the first time since 2011 when the last Turkish F1 Grand Prix was held there. The 14^th round of the 2020 championship is being run at the Intercity Istanbul Park or Istanbul Racing Circuit (or initially, Istanbul Otodrom) in the country’s capital city. The track was opened in 2005 and was another project of Hermann Tilke, who has designed many of the modern F1 circuits around the world.

Financial issues are said to have been the reason for the Istanbul circuit being left out of the championship calendar after 2011. Its inclusion this year may have been because it was willing to host a round in the revised calendar that was impacted by the pandemic. Having a circuit that was already properly designed and approved for F1 racing, and presumably maintained in a good condition, would have made it an easy choice for the organisers.

One of the most challenging circuits
Istanbul Park has often been labelled as one of the most challenging modern circuits in F1. Of the 14 turns, Turn 8 is ‘legendary’ – a fast, high-g 640-metre left-hander with multiple apexes. Though today’s racing cars are better designed to handle the turn compared to 9 years ago, the speed (around 270 km/h) and duration in the turn will still place a lot of loads on the tyres.

“Due to the increased downforce levels, the iconic Turn 8 will be less of a focus than before. It was pretty much flat-out in the 2011 cars, but it will become even less of a challenge in these 2020 machines. So, teams don’t need to compromise the setup so much for it,” said Mercedes-AMG’s Toto Wolff.

*What the racing cars looked like in 2011 (above and below).*

Besides Turn 8, there are also other challenges around the 5.338-km long circuit that the drivers will do 58 laps on. It will be tough and technically demanding, with the long back straight that allow DRS to enable overtaking heading into Turn 12. The end of the lap consists of a combination of three low-speed corners where braking stability on entry and traction on exit are important.

Wet conditions make things tricky
Given the wet conditions experienced lately, things are therefore going to be tricky. And what is worse is that drivers have reported the resurfaced circuit has created conditions like an ice-rink – rain will just make it much tougher. If it does rain during the race, expect dramatic moments.

Limited value in historical data
“Unlike some of the other unfamiliar races on the 2020 F1 schedule, we do actually have some historical data for the Turkish Grand Prix. However, because the cars have changed so much and the track has recently been resurfaced, the historic data is only useful as a reference,” added Wolff.

A number of the drivers on the starting grid this weekend have raced at Istanbul Park before. Kimi Raikkonen, Lewis Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel have been winners but the one who won the most times was Felipe Massa in 2006, 2007 and 2008, and Jenson Button also won the race in 2009.

Provisional calendar for 2021 Formula 1 World Championship

The Formula 1 organization has announced a provisional calendar of races for the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship which will be submitted to the World Motor Sport Council for approval. While Formula E has confirmed only its first four races, there are 23 rounds proposed by Formula 1 (one of which has yet to be confirmed), and the championship will run from March up till early December.

“We are pleased to announce the 2021 Formula 1 provisional calendar after extensive conversations with our promoters, the teams and the FIA. We are planning for 2021 events with fans that provide an experience close to normal and expect our agreements to be honoured. We have proven that we can safely travel and operate our races and our promoters increasingly recognise the need to move forward and manage the virus. In fact, many hosts actually want to use our event as a platform to show the world they are moving forward,” said Chase Carey, Chairman & CEO of Formula 1.

Two new venues
While most of the venues are familiar to the teams and F1 fans, there are two that are of note. One of the is Zandvoort in Holland which has not had a F1 race since 1985. It was to have run one this year, but the pandemic prevented it. The 2.7-km Zandvoort circuit is quite old, dating back to 1948, but has been redeveloped since the last time F1 cars ran on it.

The other is at Jeddah, a city in Saudi Arabia by the Red Sea. Unlike Bahrain and the UAE, the Saudis aren’t offering a closed circuit for the race but will create a temporary one in the city. No details of the street circuit are known yet, but it should be an interesting new challenge for the drivers – and it might even be run at night. The F1 race won’t be Saudi Arabia’s first international motorsport event as it has already hosted the all-electric Formula E series and the 2020 Dakar Rally.

*The first-ever F1 race in Saudi Arabia might be run at night, like the races in neighbouring Bahrain and Abu Dhabi.*

Vietnam was looking forward to its first-ever F1 event this year but the pandemic prevented it from happening. It is not listed in the 2021 calendar although it might be the one in the empty slot on April 25.

*It is uncertain if Vietnam will get to run a F1 race at its Hanoi circuit in 2021.*

The two countries which had not run F1 races for some time but have been used this year – Turkey and Portugal – are not included either, while the Imola Circuit in Italy is also not in the calendar. It was used for the thirteenth round this year at the beginning of this month.

2020 season unprecedented in F1
The 2021 season follows an unprecedented year for Formula 1 in which the sudden escalation of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the championship not even being able to start its first round in Australia. There were hopes of starting in the second quarter but the situation was still not safe enough and it wasn’t until July that the first of 17 races could be run in Austria.

Safety measures and procedures have been enforced for all participants and for the early races, spectators were not allowed into the circuit. The restriction has been eased a bit for some races but is dependent on approval of local authorities at each venue.

In trying to schedule as many races as possible before the year ended, the organizers took to running two rounds at the same circuit over two weekends in some cases (Austria, the UK and Italy) and the season will conclude on December 13 in Abu Dhabi.

Continued safety measures
The initial races had no spectators and authorities expected strict health and safety measures to be observed by the participants. The plans for 2021 have involved extensive dialogue with all promoters and their local and national authorities at a time of ongoing fluidity related to the global pandemic. “Our hosts for 2021 are reassured by our safe return to racing this season and confident that the plans and procedures we have in place will allow us to return to a level of normality for the 2021 season,” the organizers said.

Of course, the calendar assumes that the pandemic will diminish further by next year – which we should all be praying for – but it is still an unknown factor. So far, the F1 events run have not caused any clusters of COVID-19 infection to be created and the organisers are likely to propose easing of restrictions in the course of the year, subject to approval of the authorities of course.

Mercedes-Benz EQ Team prepares for second year of Formula E racing

In its debut season in Formula E where it finished third overall in the all-electric single-seater championship, the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team is preparing to put in stronger effort in Season 7.

Opting for continuity
The driver pairing remains unchanged for the second campaign as the team has opted for continuity. Thus Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne will once again be in the cockpits, armed with the experience of Season 6. In the last round, there already demonstrated strong performance on track with a 1-2 finish.

In the coming season, the team expects to face a multitude of new challenges, both on and off the racetrack. Competing against some of the world’s strongest drivers, teams and manufacturers is not only about performance, but also about coordinated teamwork, intelligent energy management and carefully thought-out strategies.

*First season of racing for the team saw a 1-2 finish only in the final round.*

Evolved Gen2 car
Since the launch of the Gen2 model for the series, the Formula E cars have been even more visually stunning with their unique, futuristic design. This goes for the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 02 racing car which is an evolution from its predecessor.

Precise, EQ-blue flow lines extend over the entire length of the vehicle. They give the Mercedes-Benz EQ Silver Arrow 02 more dynamics and highlight the EQ brand with their blue colouring. At the rear, large silver stars form a distinctive Mercedes-Benz pattern, leaving no doubt that it is a Silver Arrow.

The 5.1-metre long racing car produces 250 kW in the maximum power mode for qualifying or when deploying Fanboost. In race mode, the regulations limit output to 200 kW. The car accelerates from 0-100 km/h in approximately 2.8 seconds and reaches a top speed of up to 280 km/h.

The drivetrain consists of an inverter, motor, gearbox and parts of the rear axle as well as the software used for energy management. In contrast to the standard chassis, these areas may be freely developed by the teams and manufacturers.

DJI, well known for its drones, will supply the Mercedes-Benz EQ Formula E Team with latest aerial imagery and creative camera technology to bring racing fans closer to the action on and off the track.

4 rounds first
The new season starts in January 2021 in South America and for now, given the uncertainty of the pandemic situation, the organisers have 4 races scheduled with the approval of the FIA World Motor Sport Council. Another set of will be announced in early 2021 following discussions with the FIA.

F1 (Round 13): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

Race starts at 1:10 pm in Italy | 8:10 pm in Malaysia

Round 13 of the 2020 Formula World Championship is another new event – the Formula 1 Emirates Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. It is the third race on Italian soil this year, after races at Monza and Mugello.

This weekend, it is held at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, more popularly referred to as the Imola Circuit as it is near the city of Imola. The last time the circuit had a F1 race was 14 years, when the 2006 San Marino Grand Prix was run.

The circuit had its name associated with the famous Italian carmaker in 1970 to honour Ferrari and mark the importance of the links with the circuit. It was initially after Enzo Ferrari’s son Dino; when Enzo himself passed away in 1988, the decision was taken to add the father’s name to that of his son.

*The last time a F1 race was held at Imola was the 2006 San Marino GP.*

A 2-day weekend format is being tried out for the first time, an approach which could allow additional races to be added to the calendar without spending too many days travelling far from home.

The shortened schedule means less track time – and only one driver has actually done a F1 race at Imola. He is Kimi Raikkonen, who raced at the circuit 5 times in total. For the rest, there’s only one 90-minute session in the morning available to get to know the layout before qualifying in the afternoon.

There are no lap times to aim for, partly because Formula 1 has not been here for several years and even for Raikkonen, the layout has been changed somewhat from what he knew.

Until very recently, it had been hoped that spectators would be allowed to attend in limited numbers, but the worsening of the COVID-19 situation in Italy forced a new decision to be made this week to hold the race without spectators. Furthermore, the race must start right after lunchtime to ensure there is sufficient daylight in the 4-hour window available.

The Imola circuit is a highly technical one, with a wide range of corners. The 67-year old circuit (which has changed over the years) is narrow and bumpy, as the older tracks tend to be. This is quite a change from what the drivers experienced in Portugal just recently.

“With very little time available to analyse the data from free practice, we have reorganised our priorities, allocating resources in a different way both at the track and back in Maranello. We will also manage components, engines and gearboxes for example or the incorporation of components that have already been tested, so as to cut down time spent and to try and reduce the risks as much as possible,” said Matteo Togninalli, Scuderia Ferrari’s Chief Race Engineer.

“The fact that the track has not had a F1 race in 14 years is indeed an additional and significant variable. It means that preparation prior to the event is even more important to try and perform as well as possible. Without any data to work from, as is the case with Imola, the level of fine tuning is reduced and one has to look at the bigger picture,” he explained.

He added that the simulator helps the driver to quickly familiarise himself with the track, not just its layout, but also other features that can impact performance, such as bumpy sections, where to ride the kerbs, the right lines and braking points. “It’s true the drivers learn a new track incredibly quickly and are soon on the limit, but it’s also true that when you go to a new track, the lap times tumble much more quickly than usual. It’s important therefore to do as many laps as possible to get to the optimum level as soon as possible,” Togninalli said.

F1 (Round 12): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

♦ The first casualty right after the race began was Sergio Perez whose encounter at Turn 4 with Max Verstappen forced the BWT Racing Point driver to head back to the pits.

♦ When the race started, winds were strong and rain was forecast. As the cars completed half a lap of the circuit, the first drops of rain began to fall.

♦ Lewis Hamilton had gotten off to a good start but was overtaken by Valtteri Bottas who was caught by surprise by Carlos Sainz and lost his leading position to the McLaren driver. But Sainz had only a brief moment of glory and lost the lead to Bottas who was hotly pursued by Hamilton.

♦ The Red Bull team wanted Max Verstappen to stay out as long as possible before bringing him in for new tyres, but by the 17th lap, it was clear that he was starting to struggle with tyre issues.

♦ A day of drama for BWT Racing Point with both cars involved in collisions. On the 19th lap, Lance Stroll turned in and collided with Lando Norris, resulting in both cars being damaged enough to have to go into the pits for new wings. The Stewards found Stroll to be at fault and gave him a 5-second penalty.

♦ In spite of complaining about tyres, Hamilton regained the lead on lap 20 and began to try to pull further away from Bottas.

♦ Before the race reached its halfway point, Stroll got another bit of bad news from his team – another time penalty of 5 seconds for driving out of track limits too often.

♦ At the halfway mark, Hamilton was in a steady lead with 8 seconds separating him from Bottas. Charles Leclerc had moved up to third but was not a threat as he was 21 second behinds Bottas. The Ferrari driver managed to slip into the pits to change tyres and lost only one place when he rejoined the race behind Verstappen.

♦ By lap 40, the Mercedes-AMG team decided that Hamilton needed to change his tyres but the British driver seemed reluctant to come in even though he was a comfortable 8 seconds in the lead.

♦ On lap 41, the Stewards decided that Romain Grosjean had been warned enough times about exceeding track limits and gave him a 5-second penalty. Bottas was also starting to get warnings as well. Alexander Albon would also get a warning later on.

♦ A slow puncture was detected on Norris’ car and he began falling back on lap 43, taking care to reach the pits safely for a tyre change.

♦ With 53 laps completed, it looked like the Portuguese GP would see all cars completing the race… but then Stroll came into the pits and didn’t leave again. He was already in last place anyway.

♦ With 10 laps to go, Verstappen decided not to press hard to try to catch Bottas who was about 10 second ahead. He was fairly safe in third as Leclerc was 20 seconds behind, so the sensible thing to do was to make sure he got the car to the finish.

♦ On the 58th lap, Hamilton told his team that he was experiencing cramps… a case of dehydration? But it seemed to do him good as he went on to set the fastest time!

♦ Hamilton took the chequered flag of the 66-lap race with a 25-second lead and that win was his 92nd, which means he holds the record for the most number of wins in F1 history.

F1 (Round 12): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

Race starts at 1:10 pm in Portugal/9:10 pm in Malaysia

Round 12 of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship will see teams race in Portugal for first time in 24 years. Not since 1996 has there been a Portuguese F1 Grand Prix although the country has had its own GP since the 1950s. In its first 10 years, it was run on a street circuit and then from 1984 until 1996, at the Estoril circuit. The poor condition of the circuit led to it being dropped as a F1 venue when the government was slow in making the required improvements.

However, the twelfth round is not being held at 48-year old Estoril circuit but the newer Algarve International Circuit, referred to as the Portimao Circuit as it is close to the city of that name. The circuit was completed in 2008 and is FIA-certified for world championships.

It has been added to the 2020 calendar as one of the circuits available in view of others being closed or conditions not suitable due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There is no certainty that the Portimao Circuit will be used again in future.

While the circuit has never hosted a F1 race, it has been used as a test venue for F1 teams on three occasions. Within two months of its completion, Ferrari and McLaren conducted a 2-day test; a month later, McLaren and Toyota came, followed by Renault, Toro Rosso and Williams.

A lot of ups and downs
The hillside circuit to the north of the city has been likened to a scaled down Spa-Francorchamps, as it is defined by frequent changes of elevation. The track features a wide variety of corners and also a long pit straight that measures almost a kilometre in length. A number of blind corners also call to mind Austin’s Circuit of the Americas.

“On paper, the track layout itself should suit higher downforce levels but because of the long main straight, we’re likely to see teams trialling different wing settings in practice to decide where the compromise is – being faster in the corners or protecting yourself on the long straight,” said Mercedes-AMG’s Toto Wolff.

“We’re expecting overtaking to be tricky in Portugal due to the flowing nature of the track and lack of heavy braking zones. The only DRS zone is on the main straight and the quick final corner will make it harder for cars to keep a tight gap. The zone itself is very long, so this should give drivers the chance to close up on their rivals,” he explained.

No historical data
This being a new venue, there is an absence of historical data to call upon. So achieving the perfect car set-up will be tricky and complicating matters is the fact that the entire track has been resurfaced for its first ever F1 race this weekend.

To best cope with the uncertain demands of the layout and the new surface, Pirelli is providing the hardest tyres in the range. The C1 compound will feature as the white-banded hard tyre, the C2 as the yellow medium and the C3 as the red soft tyre.

Championship positions
In the Drivers’ Championship, Lewis Hamilton remains in his commanding lead, now 69 points ahead of team mate Valtteri Bottas. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen to narrow the gap to Bottas to just 14 points after the Mercedes-AMG driver did not finish at the Eifel Grand Prix a fortnight ago. Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo’s first podium since 2018 vaulted the Australian to fourth in the standings with 78 points, 10 points ahead of BWT Racing Point’s Sergio Perez.

In the battle for the Constructors’ crown, Mercedes-AMG have reached almost 400 points and 180 points ahead of second-placed Red Bull Racing. This weekend’s race could confirm the team’s seventh consecutive title. To do so, it would need to score 40 points or more than its closest rival. Incidentally, the Portuguese GP has twice been the championship-deciding race for the Drivers Championship (1984 and 1993).

Behind the top two, BWT Racing Point have overtaken McLaren to sit in third place with 120 points, though the gap is just 4 points. Ricciardo’s podium put Renault in fifth, 2 points behind McLaren.

CUPRA is first carmaker to join new EXTREME E off-road championship

Extreme E is a new off-road series which, like Formula E, will be for all-electric vehicles. Set to start off in January 2021, the series will have 5 rounds in places which have been damaged or affected by climate change. The environments will be Arctic, Desert, Rainforest, Glacier and even Ocean.

While some companies have expressed interest in participating, CUPRA, the high-performance brand of Spanish carmaker SEAT, has confirmed its commitment to the event. CUPRA will collaborate with ABT Sportsline as the racing team’s main partner, and will contribute a team of engineers and drivers.

Electrification and sportiness
“CUPRA and the Extreme E competition hold an identical challenger attitude to prove that electrification and sportiness can be a perfect match. Such partnerships boost our path towards electrification as we will have 2 plug-in hybrid models by the beginning of 2021 and our first all-electric vehicle, the CUPRA el-Born, that will be ready by the second half of next year,.” said President of SEAT & CUPRA, Wayne Griffiths.

CUPRA’s enthusiasm should be a surprise as the brand has already been involved in electrically-powered racing cars. It developed the CUPRA e-Racer which is the world’s first all-electric racing touring car, powered by 4 electric motors that deliver a combined 680 ps/ 960 Nm.

That project helped the brand develop its knowledge base as it continues along the road towards electrification of its passenger vehicle line-up. Now it has the CUPRA Leon plug-in hybrid, which will be followed at the beginning of 2021 by the CUPRA Formentor plug-in hybrid, and then the CUPRA el-Born in the second half of next year.

Crews must have one male, one female
The Extreme E has a gender equal sporting format whereby teams must field one male and one female driver. The first of these is CUPRA e-ambassador, Rally Cross and DTM Champion, Mattias Ekstrom.

*Sara Price is one of the drivers in the event, and she will be with the American Chip Ganassi Team.*

“Extreme E is a mix of Raid and Rally Cross, racing through very different environments with tracks marked using GPS,” said Ekstrom. “But it holds a lot of promise for developing electric vehicles; collecting data to feedback into cars in areas such as software and regeneration.”

There are a great many areas where know-how can be transferred, that should bring huge developments to future vehicles in areas including driveability, power delivery, chassis setup and steering. Additionally, participating in Extreme E will boost the visibility of the brand.

Where and when
The championship, managed by the same organisation that does Formula E, is recognised as an FIA International Series. At the time of writing, there are 8 teams on the list of participants, with CUPRA being the first carmaker to join.

Extreme E’s will see the participants and their vehicles and equipment going around the world. To provide transport to remote locations, a floating paddock and base has been developed. This is the RMS St. Helena, which will be used to transport the championship’s freight and infrastructure, including vehicles, to the nearest port to each of the 5 locations. This will also minimise Extreme E’s emissions profile as well as facilitating scientific research through an on-board laboratory.

After Formula E, Extreme E will take electric cars into off-road competition

F1 (Round 11): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

♦ Spectators were again allowed to watch the race from the stands and some 20,000 were present at Nurburgring.

♦ When the lights turned green, Kimi Raikkonen shot off from the starting grid on his 323rd Grand Prix and that makes him the record-holder with the most F1 starts, ahead of Rubens Barrichello.

*Kimi Raikkonen celebrated his 323rd F1 start, which made him the driver with the most F1 starts ever.*

♦ 14 minutes into the race, Romain Grosjean alerted his team that his finger seemed to be damaged by what he believed to be gravel hitting his hand during lap 7.

♦ Red Bull Racing’s Alexander Albon was the first driver to return to the pits for a tyre change at the end of lap 7 as he seemed to have flat-spotted the tyres.

♦ Valtteri Bottas had gotten a good start to lead, with Lewis Hamilton chasing him. He lost the lead when he locked up going into Turn 1 and Hamilton swept past him. The tyres were flat-spotted so he headed into the pits for a change.

♦ On lap 14, Williams Racing’s George Russell got bumped off at Turn 1 by Kimi Raikkonen and his departure brought the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) into action. The VSC was tested in 2014 and found to be useful so it was adopted from the 2015 season. The Stewards looked into the collision and whether Raikkonen was at fault.

♦ As the VSC ended about a lap later, Albon crossed the path of Daniil Kvyat and damaged the front wing of the Scuderia AlphaTauri. The collision got Albon a 5-second penalty. Anyway, the THial Red Bull Racing driver retired on lap 24 after returning to the pits.

♦ On lap 17, as the first few drops of rain were felt in some areas of the track, Bottas’ car suddenly lost power and he had to bring it back to the pits, and had to retire as the Power Unit had problems. Meanwhile, at the front, Hamilton was pursued by Max Verstappen.

♦ A few laps before the race reached the halfway mark, Esteban Ocon had to retire due to a suspected hydraulic problem and then Lando Norris reported that his car was losing power. He struggled to keep up the speed as Sergio Perez got past him.

♦ At the halfway mark, Hamilton and Verstappen were way ahead in the lead, a 5-second gap separating the world champion from the Dutchman. Almost a minute behind was Daniel Ricciardo, the Renault driver. Four cars had retired.

♦ By lap 45, Norris’ McLaren pulled over, smoke coming out and because it was in a rather tricky position, the Mercedes-AMG Safety Car was despatched while removal was underway. The other McLaren driven by Carlos Sainz Jr was in close contention with Sergio Perez of BWT Racing Point.

♦ 10 laps were left when the Safety Car withdrew and Hamilton managed to get a strong start ahead although Verstappen almost bumped into him. The Mercedes driver even set a new lap record to make sure he had the dominance to stay ahead till the end.

♦ Hamilton took his seventh win of the season with a 4.4-second lead but more significantly, it was the 91st win of his career which now puts him equal with Michael Schumacher.

F1 (Round 11): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

Race starts at 2:10 pm in Germany/8:10 pm in Malaysia

Round 11 of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship sees yet another different name for the event that will run at Germany’s Nurburgring circuit. It’s called the Eifel Grand Prix this time, which makes it the fourth name, having previously hosted the German, European and Luxembourg Grands Prix. The circuit has not had a F1 race since the German Grand Prix of 2013.

The ‘Eifel’ name refers to the mountains in the region (nothing to do with the Eiffel Tower in Paris) and in the 1930s when there was a race of that name, it saw the birth of the Silver Arrows legend. On June 3 1934, the newly developed Mercedes-Benz W25 won the Eifelrennen with an average speed of 122.5 km/h. Legend has it that the W25 was slightly above the weight limit for the 750-kg Formula in which it competed. And (allegedly) its white paint was scraped off before the race to meet the regulatory limits, exposing its shiny bodywork – hence the first Silver Arrow was born.

*The first of the Silver Arrows at the 1934 Eifel Grand Prix.*

Technical track
The layout of the Nurburgring’s GP Circuit draws some comparisons with Silverstone in that it features a technical, low-speed opening sector followed by faster corners later in the lap. It presents a good all-round test of a car’s performance because it includes a wide range of corner speed and profiles – from high-speed turns, to slow-speed hairpins and twisty chicanes.

While lacking the extreme high-speed turns of the British circuit, it is expected to demand similarly high levels of downforce. This means that the maximum speed anticipated for the W11 (316 km/h) is expected to be the lowest figure of this season.

The circuit’s undulations are one of its most striking features, with a large amount of elevation change. In fact, the difference between the highest point (the start/finish straight) and the lowest point at Turn 7 is around 55 metres.

One of the biggest unknowns for all of the teams this weekend is the track surface and how it has evolved over time. Getting the tyres to work and understanding the operating window will be crucial to unlocking performance out on track.

The tyres Pirelli will supply
Pirelli brings tyres from the middle of the range this weekend with a C2 Hard tyre, C3 Medium tyre and C4 Soft tyre provided. The circuit is not noted as being particularly tough on the rubber but the Italian manufacturer cites the heavy deceleration into the hairpin and its unusual camber as factors likely to push the front left tyre very hard.

While the GP Circuit made its F1 debut in an October race, it is unusual to be racing this far north, this late in the season. The reason is, of course, due to the suspension of activities in the first half of the year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to a rescheduling of the rounds from July.

The forecast for the weekend indicates the potential for temperatures in single figures alongside the usual Eifel showers. It is something the teams will watch closely as it will present its own unique set of challenges for the tyres.

Victory and fastest lap for Valtteri Bottas in Russia last time out saw the Finn close the gap on his team-mate Lewis Hamilton at the top of the Drivers’ Championship table. Hamilton continues to lead with 205 points to Bottas’ 161. The tightest battle among the drivers is currently over fourth position, between Lando Norris, Alex Albon and Daniel Ricciardo.

Championship positions
Victory and third place in Sochi extended the Mercedes-AMG advantage in the Constructors’ Championship to 174 points. They now lead Red Bull Racing 366 to 192. Behind Red Bull, the battle for third has become intense after a poor showing in Sochi dragged McLaren back towards their rivals. With 106 points, they are two ahead of Racing Point, on 104, and seven ahead of Renault on 99.

FIA research finds solutions to reduce spinal injuries in cross-country events

The FIA (the international motorsport governing body) has made a breakthrough in motorsport safety through the use of computer simulation to study accident cases known to cause spinal injuries that are commonly reported in Cross-Country competition.

Following a number of cases of spinal injury during a heavy impact or landing that were reported by Cross-Country competitors, the FIA Safety Department conducted extensive research to identify the most significant factors that contribute to the risk of this type of injury. The research project was supported by funding from the FIA Foundation.

Simulations with THUMS
Using a virtual model of the cockpit environment and the Total Human Model for Safety (THUMS) to represent the driver and co-driver, the researchers simulated hundreds of crash cases to examine how the position and restraint of the competitors translated into loading of the spine.

The THUMS model, which was developed by Toyota Motor Corporation, who work in partnership with the FIA, offers a virtual representation of the human body. This is made up of almost 2 million elements, which accurately reproduce the human form, from rigid bone structures to soft tissues and organs.

Real-world case studies
To validate the results of the simulation, the research relied on correlation with real-world cases where the injuries were documented, including an accident during a Cross-Country rally in Qatar in 2018 in which the co-driver suffered vertebra fractures. Significantly, the driver of that car suffered no injuries, which demonstrated to researchers that if the key differences between the driver and co-driver can be quantified, this knowledge could be applied by all competitors to prevent injuries in similar cases.

The results provided by the THUMS model highlighted that rotating the competitor’s seat to a more upright position equated to a 22% reduction in the forces that translate into a fracture of the spine during a heavy landing.

Safety harness installation important
The FIA’s research concluded that the installation of the safety harness is a key factor in mitigating spinal injury during a heavy landing or impact. Changing the angle of the lap strap on the safety harness between the anchorage point behind the seat and the buckle resulted in an 8% reduction in the potential for a spinal fracture in the event of a heavy landing.

The study also found that a heavy landing with a tight safety harness reduced the load on the spine by around 6%, meaning that it is important competitors always make sure their safety harness is properly tightened during the entire event. It was also found that a 10-kg lower mass of the driver or co-driver led to an 8% reduction in the load on the spine.

Adam Baker, FIA Safety Director, said: “Simulation using the THUMS model has enabled us to study a wide range of Cross-Country accident cases in fine detail, improving our understanding of the key factors that contribute to spinal fractures in Cross-Country competition. We would like all competitors and teams to benefit from the results of this research, as even minor changes in the cockpit can prevent injury.”

Piston.my

FIA

F1 (Round 14): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Turkish Grand Prix

Provisional calendar for 2021 Formula 1 World Championship

Mercedes-Benz EQ Team prepares for second year of Formula E racing

F1 (Round 13): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

F1 (Round 12): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

F1 (Round 12): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

CUPRA is first carmaker to join new EXTREME E off-road championship

F1 (Round 11): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

F1 (Round 11): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

FIA research finds solutions to reduce spinal injuries in cross-country events

F1 (Round 14): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Turkish Grand Prix

Provisional calendar for 2021 Formula 1 World Championship

Mercedes-Benz EQ Team prepares for second year of Formula E racing

F1 (Round 13): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix

F1 (Round 12): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

F1 (Round 12): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix

CUPRA is first carmaker to join new EXTREME E off-road championship

F1 (Round 11): Results And Highlights Of 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

F1 (Round 11): Preview & Starting Grid For 2020 Eifel Grand Prix

FIA research finds solutions to reduce spinal injuries in cross-country events

Archive

Nissan Celebrates 40 Years of NISMO Performance Excellence

Volvo Teases Updated XC90 Crossover for “90/90” Day

Lotus Unveils Theory 1: A Bold Vision of the Future for Intelligent Performance Vehicles

Honda Malaysia Introduces Special Edition Models of the City V and the WRV

Proton Expands Global Presence with New CKD Plant in Egypt

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